Playlist 3: Five new African music videos to check out

CENTRAL AFRICA

Parol - 'Si tu vois le feu' (Cameroon)

Pierre Simon Kossi (aka Parol) is a young Cameroonian rapper from a popular neighbourhood in Yaoundé. He is ambitious and determined to succeed in the music industry. This brand new video of the rapper was released on 15 October 2015. 'Si tu vois le feu' (which means “if you see the fire”) confirms the talent of this artist, who is currently based in France. Through his songs, Parol tries to educate and raise awareness on numerous issues. The power of this songs resides in the lyrics, because he believes that 'it was the Word that created the World'. This new music video is to be enjoyed without moderation. 

WEST AFRICA - French

S'Killaz - 'Tchiga Pertu' (Senegal/Cape Verde)

S'Killaz is a rap group formed in 2005 in Dakar, the Senegalese capital, by Charly Alves, Manel Francis and Lou Evora. Their latest video 'Tchiga Pertu' was shot on sunny island of Ngor. The song is included in their EP Ngem Ngem released on 24 July 2015.This video, directed by Blackaneze production, is a call to celebrate and enjoy life - but also a hymn to the diverse and mixed origins of this group. Everything in this song - the rhythm, the music and the lyrics - is a reference to Cape Verde, their country of origin. The video also includes a cameo appearance from Philip Monteiro, one of the ambassadors of Creole music in Senegal.

WEST AFRICA - English

Davido – 'Dodo' (Nigeria)

The video for Davido’s ‘Dodo’ has caused a small controversy for its alleged commentary on the relationship between men and plus-sized women. Indeed, on some level it can be viewed as claiming that such women employ less than honourable means to snag the man of their dreams. But that reading ignores the playfulness of the story and its general tongue-in-cheek tone. Also, the video may actually be a satire on the shallowness of certain men. With the song Davido attempts to recreate the success of ‘Aiye’, his hit from a few years prior. And if that fails to happen, he can be consoled by two related features of the ‘Dodo’ video. One, it may be dishonest but here at last is a video where a female character has agency; she gets to choose her man and win him over. Two, the Nigerian superstar, hustled away from the spotlight, is hardly the protagonist of his own video. Considering Nigerian music video tropes and the ego of pop artists, that’s a new and radical feature - and long may it continue!

SOUTHERN AFRICA

Mathias Mhere - 'Mukombe Wechizoro' (Zimbabwe)

Directed by W. Slim Magombedze, 'Mukombe Wechizoro' is a new music video by one of Zimbabwe’s top gospel artists, Mathias Mhere. Taken from his 2015 album Glory To Glory, the video is based on a biblical incident (1 Samuel 16:10-11) where Prophet Samuel (in white robes) visited Jesse, the father of David, to anoint a new King of Israel. Mhere sings ‘Ndiani mukuru kuvana vaJesse? Kana aripo simuka tione’, which means ‘Who’s the eldest among Jesse’s children? Stand up if you’re here’. He adds ‘Nyasha dzedenga ndidzo dzakuyambusa’, translated as ‘God’s grace has made you successful’. In the video, Mhere plays the role of Jesse, an old man. The other characters in the video also wear traditional attire to depict the biblical era. The song encourages people to rely on God’s grace for success.

EAST AFRICA

Dream Boys – 'Uzamubwire' (Rwanda)

Songs have been written about every topic imaginable, but many of the best ones - from swooning 1950s ballads to contemporary club bangers - have been penned about the ups and downs of being in love. Taking cue from the past, Rwandan based RnB group Dream Boys (Indatwa), composed of Nemeye Platini and Claude Mujyanama, have released this music video to their song ‘Uzamubwire’ (loosely translated as ‘Go tell her’), a song released sometime in July 2015 that talks about a man who wants to woo back his woman. While the lyrics are not something to write home about, the video that utilizes various settings is definitely worth a watch. The beat is great and it doesn't matter that they sing in a local dialect that many may not understand - the video carries the message home. In the song, the man asks the woman to come back to him as he understands that bad things happened in the past and he is ready to forgive the woman.