"Global hip-hop by Senegalese trio Daara J"

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"Global hip-hop by Senegalese trio Daara J"

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This item was seen on the New York Press site (via a Google alert). It
says that Daara J's multilingual (Wolof, French, English) rap is
inspired in part by a Senegalese poetic tradition... DZO


RELEVANT RAP
Global hip-hop by Senegalese trio Daara J
http://www.nypress.com/19/29/music/music7.cfm
By Jalylah Burrell


If superb Senegalese hip-hop trio Daara J's upcoming show hasn't
exactly galvanized local hip-hop fans, it's because global hip-hop
music suffers stateside from a bad rap. While it's true that hip-hop
activists tout global hip-hop for its heightened socio-political
awareness, this critical cachet hasn't transferred to American
audiences. Certainly language is a major impediment, but one that is
trumped by global hip-hop's retrograde aesthetic. Note how many
veteran American hip-hop performers who've long since fallen out of
favor here sustain themselves abroad propped up by their dated styles'
ability to bear witness to formative moments in hip-hop history.

It's not surprising then to hear well-intentioned global hip-hop acts
willfully stuck in a '90s time warp, but Daara J sidesteps this snare.
Initially captivated by Public Enemy's explosive output, Faada Freddy,
Ndongo D and Alhadji Man looked also to a tradition closer to home for
inspiration. Tasso Senegalese rhythmic storytelling is a poetic
tradition somewhat analogous to rap that informs their music making.
Coupled with their seamless infusion of contemporary Caribbean and
African-American musical traditions, Daara J's sound reminiscent of
the Fugees in their hey day simply knocks.

Although the trio released two albums abroad in the '90s, 2004's
Boomerang marked their American debut. A hearty meld of nimble
wordplay (in French, Wolof, a native African language, and English) and
catchy choruses over complex rhythms, the album cemented their
celebrity at home and shot them to stardom in Europe where the
appetite for Sene-rap had already been whetted by the Franco
Senegalese MC Solaar and Senegalese pioneers Positive Black Soul.
Broadly conceived and expertly executed Boomerang is a melodic
collection featuring a fair amount of singing but not to the detriment
of their craft. The trio employs a stunningly idiosyncratic rhyme
cadence amidst Timbaland-reminiscent polyrhythms on "Bopp sa Bopp" and
in a variant of Common's classic "I Used to Love H.E.R."; "Number One"
has the trio serenading their muse over a funky bass line.
"Paris-Dakar" and "Babylone" speak to the challenges facing
post-colonial Francophone Africa's diaspora recently rendered visible
in the controversy over the ethnic makeup of France's vanquished World
Cup team and the continuing unrest in France's suburban ghettos. The
music on Boomerang uniquely exhibits qualities appealing to the world
music connoisseur and adventurous hip-hoppers, add the intimate
environs of Joe's Pub and the late show time should make for an
intense and raucous experience.

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http://www.myspace.com/daarasenegal