World music matters - From Desert to Douala: hot from a pop up studio in N'djamena
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Inspired by the huge scope of traditional music in Chad, DJs Nickodemus and Djbuosis began working with musicians in N'djamena in 2018. They talk to RFI about helping them record their first album From Desert to Douala: a subtle compilation of life-affirming songs with an electro beat.
The album was recorded in a pop up studio in N'djamena in 2018: the latest episode in the inspiring Hape Collective initiative, founded by djbuosis in Havana in 2016, now active in 10 countries.
"It aims to connect the dots between musical industries and music talents" djbuosis tells RFI "and there's a lot of talent in Chad".
But it's difficult to produce and record music in the country so "many musicians go abroad". He cites Afrotronix, currently Chad's biggest musical export, but who works out of Canada.
Hape supports talent on the ground.
In N'djamena, Djbuosis met musicians Yaya Idriss (Chad), Samy aka Gari Boy (Cameroon), Stingo (Togo) and Wahlid (Cameroon) among others.
New York DJ and producer Nickodemus, founder of Wonderwheel Recordings, then brought along state of the art equipment and decades of experience on the dancefloor to run DJing and electronic workshops in the capital.
The band, Pulo NDJ, was formed and From Desert to Douala is the fruit of their unique, leaderless collaboration: a celebration of a rich traditional musical culture and the wonders of modern technology.
Listen to the two DJs sharing their love of the project and country as they introduce us to some of the 11 original compositions.
From Desert to Douala is available on Wonderwheel Recordings
The album was recorded in a pop up studio in N'djamena in 2018: the latest episode in the inspiring Hape Collective initiative, founded by djbuosis in Havana in 2016, now active in 10 countries.
"It aims to connect the dots between musical industries and music talents" djbuosis tells RFI "and there's a lot of talent in Chad".
But it's difficult to produce and record music in the country so "many musicians go abroad". He cites Afrotronix, currently Chad's biggest musical export, but who works out of Canada.
Hape supports talent on the ground.
In N'djamena, Djbuosis met musicians Yaya Idriss (Chad), Samy aka Gari Boy (Cameroon), Stingo (Togo) and Wahlid (Cameroon) among others.
New York DJ and producer Nickodemus, founder of Wonderwheel Recordings, then brought along state of the art equipment and decades of experience on the dancefloor to run DJing and electronic workshops in the capital.
The band, Pulo NDJ, was formed and From Desert to Douala is the fruit of their unique, leaderless collaboration: a celebration of a rich traditional musical culture and the wonders of modern technology.
Listen to the two DJs sharing their love of the project and country as they introduce us to some of the 11 original compositions.
From Desert to Douala is available on Wonderwheel Recordings