Some Winners of the South African-based Kora Awards for African music including London-based Nigerians JJC & 419 Squad

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I saw this in an e-mail from the afropop.org people:

Other winners at the Kora 2004 Awards were:

* Best African Group Award: JJC & 419 Squad (Nigeria/ UK) & Malaika (South Africa)
* Best Southern Africa Male Artist: Kabelo Mabalane (South Africa)
* Best Southern Africa Female Artist: Thandiswa Mazwai (South Africa)
* Best male artist from West Africa: Kunle (Nigeria)
* Best female artist from West Africa: Kamaldine (Guinea)
* Best male artist from East Africa: Big Pin (Kenya)
* Best female artist from East Africa: Tsedenia Gebremarkos (Ethiopia) & Achien'g Abura (Kenya)
* Best male artist from Central Africa: Felix Wazekwa (Democratic Republic of Congo) & Werra-son (Democratic Republic of Congo)
* Best African male diaspora (US): Usher (US)
* Best artist Europe-Caribbean diaspora: Kaysha (France)
* Best Female Gospel Artist: Deborah Fraser (South Africa)
* Best gospel male artist: DNG (Kenya)
* Best gospel group: Schekina (Ivory Coast)
* Most promising African male artist: Madson Junior Gnou-Sou (Burkina Faso)
* Most Promising African Female: Swazi (South Africa)
* Best Traditional African Group: Mahube (South Africa)
* Best traditional African artist: King Mensah Aya (Togo)
* Best Video: Zola for 'Don't Cry' (South Africa) & Reggie Rockstone for 'Ah' (Ghana)
* Best Arrangement: Wanda Baloyi (South Africa)

For more info, visit the Kora Awards website. For more on Afropop.org contributor Lydia Martin, visit lydiamartin.net.

― steve-k, Thursday, 17 February 2005 00:07 (twenty-one years ago)

I know of Werra-son from the Congo, and uh, Usher, but none of the rest.
I read that JJC & 419 Squad had a song on a Stephen Frears movie soundtrack, and I think they're on that Giles Peterson compilation I need to listen to again.

― steve-k, Thursday, 17 February 2005 00:10 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't recall seeing most of these performers names in The Beat magazine, or on the afropop.org website, which makes me think they might be a bit more pop.

― steve-k, Thursday, 17 February 2005 00:37 (twenty-one years ago)

I thought a few South Africans were on ILM...

― steve-k, Thursday, 17 February 2005 00:41 (twenty-one years ago)

Hmmmm, if I had posted this at that africaonline site, they'd just discuss Werrason because only Congolese folks tend to post there...
I wonder if any of the grime lovers at Dissensus might be interested. Woebot likes kwaito...I'll give it another day, then I'm gonna see what Woebot thinks...

Maybe by morning, someone other than me will post here...

― steve-k, Thursday, 17 February 2005 02:34 (twenty-one years ago)

I love ya Steve, just don't know what else to say other than that this thread makes me feel like I DON'T KNOW SHIT ABOUT AFRICAN MUSIC and I'm depressed about that. But this is good info though!

― The Obligatory Sourpuss (Begs2Differ), Thursday, 17 February 2005 03:10 (twenty-one years ago)

I'm gonna have to find the time to become my own African music gatekeeper. It's just weird to me how little coverage any of the above acts have received in the North American press and in any English language websites I read.

I should forward this thread to that Benn Lox (spelling?) Senegalese website, and to Christopher Porter, and to contributors to the Beat magazine. Maybe they can school me?

I saw Matos asking someone here if they had a kwaito best-of cdr here, and there a few Pazz & jop contributors interested, and some folks here as well have posted about African music, and lots of folks like those international cds the Sun City Girls put out, so someone must know something...

― steve-k, Thursday, 17 February 2005 14:40 (twenty-one years ago)

Hmmmm, RS Larue doesn't ever seem to grumble about how few folks post about salsa, so maybe I should quit my whining, and just try to find out about this stuff myself.

― steve-k, Thursday, 17 February 2005 15:26 (twenty-one years ago)

So Minusone over at dissensus tells me:

"reggie rockstone is known as the godfather of hiplife music in Ghana, a hybrid of hip hop, dancehall & highlife although from what i've heard his own stuff is fairly imitative of US hip hop (I think he mainly raps in english). Better stuff imo has come in his wake, like obrafour, buk bak, 4X4 & tic tac who mix english & indigenous languages, some of which sound fierce in a rap context & incorporate more highlife elements in the music."

― Steve-k (Steve K), Tuesday, 22 February 2005 04:13 (twenty-one years ago)

I'll revive this thread again when I find the time to find out more about these groups myself. I'm real busy with family and work now though, plus other freelance writing.

― steve-k, Tuesday, 22 February 2005 14:07 (twenty-one years ago)

steve-k, I think I do whine about it occasionally, but I try to control myself. (But an entire thread for Girls at Our Best when I can hardly get anything going about entire genres that interest me?! Well, maybe I'll start a thread about Ismael Rivera.)

― RS, Tuesday, 22 February 2005 23:10 (twenty-one years ago)

Anyway, I'm as unhelpful as anyone else on the topic of this thread.

― RS, Tuesday, 22 February 2005 23:10 (twenty-one years ago)

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