CULTURE
[MUSIC IN] – Aya Nakamura on the cover of Forbes magazine
Aya Nakamura, whose real name is Aya Danioko, continues to make a name for herself through her unprecedented exploits in the world of music. Her success can be explained above all by her seriousness and her love for music. She becomes an essential force of international music. The public discovered it at the age of 19 after the publication of Karma, his first title, on social networks. She made a name for herself by winning a contract at Warner Music in 2016.Aya Nakamura continued her rise on the international stage making her one of the best in her field. While in December 2020, the French artist of Malian origin was elected “Francophone artist of the year”, she has just been chosen to appear on the front cover of the American magazine Forbes. A recognition for the singer who has already exceeded the billion listens on the musical platform Spotify for her album “Nakamura”.
Aya Nakamura aka Aya Danioko
Aya Nakamura, whose real name is Aya Danioko, was born on 10 May 1995 in Bamako, Mali. A Franco-Malian singer-songwriter, she comes from a family of griots and the eldest of five children. Aya Nakamura was a child when her parents arrived in France. They settled in Aulnay-sous-Bois, in Seine-Saint-Denis in the 93. The one who had dreams of becoming a model maker ended up being a star of the microphone, she will chain the successes in this new musical passion. ” But I stopped liking it, so I sang,’ she explained in an interview.
— Aya Nakamura (@AyaNakamuraa) July 7, 2021
First step in music on Youtube with the song “J’ai mal”
It all started on social networks after the release of his first song entitled Karma in 2014. Aya Nakamura was then 19 years old when she crossed paths with the French composer and producer of Malian origin, like her, Seysey, whose real name is Yohann Doumbia, she writes a love song that speaks of grief “J’ai mal”. This song quickly exceeds millions of views on Youtube and launches Aya’s career. She signed her first artistic contract with Dembo Camara and launched herself forcefully and selflessly into the musical world not soft enough for French of African origin.
“Djadja”, a diamond disc is sold for more than 500,000 units
After a remarkable start on social networks and numerous collaborations, Aya Nakamura’s breakthrough came with the release of her first album entitled “Journal intime”, published on August 25, 2017, which will then be certified platinum record.
Félicitations à @AyaNakamuraa pour avoir remporté la révélation internationale de l’année lors de la cérémonie #LOS40MusicAwards ! ❤️pic.twitter.com/qJRfXyI7Ew
— Aya Nakamura Crave (@AyaCrave) December 5, 2020
In November 2018, she released her second album “Nakamura”, where she made herself known to the general public, propelled by the single “Djadja”. With sales of more than 500,000 units, the album is certified as a diamond disc by SNEP. Aya the intrepid of the scene keeps climbing the mountains to reach the sky. His songs are outperformed in French-speaking countries and abroad.
The year 2020 marks a turning point in her musical career, she is the most listened to French-speaking female artist on Spotify, with more than a billion listeners. The same year, his third album, “Aya” arrived on the market where we found singles such as “Jolie Nana”, “Plus jamais” (in collaboration with Stormzy) or La machine. Less than 3 months after its release, 100,000 copies were sold in early February 2021, making it a platinum record. This will be his second album certified by the SNEP.
Much criticized in France but much listened to and appreciated internationally
French of Malian origin, criticized at the beginning, flagellated for her style and her use of French from the cities, Aya Nakamura is unquestionably the queen of podiums internationally. After Europe, his music went beyond the borders of the Atlantic. The American stars notably Rihanna dances on his song “Djaja” on his instagram. Sam Smith, a British television and music personality, writer, composer and performer had posted a video on Instagram in which he shows his talents as a dancer on this title that exploded the hit-parades. Even Brazilian footballer Neymar couldn’t hold back.
Aya’s style is between urban pop, zouk, R&B and afrobeat, making her a unique artist. The particularity of Aya Nakamura results from the fact that it is anchored in its African roots while remaining contemporary.
From his Music Awards nomination to the cover of Forbes
Aya Nakamura is like a tsunami on the French musical landscape, nothing could stop it. In 2018, she won the W9 D’OR award in the category of Most Listened Female Artist with the title “Aya Nakamura”. She is also nominated for the Music Awards in the French Song of the Year category for her cult song titled “Djadja” whispered in all circles and by all social strata in France, Europe and the United States. Things do not stop there for the beauty of the podium hits. In 2019, the album “Aya Nakamura” won the Public Choice Awards at the Music Moves Europe Talent Awards.
