Stories about Music from October, 2013
Documentary Explores 90s Rap Culture in Sao Paulo
Through interviews and archival footage, the documentary “Sabotage Nós” (We Sabotage), available to watch online, presents important moments of Sao Paulo's rap music in the 90s. The film tells the story of the release of the album “Rap é compromisso” (Rap Is Commitment), Sabotage's debut album. Sabotage was an important...
Legendary Indian Playback Singer Manna Dey Dies
Dey recorded more than 4,000 songs between 1942 and 2013, and was famous for his playback work recording songs for hundreds of movies for actors to lip sync to.
VIDEO: Angola's Kuduro as an Urban Phenomenon
A new film on Angola's frenetic music genre and dance, Kuduro (literally ‘hard ass’), follows the steps of some of the key figures that have helped this popular style turn into an urban cultural movement: Created in the discos and raves in downtown Luanda through a fusion between House and Techno beats...
Central Asia's Presidents: Political Stalwarts and Musical Softies
Some presidents in Central Asian countries sing, dance, and play musical instruments. When they fail to impress their populations, however, people sing against them.
USA: Elevating Young Asian Voices in Immigration Reform Debate
The Youth Leadership Council of the Korean American Resource & Cultural Center created an inspiring video to help young Asian voices heard in the immigration reform debate. Blogger Angry Asian Man briefly comments on this video featuring local youth's thought-provoking spoken word performances.
Remembering and Reviving Vietnam's Ca Tru Singing
Đoan Trang interviews Pho Kim Duc, a famous ca tru (sung poetry) vocalist in Vietnam in the 1940s. Kim Duc said ca tru is a very noble form of art. “It’s is not just singing but also poetry. Whoever with a taste for poetry will love ca tru to find...
Dandin.me: Encompassing the Emerging Talent in the Middle East
October 10 saw the official launch of Dandin.me, a novel independent platform whose founders are based in Egypt. Abdel-Rahman Hussein, one of the people behind Dandin.me, explains what it aims to achieve: The rationale behind it was our desire to create an audio platform that would manage to encompass a...
Video: Colombian Artists Sing in Solidarity With Farmers
Although protests and road blocks have stopped, the farmers' struggle for land rights continues.
Mashrou’ Leila Is Back on Stage to #OccupyArabPop
Lebanese indie band Mashrou' Leila is taking the Arab world by storm. Ahmed Medien looks at how the band is using social media to reach out to audiences.
Mexico City Gears Up for 2013 Corona Capital Music Festival
Using the hashtag #CC13, Mexicans express their excitement on Twitter for the Corona Capital 2013 music festival where Travis, Stereophonics and Miles Kane, among others, will perform.
Video: Anti-fascist Solidarity from Turkey to Greece
“We made this video to tell you we are with us. We had nothing more in mind.” A moving video with testimonials of anti-fascist solidarity from Turkish activists in the memory of Greek rapper Pavlos Fyssas, slain by neonazis in Athens last month, was uploaded on YouTube, subtitled in Greek. The...
Chilean Singer Ana Tijoux Raps Against TPP
“A puertas cerradas se decide nuestro porvenir y en cuatro paredes van dictando lo que llaman devenir”. “Behind closed doors they decide our destiny and inside four walls they dictate what they call future” TPP Abierto [es] shares ‘No al TPP’, the new single by Chilean musician Ana Tijoux, “specially...
