Caloudji, Prominent Ivorian Coupe Decale DJ in DC This Friday at Nectar Lounge

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African music in DC, Afrobeats, Coupe Decale, Dj Caloudji, hiplife, Ivory Coast, Nectar Lounge

I love west African music, but my tastes are mostly confined to the Anglophone countries (see my posts on Nigerian and Ghanaian shows here in DC).

Accordingly, I’m very excited to expand my horizons this Friday and get a taste of Coupe Decale, the Ivory Coast’s answer to Ghanaian Hiplife and Nigerian Afrobeats.  Nectar Lounge is billing Dj Caloudji as ‘one of the creators of modern couper decaler.’  I have no idea if he’s that instrumental to the genre, but you can listen to his album ‘Sentiment Moko’ for free on Spotify and catch the video for the album’s title track on YouTube.

Nectar Lounge is in Silver Spring on Georgia Avenue, just past the DC line.

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Meeting Readers at the African Studies Association Meeting this Friday, Talking about Belgian Refugees in Africa

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African Studies Association, Afrobeats, Baltimore, Belgian Refugees in Kenya, Congo, Nairobi

As previously mentioned, I’ll be presenting at the ASA’s in Baltimore this Friday (that’s the only day I’ll be there – no one came through with housing support).  If anyone would like to meet, discuss, or chastise me, I’d love to connect with new faces.

I’ll be presenting on Belgian Refugees who fled the Congo via Kenya, following the independence of the former country in July 1960.  I don’t know a lot about either country and I’ve never been to the Congo, but I’m counting on the fact that my topic is sufficiently unique that there won’t be anyone able to call me out on any weaknesses in my paper.

I think that this topic is fairly novel (though it was of great import in Nairobi in July 1960) and mirrors what I try to do on this blog, which is to take full advantage of my personal soapbox to call things out that upset me, praise those that please me, and trying to (somewhat) gently remind others about a few of the important currents that are getting overlooked in the mainstream.

After covering a series of Afrobeats shows and querying why many of my young professional peers with academic African interests do not seem to match their professed love of African culture with the appropriate corresponding actions, I’m looking forward to examining ‘white Africans’ of Belgian origin, a short-lived phenomenon if ever there was one.

Afrobeats in DC: White Folks Fearing, Black Folks Segregating

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Africa, Afrobeats, Angelique Kidjo, black people, Cultural exchange, Fulbright, Howard Theatre, Howard University, Lisner Auditorium, Nigerian Music, P-Square, Peace Corps, white people

Google ‘Peace Corps Camel’

Washington DC is full of idealistic former Peace Corps volunteers, Fulbright grantees, and other assorted aid workers and international travelers (often white people) who delight in living vicariously by traveling to various African destinations.  They occasionally sample the local cuisine, but can even more reliably be found ensconced in the local dress or viewing the local animals.  Typically, their stated aim is to live like a local or to at least better understand them by getting to know their culture.  Consequently, having now attended several concerts of major African superstars in the DMV, I find it exceedingly odd that I see none of those people at these shows.

The Spread of Africa in Africa: SA vs. Naija

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Afrobeats, Central African Republic, D'banj, Kanye West, Kwaito, Mr. Biggs Nigeria, Nando's, Nigeria, Nigerians in southern Africa, South Africa, spar

Ed: A non Africa in DC post to kick the weekend off, dedicated readers will know that a major mission of mine is to expose DC’s Africa policy wonks to African entertainment – Africa in 2013 remains a continent that is in many respects Eurocentric: think airline routes, education systems, etc.

Accordingly, I’m very interested in the engagement of major African powers on the continent.  For awhile, I’ve been very interested in the diffusion of South Africa’s commercial and economic presence across Africa (think establishments like the grilled chicken purveyor, Nando’s, which I will forever cherish as a result of this commercial and grocery stores like Spar and OK). 

Upcoming Afrobeats Shows in the DMV: Whither P – Square?

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Afrobeats, Miley Cyrus, Nigerian Music, P-Square, S&S Entertainment, Timaya, Twerk

As we transition to the fall, it had been shaping up to be quite a busy season of Nigerian superstars performing in the DMV.  Yesterday, Signature Style Entertainment, a major DMV promoter of prominent Nigerian musicians who tour in the DMV (see their past events here) posted an Eventbrite link to purchase tickets for a P-Square show on September 13th at a venue tbd (even staid elderly Africanist consultants who rarely leave the international hotel chain in Accra where they spend most of their time should know the duo from songs like ‘Chop my Money‘).

However, the link is already down and the promotional poster for the tour lists no east coast performances.  In fact, the poster shows that they are slated to perform in Dallas on the 14th (although it also has them going from Chicago to Houston in a day).

In any event, if P-Square doesn’t make it out this way, emerging star Timaya is slated to get us to shake our ‘Bum Bum‘ in early October – Miley Cyrus only wishes she could twerk like those video vixens.  Tickets are on sale now, but I think I may wait a bit before buying.

Nigerian Star 9ICE in NE DC Tonight

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9ice, Africa nightlife DC, Afrobeats, Taste Lounge

Nigerian singer 9ICE will be hosting tonight’s party (I don’t get any sense that he will perform) at Taste Lounge at 1812 Hamlin St NE.  He’s not one of my favorites, but he is a big name, so I suspect the crowd should be pretty vibrant there tonight.

It’s been about a year since I’ve been to Taste.  I hope to return soon and write about my experiences here.