Each year with her awards, in the year 2020, she wins four awards with “Djadja” and “Aya Nakamura”: Francophone Female Artist of the Year at the NRJ Music Awards, Female Artist of the Year at the Deezer Awards, International revelation of the year at the LOS40 Music Awards and Grand prix du répertoire Sacem for export at the Sacem Grand Prix.
Finally 2021 will have lots of surprises for the French singer of Malian origin, she is nominated for the Victoire de la musique in the category Female Artist. It will then be another good news for the artist. On the occasion of its special edition “Women”, the prestigious American magazine Forbes chose singer Aya Nakamura for its first cover. A choice motivated by the meteoric rise of the French singer of Malian origin. She is described as “a major French and international artist” on the magazine in this issue dedicated to “40 Forbes women 2021”.
CINEMA
BURKINA FASO – Culture and tourism: The 4th edition of Tunnel honors the builders of the shadow
Koudougou, May 31, 2025 (AIB) – The 4th edition of Tunnel, a ceremony for distinguishing cultural and tourist actors in the Central-West region, was held in Koudougou on Saturday, noted the AIB on site.
This annual event, initiated by Adama Badiel, aims to create, according to him, a platform of visibility and support for artists and tourism professionals to allow them to establish themselves on national and international scenes.
The promoter Adama Badiel stressed the importance of this edition, placed under the sign of collaboration, recognition and collective construction. He recalled the fundamental objective of the Tunnel: “to highlight the cultural and tourist talents of the Center-West, these women and men who, often without spotlight or support, nourish our region with their passion, creativity, and determination.”
This year, the event paid a special tribute to its partners, whose support is deemed indispensable. Among the officials present were Jean Noël Bonkoungou, representing the minister of culture, patron of the ceremony, El Hadj Inoussa Bagué, president of the Patronat du Centre-Ouest, Franck Alain Kaboré, CEO of Cinéma Neerwaya, and Ali Bonkoungou, CEO of Salsabil Bâtiment, testifying to the commitment of the private and public sectors.
Despite a slight reduction to five categories in competition this year, due to a limited number of album releases and works meeting the criteria, Adama Badiel ensured that the “Golden Tunnel” category will evolve from next year to expand opportunities while maintaining the quality requirement.
The promoter also launched a call for goodwill because, “we need you to build a true ecosystem where art, heritage, tourism and youth can express themselves, thrive and inspire.” This heartfelt plea highlights the major challenge of the lack of resources to fully support the laureates and optimize their visibility.
Several emblematic figures of Burkinabe cinema, such as Eugène Bayala (Oyou), Sawadogo Alidou (head of the Village of Kikideni), and Rasmané Ouédraogo (Razo), have already been honored in previous editions.
This year, the winners on the artistic side include Mr. Baraka, Tasha, Yololo Junior, and KSB 80.
In the cultural and tourist field, personalities like El Hadj Inoussa Bagué, Franck Alain Kaboré, Rasmané Ouédraogo, Boubacar Berewoudougou (Hôtel Pousga), Catherine Zoma (ISMK), and Salfo Dermé were distinguished, in addition to tributes paid to ancient glories of Burkinabe music such as Pasteur Moussa Josué.
Adama Badiel concluded by stating that “the Tunnel is not a one-time event. It is a movement, an ambition, a bridge between what we are and what we can become. A strong message for the future of culture and tourism in the Center-West.
The boss’s representative, Jean Noël Bonkoungou, reassured the promoter of Tunnel of the support of the ministry.
Source: Information Agency of Burkina
Photo credit: Information Agency of Burkina
See on the platforms the legendary Senegalese hip-hop group Daara J Family. On May 30, 2025, the band returns with “COSAAN”, a committed single that resonates, with its morning mbalax melodies and gentle flows, as an essential reminder: never forget where you come from. The single has over 80,000 views and 900 comments on YouTube.
“Fan nga cosaanoo?” – Where are your roots?
This question in wolof, almost a supplication, serves as the thread to the new title of Daara J Family. NAACP literally means “origin” or “heritage”. With this single, the iconic duo formed by Faada Freddy and Ndongo D delivers a work that is at once poetic, political and deeply rooted in history, especially that of Senegal. It is also a call to African youth not to forget their origins. And above all to enhance its cultural heritage by walking with pride in the footsteps of the ancients.
