Some musical genres have that special feeling that makes them ideal to “chill”, and Afrobeat music is one of those. With sounds that come from the deep roots of the African Continent, it can entertain not only the young, but also many other ages since it has the perfect balance between a good and fast beat, with the coolness of some instruments that only existed there, or at least the people that descended from Africans could play as their ancestors did.
There are some notable referents in this genre, like the great Fela Kuti, a Nigerian multi-instrumentalist and great composer, which created most of the best examples of Afrobeat, such as Water No Get Enemy, Zombie, Gentleman and Mr. Follow Follow, among many others. He died in 1997, but his legacy lives on with many covers performed by some of the most contemporary singers, like Newen Afrobeat, without a doubt, the band that carries the flag of Kuti around the world.
Actually, one of their discs launched in 2017 is a way of thanking the Nigerian composer, called “Newen Plays Fela”, with some additions to his already great beats, that turn those covers into a truly masterpiece of the genre. The Chilean band launched their third disc in 2019, by the name of Curiche, and it includes some of their greatest creations, like the one that gave the album its name, Voraz, Cántaros and many others.
Their political affiliations made them clash with the Chilean government many times, including a time when they found one of the referents of the right wing in a plane and improvised a concert in the air. They are also known for their support of some humans right causes like the one of the native people of the country, the Mapuches, who fight to conserve their lands against the advance of the Government over their rights. They´ve played many times in concerts to honor the cause and to gather funds for their legal fees, gaining the love of many people of that community, but also a lot of their fans around the globe.
They are known as well for improvising their concerts in squares as well as playing in the renown Nigerian Felabration Festival, making them some sort of urban legend amongst the young Chileans. In some of the protests that took place in Chile to protest against college tuition, they sided with the students and played some of the best covers, like songs of La Bersuit, an Argentinian band known for their protest songs.
What comes next?
The band Chicago Afrobeat Project, without a doubt one of the best examples of Afrobeat music in the United States, is in the tip of the spear of the news for this genre. With the launch of their more recent album, called “What Goes Up”, the band found a renewed spirit and is on the path to an even funkier feeling. Their contribution to this type of music is renowned for making it a perfect mix between classic jazz and that touch that only the African spirit can provide.
They have been creating music since 2002, and in 2014 they received the “Best African Artist” award at the Chicago Music Awards as well as the “Best African Entertainer” award, as a testimony of their great passion for this genre. They´ve also received similar awards from 2008 to 2012, and played several times with the great Tony Allen, also had collaborations with referents like Sugar Blue, Ugochi and Bobby Broom, as well as many others.
Other artists that could fit in this genre like WizKid, have recently some albums, like Made in Lagos, a great compilation of his best sounds with a great touch of his Nigerian roots. It´s one of the most streamed artists in Spotify and his success was so great with his latest album, that he launched a “Deluxe” version of Made in Lagos.
Their music, as many other artists of Afrobeat, became very popular amidst the so called “influencers” and many people that live their lives sharing a lot in social media. This kind of music has the perfect chill for the short videos they create in TikTok videos and Instagram Stories, so it´s becoming more and more of a requirement for most of them. Moreover, nowadays, when you can access to some of the best copyright-free music, so that the social media platforms don´t delete the videos.
The problem is mainly that the owners of most of the records “block” the content to be used in personal videos or social media content. So, to avoid this, most influencers and people that make a living on those networks, usually turn to copyright-free music to avoid this problem and add music like some of the best afrobeats to their videos. There´s also a great universe of music to use in videos, or many other creations that need a beat in the background, like podcasts, streaming, and many others
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