CULTURE
SENEGAL – Youssou Ndour and the «Super Étoile de Dakar» sold-out tour
Friday the 13th… It seems that this date does not bode well. Nonsense? Despicable superstition? In any case, Youssou Ndour and the «Super Étoile de Dakar» have just proved us the contrary. I was saying that on Friday, May 13, 2022, in the mythical Carnegie Hall in New York, the Senegalese star and her orchestra delivered a sensational performance to an admirable audience, against a background of mbalax. They are musically ready. Each one has fulfilled his role very well, played his score wonderfully. Of all the artists who have come to Carnegie Hall this year, You is certainly the best of them all – It’s not because I’m African that I read it.
You and the «Dakar Super Star»: a real combo
They were discovered at the end of the 1970s. Sparkling. Sulphurous. They were said to have been surprised by notoriety. That the reality was going to fall on them from one moment to the next. Many of us thought that this tenor group would lose its UT over time. Time has passed. Nothing has changed. We screwed up; neither the staccatos of success, nor the jolts of glory, nor even the media storms could disagree with them. It’s as if You and the «Super Étoile de Dakar» had signed a pact. More than forty have passed since, the pact has been scrupulously respected: one instrument, the other sings. Everyone finds his account.
Now! Let’s push the doors of the Carnegie Hall! An American room with French decor that will heat Senegalese! Isn’t that beautiful, it comes and goes triangular! Inside the hall, it’s like at the opera: a parterre, balconies and dressing rooms and a room full as an egg. On the last balcony, the hen house, the public, captivated, caquette in delirium. In a dive, a man, in a big blue bouboubou, holds the top of the pavement. He wears chromatic corrective lenses. He caresses the audience with his eyes. He dominates it with his superb sature. A way of lending control of things. It’s Youssou Ndour. Behind him, an orchestra, in African toilet: it’s The Super Star of Dakar. The orchestra gives it. An irresistible voice made clearer by a perfect mastery of the music sat the audience. Hands beating in chorus. We can say it: Youssou Ndour has reached the limits of his art. He is a composer, a first-rate performer who knows the importance of the musical question. Something that made him minister of culture a few years ago.
Paris! Here we are!
In New York, Youssou Ndour and the «Super Étoile de Dakar» broke the house, they made the show. On Saturday, June 18, 2022, they will go to France. They set up shop to try to do better than in New York. The group will set fire to the Accor Arena. Good news for all lovers of You and Senegalese music in Paris. Youssou Ndour, on his Facebook page, announced the event. It will be a party: playful drums, melodious tam-tam, dancer guitars. And, uh, a crazy vibe.
Fatimata Diallo BA, a French-Senegalese writer, recently made her mark on literary minds by winning the prestigious Cénacle Prize for Young Writers of Senegal in 2023 with her poignant novel «Rouges Silences».
Originally from Dakar, Fatimata grew up in a rich cultural atmosphere, and her academic background led her to the university benches in Poitiers and Paris, where she studied Classics. This Franco-Senegalese acquired a unique perspective, merging the literary influences of the two cultures that shaped her.
With seventeen years of experience teaching in the suburbs of Paris, Fatimata Diallo BA decided to return to Senegal, where she currently works as a teacher of French and Latin at the prestigious Jean Mermoz French High School in Dakar. Her dedication to education and the transmission of knowledge is reflected in her active commitment to her students.
«Rouges Silences», his award-winning work, is a testament to Fatimata’s literary sensibility. The novel, on deep and universal themes, captivated the jury of the Cénacle Young Writers Prize, attesting to the author’s exceptional talent.
In addition to her literary success, Fatimata Diallo BA is also known for her dynamic involvement in various literary meetings and fairs. Her love for sharing literature and promoting dialogue around the book is evident in her active participation in these events.
With «Rouges Silences», Fatimata Diallo BA asserts herself as an emerging voice that deserves attention and recognition in the contemporary literary landscape. Her commitment to education and her talent as a writer promise a promising future, making her an inspiring figure for future generations of writers in Senegal and beyond.
Source: Senegal Njaay
As part of the 9th edition of the Galsen Hip-Hop Awards, the Ze-Africanews team met Y.DEE the initiator of this cultural project.
Y.DEE lives between Senegal and the United States, he returns every year for this program in the city of Dakar. Host, columnist and rapper, he told us about his career, his impressions at the end of the 9th edition of the Galsen Hip Hop Awards edition 2023. During this edition the 50 years of Hip Hop were celebrated.
The African continent was represented at this edition. The older generation was honoured as forerunners and elders in the field.
Rwanda was the sponsor of this edition.
The full interview is available here:
CULTURE
CULTURE-LIVRE – Journalist Madiambal Diagne publishes a book on the history of Adji Sarr and Ousmane Sonko
The head of the press group Avenir Communication, which claims on all rooftops its proximity with President Macky Sall, announced this Friday, July 21, 2023 the release of its «investigation book» on the story that led Ousmane Sonko and the young masseuse Adji Sarr before the Criminal Chamber of Dakar on 23 May.
I am announcing the release of my investigation into the Adji Sarr – Ousmane Sonko case. The book “Ousmane Sonko – Adji Sarr: History”, will be sold on Monday, July 24 everywhere. The preface is by Hamidou Anne. I am published by Daily Editions,” he wrote on Twitter.
It should be noted that Hamidou Anne who prefaced this book is also one of the most virulent detractor of the Senegalese opponent. His columns are published on the website and the newspaper of the press group held by Madiambal Diagne, author of the book published by his own publishing house.
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EAST AFRICA1 year .TANZANIA – President meets with Chairman of the Board and CEO of the Merck Foundation
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CULTURE2 years .AFRICA – African writers and artists celebrate the 20th anniversary of the African Union
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BUSINESS8 months .GUINEA – Authorities demand repatriation of mining revenues
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IMMIGRATION9 months .AFRICA – Migrant smuggling brings 59 billion CFA francs to smugglers per year
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CULTURE1 year .SENEGAL – Massamba Guèye wants to democratize the story
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A LA UNE3 years .GUINÉE: Manchester United: Paul Pogba absent several weeks
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CULTURE3 years .SENEGAL – “Sadik Lady” by Viviane Chidid
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MOROCCO1 year .MOROCCO – The King of Morocco Mouhamed VI finally in Dakar, tomorrow Tuesday
