From the compilation "Ghana Special 2: Electronic Highlife & Afro Sounds In The Diaspora, 1980-93"
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Ghana Special 2: Electronic Highlife & Afro Sounds In The Diaspora, 1980-93

Gye Wani

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Pat Thomas - Gye Wani

Paula Juana  is joined by legendary The Funkees drummer and founding member: Chyke Madu.
The Funkees were an afro-rock group formed in Nigeria in 1969. It wasn't long before promoters ithe UK came calling and they packed up their instruments and moved to London where they quickly established a fierce reputation on the live circuit and quickly gained prominence in the expatriate West African and West Indian music scene. They specialised in funky, upbeat, highly dance able afro-rock. Chyke, born in 1949 in Lagos, joins PJ to tell us the story of The Funkees.

Soundway with The Funkees

Soundway Records presents a collection of Nigerian music chronicling a time when drum machines, synthesisers, imported pop, reggae, disco and soul collided with highlife, juju and cultural music.

The late 70s saw a period of political turbulence and prompted change across the country. Following suit, musicians and producers entered a period of experimentation, adaptation, modification and innovation, using new technology to renew and refresh cultural traditions. Nigerians formed their own unique approach to the limitless creativity these new instruments offered, to reveal a distinct sound which would dominate local airwaves for the decade to come. Nigeria Special Volume 3 celebrates the rich diversity of culture and musical styles of the nation, showcasing eighteen tracks across various genres which laid foundations for the innovation of Afrobeats artists of today.

Nigeria Special Vol. 3

Edue Ukot Akpa Itong

Sammy Obot - Edue Ukot Akpa Itong

Descobertas, Culturas, Fusões, Sonoridades. 15.05.2024

From the debut self-titled album by Dar Disku.

'Dbayli' is a modern day disco/raï anthem that evokes the heady discotheques of 70s North Africa and speaks to the next generation of multicultural, multilingual club goers. The track features soaring vocals from Algerian singer Yacine El Khaldi.

Dar Disku

Dbayli feat. Yacine El Khaldi

Dar Disku - Dbayli feat. Yacine Elkhaldi

Petit voyage dans les brumes mentales, humides et musicales, d’un pèlerin à Rio. Entre les flûtes de Caetano Veloso et le Korg SB-100



Podcast à Rio - Textes et Musique - Institut International de Recherche sur la Radio et la Magie - IIRRM

🌐 Refuge Worldwide is a radio station and community space based in Berlin-Neukölln.
➡️ More info, more music: www.refugeworldwide.com

Help us stay on air by donating to our fundraiser: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-refuge-worldwide-community-radio

Concentric Records presents KISMET - Lara Dâmaso - 19 Sep 2025

Awesome Tapes From Africa introduces us to the classic house grooves of Professor Rhythm, a South African producer named Thami Mdluli who developed his own distinct style during the 80s and 90s.

Beginning his career as a member of chart-topping bubblegum pop groups Taboo and CJB in the 1980s, Mdluli's skills as a musician soon caught the attention of many others in the scene and he became a highly sought after producer. When working on albums for the likes of Sox and Sensations, as well as being an in-house producer for influential record labels like Eric Frisch and Tusk, Mdluli would include an instrumental of his own on each release. These tracks soon grew in popularity and out of a high demand from his fans, he decided to release solo instrumental albums in 1985 as Professor Rhythm.

Now with the help of Awesome Tapes From Africa, Professor Rhythm's album 'Bafana Bafana' is given new life. Originally released in 1995, the material includes eight tracks focusing on kwaito, a genre that emerged in South Africa that fuses house rhythms with African textures. Today these tracks sound as relevant as ever and undoubtedly work magic on the dancefloor.

'Bafana Bafana' is set for release October 20.

Bafana Bafana

More exclusive music

Premiere: Professor Rhythm 'Leave Me Alone'

dizzy zig zag

Soundway present a slice of raw Trinidad carnival roots with a progressive twist, courtesy of one of the islands most original and forward thinking musical minds of the post war period. On the flip highlife-techno pioneer DrumTalk morphs it into a dark and twisted electro-tropical groove dripping with rolling distorted synth-lines and filtered vocals.

Lancelot Layne was born and raised in Gonzales, Trinidad - a village near Port of Spain. He was one of the most respected of Trinidad’s late 20th century musicians - playing shows and giving lectures at music institutions and universities across the globe. Layne’s travels took him to Africa many times and he incorporated many aspects of highlife and other African rhythms into his music. Layne’s impact on the Trinidadian sound was huge and most credit him as being the originator of rapso - a uniquely Trinidadian sound often described as a fusion of Trinidadian soca and American hip-hop that grew out of the unrest of the1970s. Not unlike a Caribbean version of Gil Scott Heron, Layne’s early recordings  were way ahead of their time mixing social commentary with calypso, Africanism and an upfront lyrical style.

DrumTalk is a producer and DJ from Clapton, East London, fast becoming a leading light in the tropical remix scene. Equal parts techno, house, highlife and soukous, his music sits on the fault-line between the nightlife of East London and the sounds and rhythms of South and West Africa.

A1: Carnival Drum Song – Lancelot Layne 
B1: Carnival Drum Song – Lancelot Layne (DrumTalk remix) 



dizzy zig zag

Laradona

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