Tiken Jah Fakoly
Tiken Jah Fakoly , actually Doumbia Moussa Fakoly (born June 23, 1968 in Odienné , Ivory Coast ) is an Ivorian musician . He is considered one of the most influential reggae musicians in Africa.
biography
Doumbia Moussa Fakoly was born in the northwest of the Ivory Coast and comes from a family of Grioten . He discovered reggae music early on and founded his first band, the “ Djelys ”. With her he achieved national fame.
After the death of the first president of the Ivory Coast, Félix Houphouët-Boigny , Fakoly gained great popularity through his political texts. Since then, the “reggae protest singer” Tiken Jah Fakoly has established himself as an integral part of the West African music scene .
In 1998 he made his first appearance in Europe with a concert in Paris .
In his texts, he sharply criticizes the political elite of various African countries. Since his album Francafrique , released in 2002, Tiken Jah Fakoly has been exposed to increased political repression. Following death threats from supporters of Laurent Gbagbo and the murder of several of his friends, Tiken Jah Fakoly decided to go into exile in Mali in 2003 . Since then, he has lived in Mali's capital Bamako . From there he continues his musical work and political commitment. The French government's Africa policy, which has massively supported and consolidated African dictatorships in recent years and decades , is also heavily criticized in several songs .
Musical work and discography
Tiken Jah Fakoly plays roots reggae and sings mostly in French or in African languages, sometimes also in English. Almost all of his lyrics are heavily political.
In 1996, Tiken Jah Fakoly criticized the political leadership of his country in his song Mangercratie and stood up for the right of everyone to food. This protest song stayed in the charts for months despite censorship.
Tiken Jah Fakoly is one of the singers on the album Drop the Debt , the proceeds of which will benefit the globalization-critical network Attac and African Consciences .
At the end of 2004 he finally completed his new album Coup de Gueule . Thousands traveled from the Ivory Coast to Mali especially to be able to hear it uncensored and live. So far it has been officially sold over 500,000 times in West Africa alone; However, due to the considerable number of illegal and unlicensed copies, it can be assumed that the actual number is many times higher.
His previously released albums are:
- 1993: Djelys (with Djelys)
- 1994: Missiri (with Djelys)
- 1996: Mangercratie
- 1999: Cours d'histoire
- 2000: Le Caméléon (Ivory Coast only)
- 2002: Francafrique
- 2004: Coup de Gueule
- 2007: L'Africain
- 2008: Live à Paris
- 2010: African Revolution
- 2014: Dernier Appel
- 2015: Racines
- 2019: Le Monde Est Chaud
Political commitment
Tiken Jah Fakoly sings about the grievances in Africa.
He repeatedly criticizes corruption and abuse of power by the political elites of the Ivory Coast and Africa in general. With his song Le balayeur balayé ("the swept away sweep"), Tiken Jah Fakoly pokes fun at General Robert Guéï . During his military coup, he said: "We have come to sweep the house." After Gueï refused to recognize the election victory of his opponent Laurent Gbagbo , he was chased from office by demonstrations in 2000.
Tiken Jah Fakoly also criticizes the exploitation of Africa by the first world . Slavery , colonialism , neo-colonialism and globalization are nothing but changing forms of the same exploitation of Africa. This exploitation is carried out with great cynicism, which Tiken Jah Fakoly tries to describe with the term " blaguer tuer " ("making jokes and killing"): "On the one hand, they pretend to be massacred on the other and we are killed. For example, the French army, supposedly protecting the international community, is simply in Ivory Coast to protect French interests. " The arms trade with Africa, which Tiken Jah Fakoly criticized in the song "Françafrique" , should also be seen in the same context . First they sell weapons in Africa, and then they are supposed to be amazed that civil wars are waged with these weapons in Africa.
In contrast, Tiken Jah Fakoly advocates democracy and the unity of Africa . He advocates debt relief for the African states and has moved closer to the movement critical of globalization .
He also campaigns against the circumcision of female genitals , for example with his song Non à l'Excision .
Awards
- 2003: “ Victoires de la Musique ” in the Reggae category
- 2008: " Freemuse Award"
Individual evidence
- ↑ Neue Zürcher Zeitung November 9, 2007 p. 27
- ↑ "A fighter whose weapon is his tongue": Tiken Jah on tour
- ↑ L'Humanité of August 4, 2005 (French)
- ↑ Translated from a quote in L ' ESSOR : Quotidien National d'Information du Mali, n ° 14886 of January 28, 2003 L'ESSOR: Quotidien National d'Information du Mali ( Memento of November 13, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ Tiken Jah Fakoly: biography ( Memento of the original from February 17, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Tiken Jah Fakoly Recoit Free Muse Award . Freemuse. Archived from the original on May 1, 2009. Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved May 21, 2010.
Web links
- Official Homepage (French)
- Tiken Jah Fakoly at Universal Music
- Tiken Jah Fakoly on myspace.com
- Tiken Jah Fakoly in an interview at Houseofreggae.de
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Fakoly, Tiken Jah |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Fakoly, Doumbia Moussa (real name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Ivorian musician |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 23, 1968 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Odienné , Ivory Coast |