If you need proof that the world is becoming an ever smaller and more connected place you just have to look at the blends and cross-references that crop up in the art forms of the 21st century. Canadian based Cameroonian artist MD Lyonga is the perfect representation of this and his latest e.p. is a deft mix of styles and genres garnered from many different cultures and countries. As you would expect from an artist with one foot in either continent there is a wonderful clash of western rap and R&B infused pop with the more exotic beats and rhythms of west Africa’s rich musical heritage.
The songs beat with a gentle heart and even when they are at their most groovesome such as the brass driven Sister they are spacious and uncluttered enough to let the wonderful Afro-beat rhythms do the work. Cop Car is a fantastic mix of lilting marimbas and hip-hop lyrical deliveries and opening salvo Boom Boom Cha is a smooth and sultry dancefloor anthem for the early hours.
People use the term “world music” to label sounds which have an identifiable cultural origin. Maybe we need to change that definition. Logic would dictate that the term refers to music of the whole world, global music which represents the cultural cross-pollinations made by a generation of people happy to navigate physical, generic and sonic journeys to create a whole new way of making music. By that definition MD Lyonga is the ultimate world music star.
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