Festival 47 Wrap Up
NEW RELEASE
Zouzou by Dobet Gnahoré
Festival 47
The Vancouver Folk Music Festival 47 is in the books and was one of the best in recent memory.
Kurated is featuring a few of this year’s superb performers.
From the Ivory Coast, veteran performer Dobet Gnahoré
A POWERFUL ANGEL
African Dobet Gnahoré shook the Main Stage to open the Festival
Dobet Gnahoré is a musical force. Tapped into charged energy she opened the 47th Vancouver Folk Music Festival to an astounded audience. Animated and theatrical, Gnahoré is an impressive dancer, agile percussionist and an emotional singer. The adoring audience danced, sang and swooned.
Twenty years into her career, Gnahoré has evolved from acoustic sounds to embracing Afropop, funk, dance and more. She’s currently touring behind her just released seventh album Zouzou which means “angel” in French. She moved to France in 1999 during a period of strife in her home of Côte d’Ivoire. The album, however, is dedicated to struggling African youth and marks the start of an orphanage project she has initiated.
On Zouzou’s title track she sings about her faith in the guardian angel that has stood by her throughout life’s challenges.
“The presence of the angel was felt / The angel passed by I couldn’t see him but I felt him / I felt it, I feel it with every beat of my heart
the angel passed and took away my pain / He is with me, he does not abandon me / He is with you even if you do not believe in him /
The angel has passed through our lives / The angel is present.”
The 11-song album sees Gnahoré present a beautifully produced and lively set with a distinct West African feel, bright Afro-pop rhythms and her ever solid vocals.
Rating: Certified for dancing.
27 July 2024
PLAYLISTS
On Spotify
On YouTube
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kEs-MuShl27Ux25TrNV-YY8RwAN-02cV4
