I bought these tickets without really knowing anything about the artist or the music. Our seats were in the second row, which turned out to be fantastic. The songs were very beautiful, mellow and similar in tone. This is her first tour in the USA, and I hope it is a successful one. She sang in Bambara, which was as she explained after the show, her mother tongue, and the only one where she feels she can communicate musically. About halfway through, she started to do more dancing, with a more uptempo beat and inviting people to join her on the stage. Several (presumably) African students joined her, with a big hug before they left stage. Soon everyone was dancing in the aisles, in front of the stage, even stodgy folks like myself in the second row.
After the concert, she came back for some questions. Paris seems to be their home base, and their manager translated English questions from the audience into French. Corine Thuy, doing backup vocals and percussion, is from La Réunion, a French DOM-TOM island north of Madagascar. The other band members are from Cameroon, Togo, and Brazil/France. In her responses, she explained that she isn’t interested in politics, that it hasn’t helped anyone, that she is interested in peace. She also acknowledged the difficulties she has encountered in the music world, where a woman may perform as a man’s wife, sister or cousin, but not as the lead.
A very enjoyable concert, all in all.
Song Trailer
Interview and singing at the Hop office on Dartmouth campus
Hop Program Notes (PDF)