LES MAMANS DU CONGO ET RROBIN (vinyl)

Description

Singing to empower African women. A unique encounter between Bantu lullabies from Congo, electronic music, and hip-hop. A hybrid project that gives pride of place to dance and highlights the daily life of Congolese women in a bold and, above all, contemporary way. Led by the charismatic singer and percussionist Gladys Samba, the all-female group Les Mamans du Congo was formed in 2018 in Brazzaville. In a project where dance merges with ancestral Kongo lullabies, the five mothers sing in Lari about the history of their people and the daily life of Congolese women, setting it to music with complex rhythms played on forks, plates, baskets, pestles, and recycled materials. At the initiative of the Institut français du Congo, La Coopérative de Mai, and the Jarring Effects label, the women's collective met French producer RROBIN, a specialist in hip-hop and house beats. Grems' favorite beatmaker, he was already interested in new African urban voices on his first album 'Déluge,' which featured South African rapper Spoek Mathambo among its guests. After several EPs focused on futuristic electronic music, he arrived in Brazzaville in October 2019 alongside Céline Frezza (co-director of the Jarring Effects label, sound engineer, and coordinator of the famous Nola Is Calling project) for a new musical adventure. As soon as they arrived, they met Maman Glad' (Gladys Samba) at her cultural center, Kudia, located in the popular Bacongo district, a meeting place for artists, musicians, and dancers. They immediately envisioned a common project. To link the dreamlike universe of Les Mamans du Congo with RROBIN's electronic textures, Armel Malonga, bassist for the legendary Congolese singer ZAO, serves as the artistic director of the project. This new musical combo demoed the album in about ten days, which will be mixed and mastered at Jarring Effects' legendary studio in Lyon, the Rumble Inn. On this album, where enchanting choirs revisit the tradition of the ancient Kongo kingdom, RROBIN's electronicized percussion and grime sounds from his machines carry the committed words of their leader Maman Gladys, who alternates a smooth voice for lulling and powerful rap for raising awareness. "Bantu lullabies interpreted with forks and homemade percussion, re-dressed with house and beats that refresh the ear." --- TÉLÉRAMA ---. "This Afro-feminist group chants the daily lives of Congolese women with explosive rhythms." --- LE MONDE ---. "Inspiring and modern women who make you want to look to the future without worrying about traditions, which they appropriate with common sense and creativity." --- PAN AFRICAN MUSIC ---. "The summer hit." --- FIP ---.