Mon Rovia was born Janjay Lowe in Liberia during the first civil war. (Note his stage name is derived from the capital of Liberia.)He was adopted by a missionary couple, then came to the U.S. He returned during the second civil war, but returned to the U.S. again, settling in Tennessee. Playing the ukulele, he… Read more »
Category: World
Last Torch
Two sisters from Afghanistan have be engaged in a musical resistance to the Taliban’s repression of women. They began making videos of poems against the repression and in celebration of women’s strength, singing the poems, and posting them to social media. They hide their identities under the burkas they are supposed to wear in public,… Read more »
Fulu Miziki
Fulu Miziki is roughly translated as “music from the garbage.” A collective of musicians from the Democratic Republic of Congo came together to make music out of items gathered from the garbage. They are protesting the way the wealthier nations are using Africa as a trash bin, dumping their refuse in poorer countries. These “eco-friendly… Read more »
Noella Wiyaala
With her stage name of only Wiyaala, she is an Afro-pop singer from Ghana. She sings in her native language of Sissala, English, and various other Ghanaian languages, often combining them in one song. After a breakout year in 2013 with many music awards, Wiyaala became an ambassador for UNICEF. In that capacity she has… Read more »
Babatunde Olatunji (1927-2003)
Babatunde Olatunji was a Yoruba born in southwestern Nigeria. He began playing traditional African music at an early age, especially drums and percussive instruments. In 1950 he received a Rotary International Scholarship and went to Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia to study. After graduating he went to New York University. He founded a percussion music… Read more »