Rokia Traoré

Rokia Traoré

Since she first tip-toed into Womadelaide as a new talent from Mali, Rokia Traoré’s carrer and profile has since skyrocketed. She recently found herself wedged between David Bowie and the Pixies performing at the biggest rock fest in France, Vieilles Charrues in the west of Brittany, attracting more than 200,000 festival-goers.

Traoré will thrill Australia in March when performing at Womadelaide on Saturday March 8 and at the Enmore Theatre on Tuesday March 10 (presented by Arts Projects and the Enmore). Her most recent album Tchamantché will be released by lateralnote recently set up by Michael Rofe.

Tchamantché, released in Europe in May 2008, is a follow-up to her award winning and critically acclaimed 2003 breakthrough Bowmboï, which earned her a gold disc for sales.

Tchamantché, which means ‘balance’, integrates the vintage sound of Gretsch guitars (the classic electric guitar loved by American rockabilly bands) and employs a traditional pop rhythm section.

As has been the case with most of her albums to date, Rokia wrote most of the songs on her new album herself — apart from her cover of the Billie Holiday classic The Man I Love (which she recorded in English). While she sings in the Malian language Bambara, her experimental sound declares that she is not a traditional Malian singer, but a true modern original.

Known for her outspoken lyrics, Traoré covers a variety of topics on her new record. She discusses the problem of illegal immigration from Africa to Europe in Tounka, and, in Dounia, reminds Malians that they should be proud of the glories of their past. Zen is a song about having the courage to do nothing, and Yorodjan was written in praise of African street parties.

The daughter of a Malian diplomat who was posted to the US, Europe, and the Middle East, Traoré studied in Brussels and performed in a rap band before deciding to go back to Mali to create the music she wanted, which was to be not pop, not jazz, not classical but something contemporary with traditional instruments, as she says.

nonesuch.com/albums/tchamantche

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