Cosaan, between mbalax and rap
Formed in 1994, while still in high school, the members of Daara J Family never gave up their musical identity. Indeed, they have always mixed sharp words, spirituality and pan-African consciousness. In “COSAAN”, they revisit this tradition that is dear to them. In this song, there are traditional sounds (mbalax) and contemporary hip-hop textures, echoing their long-standing belief: rap was born in Africa, traveled, then came back. The refrain, translated into French, is unequivocal: “Le monde et ce qu’il contient / Si tu vas là et que tu l’obtiens / N’oublie pas, n’oublie pas / This is where your origin lies!” A direct appeal to African youth not to give in to cultural amnesia and to keep the memory of ancestors and African identity alive.
When history inhabits the word
Faada Freddy, with his recognizable soul voice among a thousand, hums: “We know where we come from/ What worries us is where we are going…” This lucid concern can only be tempered by an unwavering faith in the values of the elders. Ndongo D, adds in a quick flow: “If you forget yesterday, tomorrow you will be lost (…) You were born here, you come from here, you live here.” It is an anchor cry, a response to uprooting, a warning against forgetting.
Daara J Family: Making sense of the flow
From their first eponymous album in 1998 to Boomerang in 2003 — hailed as one of the best hip-hop albums of the century by The Observer — to Yaamatele in 2020, Daara J Family have always been able to combine the art of flow with that of meaning. Their commitment goes beyond words. They shared the stage with icons such as Public Enemy or Mos Def, and travelled through festivals from Africa to Europe, from WOMAD to Live 8.
COSAAN: a single dedicated to transmission
More than a return, COSAAN is a transmission. It is a manifesto. That of a knowledge, a duty to remember, a pride. At a time when markers are shifting, when crops are being diluted. In an era marked by migration, globalization and multiple influences, Daara J Family reminds us that identity is a foundation, not a burden. That heritage is not nostalgia, but a compass. And they offer a musical compass and identity with this single: Cosaan!
The monumental works depicting the battle of Little Big Horn, exhibited on the Pont des Arts in Paris in 1999, made the Senegalese artist famous. The installation has just joined the fortress in the Hautes-Alpes for at least ten years.
Muscled warriors meld, horse bumping. Sounds of the fury of battle are heard. Under the impressive curvilinear wooden frame of the old Rochambeau barracks, at the fort of Mont-Dauphin (Hautes-Alpes), is played the battle of Little Big Horn, opposing, in 1876, a coalition of Cheyennes, Sioux and Arapaho to the soldiers of General Custer’s regiment.
In thirty-five monumental sculptures, visible from 6 July, the Senegalese sculptor Ousmane Sow (1935-2016) celebrates the resounding victory of the fragile over the powerful. Deposited in this fortified village for a period of ten years renewable by his widow, the director Béatrice Soulé, this epic installation is well known to the Parisians who discovered it amazed, one day in March 1999, on the Pont des Arts.
The exhibition has remained in the annals with its record attendance – at least 3 million visitors in three months. «An unexpected success», recalls art critic Emmanuel Daydé, then deputy mayor for cultural affairs. For the former physiotherapist born in 1935 in Dakar, who later became an artist, it is consecration. But also, surprisingly, a swan song.
At the moment when Ousmane Sow gains international fame, the art world turns its back on him. Although he was the first African artist recognized in France, none of his successors, to whom he had paved the way, claimed it.
Mayor’s daughter supports her cause
It had all started well. In 1993, the Senegalese sculptor, who two years earlier had been on the cover of Revue noire – a quarterly magazine that revealed a number of African talents – was invited to the major five-year exhibition at Documenta in Kassel, Germany. In 1995, here he is at the Venice Biennale, which is to contemporary art what the Cannes Film Festival is to cinema. The autodidact dreams of an event in Paris.
By chance, he met Hélène Tiberi, daughter of the mayor at the time, Jean Tiberi. Who supports his cause at the City Hall. The location is easy: it will be the Pont des Arts, between the Louvre and the Academy of Fine Arts. It will take diplomatic treasures to convince these two institutions, who have not seen with a good eye the proximity of massive silhouettes imagined by an African artist.Archives «World»: Ousmane Sow questions Bordeaux and politicians
The neighbouring National School of Fine Arts, where figurative art was then taboo, is also pinching its nose. Money is missing. The Havas group had initially promised to contribute to the addition of 5 million francs (the equivalent of 1 million euros today), but its new CEO, Jean-Marie Messier, is sneaking out. Béatrice Soulé moves heaven and earth, finds sponsors and is personally indebted to the tune of 1 million francs. More here
Source: Le Monde
