Three women who defined traditional music in East Africa

8 Mar 2018 - 13:40

Published under the Creative Commons Licence

Beninese singer Angelique Kidjo went onstage in 2015 to receive her second Grammy for World Music for the album Eve, a tribute to African women. As part of her acceptance speech she said: “This album is dedicated to the women of Africa. Women of Africa, you rock!” Kodjo said. “I wanted the world to see African women not only through the lens of rape and misery but also from the musical point – their beauty, their resilience.”

In East Africa, from the 1980s to early 2000s, traditional music was practiced by multitalented women who sang, played instruments and danced. A number of them made significant contributions to the growth of traditional African music despite facing religious, cultural and financial challenges. Their passion and resilience ensured the continuity of traditional music and the preservation of their culture.

Bi Kidude, who is known as 'the queen of Taarab music', was 100 years old when she stopped performing.

Music In Africa looks at three East African female artists who embraced the endless possibilities of traditional music and made great strides in the local and international music scenes.

Bi Kidude (Tanzania)

Bi Kidude was born in Zanzibar in 1910. At the age of 10 she dropped out of school and ran away from home so she could learn how to play the drums. She began her music career in the 1920s but it wasn’t until the 1980s that she became a well-known Taarab artists. She eventually toured outside Africa and in 2005 she received the prestigious WOMEX Award for her outstanding contribution to Zanzibari music and culture. She stopped performing at the young age of 100. The story of her remarkable life is documented in the film I Shot Bi Kidude by Andy Jones. Bi Kidude died in 2013.

Ogoya Nengo (Kenya)

Ogoya Nengo was born in the late 1930s in the village of Magoya on Lake Victoria. Nengo began singing at the age of 13 but only came to be widely known in 2004 after she was discovered in her village by Ketebul Music. Her exposure to international audiences came a year later when she teamed up with Ga’ara Troupe from France and extensively toured Europe, South Africa and Brazil as the group’s lead singer. She sings in the Dholuo dialect.

Annet Nandujja (Uganda)

The Ugandan was born in 1959 in Kanoni village. She began singing in 1990 together with her band, The Planets, with a view to preserve Uganda's musical and dance heritage. The Planets have toured extensively and played festival circuits in Europe and North America. Nandujja sings in her native Luganda language