#tilinanu

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1 day…

So tomorrow is the day I leave for Malawi to volunteer for a beautiful charity whose name represents their simple yet powerful message… Love. Support. Unite.

As my last post I leave you with this music from Diko Fils. This is Kiri…

Please is you have any spare pennies and have enjoyed this Music for Malawi then please donate to my Just Giving page here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/lovesupportunitemalawi

It feels good to give and the love will be received whole-heartedly from the people of Malawi and Love Support Unite, who really are changing lives…

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The Tilinanu girls had their Christmas reunion after being apart for some time.

Thank you to all that have sponsored and donated towards their education this past year, we can’t thank you enough!!! <3

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NICO Life launches 'Tilinanu Funeral Policy' - Malawi Nyasa Times

NICO Life launches ‘Tilinanu Funeral Policy’ – Malawi Nyasa Times

Nico Life Insurance Company Limited in an effort aimed at minimising challenges that arises during funeral period, has launched a new individual policy plan called ‘Tilinanu Funeral Policy’.

Chapola: Nico Life launches Tilinanu Policy Blantyre City Council director of administrative services Lyton Nkata Nico Life and Blantyre City Council officials

Speaking during the launching ceremony which was…

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6 Days...

Nneka Lucia Egbuna is a Nigerian hip-hop, soul, reggae singer, songwriter and actress. She sings in both English and Nigerian Pidgin. She sings about political issues in many of her songs, talking of the plight of the Niger Delta and the corruption in her homeland.

My soul sister Lainey introduced me to this beaut… This is her 2007 single; Africaans…

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Recordings from Hugh Tracey

Hugh Tracey (1903–1977) was a twentieth century ethnomusicologist. He and his wife collected and archived music from Southern and Central Africa. He began making field recordings of music in the early 1920s, through the 1970s.

Tracey was particularly fascinated with the Mbira, an instrument found nowhere else in the world. Tracey founded the International Library of African Music (ILAM) in 1954 and we have him to thank for the 100s on intimate recordings he made during his investigations. He took sample digging to a whole other level, often heading into the Congo to record the sounds of so many different tribes.

It’s hard to just pick a few, as they are so great, but here goes…

Baziri Teofili, a Mbira player from the Congo in 1952.

Bakia Pierre of the Congo, playing the Kundi – a type of harp.

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16 Days…

I didn’t manage to do a post yesterday… too many pancakes! So I will make up for it today with a special Moroccan treat… thanks to Mo The Navigator from Viveylate for these.

The first delicacy to feast your ears upon is ‘L’étoile au Sahara’ by Samarabalouf. Samarabalouf are a gypsy band who are actually from France but I had to make an exception for this one after assuming it had to be from North Africa… It’s beautiful.

The next two are from Moroccan multi-instrumentalist, composer and teacher, Majid Bekkas. He has been the co-director of the Jazz au Chellah festival in Rabat since 1996 and has participated in many international pazz projects and festivals over the years.

He became familiar with the music of the desert from a young age and with the rhythms of the aqallal and roukba dances, a cross breeding of Arabo-Berber cultures and sub-saharan Africa. He is a particular fan of merging traditional Gnaoui music and Afro-American blues, as can be heard in his music…

And here are some stunning photos taken by Mo taken during his adventures around Morocco...

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20 Days…

A classic cartoon to go with your Saturday morning cereal! The Lion King is the only Disney film to be translated into an African language other than Arabic. This is Scar’s Be Prepared in Zulu… it fits so well! Listen out for the *clicks* in the language.

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22 Days...

“The numerous relocations, all the travel, and the global adaptability this entailed – all these things strongly influenced me. Yet I feel no sense of displacement or inner conflict. On the contrary, it is all these stages of a journey, all the impressions and experiences en route, which together, form a sum that is greater than its parts – a greater whole – the sum of me, my totality.”…

Strong words from Y’akoto when she was questioned about her nomadic lifestyle. She is half Ghanaian, half German, grew up in Ghana, Cameroon and Chad and now resides between Hamburg, Lomé and Paris. A restless wanderer that has no plans to stop – I know a fair few wonderful people that feel exactly the same way!

This is “Tamba” taken from her debut album Babyblues. You can definitely hear the Badu influence in her music…

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27 days...

Today’s music takes us to Kinshasa, the capital city of the Congo. Despite years of war torn violence, poverty, corruption and chaos, its’ people perpetuate little self-pity and instead turn to the arts, music and creativity.

Yakala ‘Coco’ Ngambali and Nsituvuidi ‘Theo’ Nzonza lived the streets of Kinshasa for 50 years, amongst the handicapped, the rejected and the 20,000 something street kids. 15 years ago they formed a band with other street hustlers, capturing the magic and spirit they all felt within.

In 2013, Theo and Coco started a new project; Mbongwana Star – a seven-piece band showcasing traditional rhythms of the Congo with an interesting modern twist.

When searching for a sound to truly represent the creative soul of Kinshasa, they were shown the album Black Voices by Nigerian drummer, Tony Allen. Theo’s reaction was “That’s it! That’s the direction we should go in. Because mbongwana means ‘change’. Because that’s the future.”

Taken from their debut album ‘From Kinshasa’ here is ‘Nganshe’

The album that inspired Mbongwana Star... Black Voices. 

Here is the trailer for ‘Jupiters’ Dance’, a documentary about Kinshasa. One half of the team behind the film was Renaud Barret – the man that introduced Mbongwana Star to Black Voices and also shot and co-directed their first music video – ‘Ngashe’.

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28 days... One of the first two pieces I have chosen for ‘Music for Malawi’ is ‘Zvichapera’ by the late Chiwoniso. Special thanks to my friend Abi for posting this beautiful track as it was after hearing this for the first time that I realised that I don’t know very much about African music. This is what inspired me change that!

‘Zvichapera’ was the last studio recording from Chiwoniso Maraire before she passed away at the age of 37. Poignantly, ‘zvichapera’ in the language of the Shona people of Zimbabwe means ‘end’. She stood as the Queen of Mbira – an instrument traditionally played by men only in Zimbabwe. At the age of 15 she was amongst the first to merge the mbira sound with contemporary music in the afro-fusion hip-hop trio - ‘Peace of Ebony’.  

The instrument takes many forms and different names across Africa. The one she plays is called the nyunga-nyunga which means sparkle-sparkle!

Listen to what she has to say in her last ever interview as she talks about travelling in her dreams, the whispering sounds of trees and connecting with people through music.

Here is ‘Chemutengure’ played by her father and teacher Dumisani Maraire and Ephat Mujuru - another master of the mbira. ‘Chemutengure’ means ‘imitating the sound of wheels’. It was first composed in the 19th century and is used to teach beginners on the nyunga-nyunga.

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NICO LIFE INSURANCE LAUNCHES ‘TILINANU POLICY’

NICO LIFE INSURANCE LAUNCHES ‘TILINANU POLICY’

                              By Steven Godfrey Mkweteza

One of the country’s leading life insurance companies, Nico Life Insurance has introduced ‘Tilinanu’ individual funeral policy which seeks to provide an affordable efficient solution when the uncertainties in life occur.

In an interview during the launch of the product in Blantyre, Chief executive officer {CEO} Erick Chapola said the…