Kukuma Rap Concert

[HUSNAA]

I can definitely imagine you as a band manager prof :P.
:lol: Too bad the pay the image and the cachet isnt as good as being a professor!!!

[bakangizo]

Thanks Prof. I knew you'll come good with explanations. Why can't such concert be held in other public places? Like may be the Indoor Sport Hall of Sani Abacha Stadium. Was it because of logistic problems or crowd control/trouble?

Jama'a, Sallama
...but actually one of the outcomes was our thinking of recording the entire Kukuma Rap in a studio. So we have slated a Sunday to gather all the musos in Sulpha Studios Zoo Road and record about six or so tracks of Kukuma Rap, and about three hits by Billy-O -- Tibani, Rainy Season, Naga Matata, and possibly Shabaraz Koma Bayana! So watch this space.

That sounds pretty good. :)  Have you considered putting it up in the market? With effective advert/publicity, it would sell. Anyway, let me book five copies in advance :lol:  Seriously though I would want to see that out.

[Muhsin]

Thank you prof. Abdallah.
I, since on that very day, intended telling you the mess-up I encountered at the gate, but (how great?) sai kaimin kwarjini. I don't know why I almost always feel afraid of meeting estimable icons like you. If you could remember, you once invited me to your office when I contacted you about ANA registration. You directed me to first come and meet Dr. Yusif, geography Dept. and later ask him to escort me to your offfice to say hello. But, none I did.
We later met at British Council during one monthly lecture. We met and had talked but didn't introduce myself as MUHSIN.
I now hope to meet you soon. And thank you for your concern over my the problem I had.

[gogannaka]

Anyone who hasn't been to the concert has surely missed.
Anyway here is a chit-chat version of the event.
I would first start by describing to you how the British council's amphitheatre looks like: It is an open mini theatre 4 or 5 steps up(i'm not really sure) with a 120 degree angle view.Of couse it has flood lights.

The event started as i have learnt 7pm prompt(i went there around 7.40pm)The theatre was arranged neatly with well enough(almost) plastic chairs and on each chair the program of event schedule and a feedback form/questionnaire was kept.
Unfortunately, when i arrived at the venue the guests have already been served 'item7'  :x ,how wonderful.

The event started with a welcome address by Betty Sue(brit),the director of the british council.She introduced the M.C Proffessor Abdallah Uba Adamu.From the moment the Prof.collected the mic,every second was intriguing,interesting and worthwhile.
The aim of the event was to showcase a host of talented hausa rap/hip-hop musicians and combine thier talent with the traditional genre played by Nasiru Garba Supa.
First on stage to perform was Nasiru Garba Supa and his band.Nasiru,the vocalist played his instrument(i think the name is either goge or kukuma),a lady played the shantu,one person played the flute while the other played the kalangu.Nasiru and his band performed three lovely songs:Kano,Wakar Fulani,Hansatu and matasa.
The audience really enjoyed Nasiru's performance especially the song 'Kano'.It recieved several excitement roars and claps maybe due to the lyrics of the song which praised kano and somehow told the truth about the people of zaria.A particular lyric in the song caught my attention and i was pleased to have been brought to lime light.Nasiru finally revealed to the audience that those people you see selling mangoes during the start of the rainy season are actually people from Zaria  :lol: .The co-ordination of Nasiru's band was superb,the kalangu rhymed with the shantu and at the same time the kukuma rhymed with the lyrics of the song.The flute though was not very loud because the wasn't a microphone to amplify it but still, it rhymed also(at least when the flutist came near a mic).That was Nasiru and his band.

Then came the K-BOYS.
They were 2 in number.One was dark and the other was fair in complexion.The dark one was taller and had a neat 'sidebuck' as it is called.He wore a white vest,black jean(with one leg folded) and dark brown industrial boots.The fair one wore a white vest too with jeans  also and a pair of canvass shoes.He also wore a big chain around his neck.From their appearance you will no doubt know that they are rappers for real.They came to the stage with full energy and grabbed the mic with music playing in the background.The dark one had barely greeted the audience when the microphone failed.The K-boys didnt come with any
band,rather they had the instrumental version of their song played by a computer courtesy 'kwality audio-visual studio'.After 3 attempts the microphone finally agreed to work.The boys sang a song(pardon my english) titled 'kariya'.The k-boys energised the the audience with their very active and demonstrative performance.
The music was a real rap melody and their rap flowed very very well.One would take the lead while the other supported and vice versa.the chorus would slow the tempo a bit and then the tempo would rise again.At one point when the tempo was so high the fair guy yanked the chain from his neck and threw it on the ground just like 2pac or the bone thugs would do.Their performance was above expectation i must say.It was wonderful.
the k-boys's performance was just a beginning(as the prof said).

When the K-boys left the stage the audience started shouting 'kitaso mutaso',i didnt know what that meant but it had something to do with the next artists that were to perform.
Onto the stage now came a fair,slim,medium heighted,broadfaced guy with a gap in his teeth wearing a black leather p-cap tilted a little to the right.he wore a black shirt that had some white dots over it and a jean trouser.he introduced himself as Abdullahi Mighty(he doesent look mighty at all).
His first song was titled 'bebi' which he said was a true life story of a girl but he wouldnt mention her name.His second song was a party/dance song titled 'casu'. Although mighty isn't a very very good dancer,his steps followed the beat steadily.His performance was entertaining as well.He also didnt come with a band.The computer played the music.

After mighty's performance came 2 guys and a beautiful young lady.One of the guys wore a black leather jacket,a jungle hat(leather also) which came down to his forehead almost covering his eyes.He was shaba.the other wore a golden brown tracksuit and canvass with a red p-cap.He was Billy O. I dont know the name of the lady's outfit(na blouse abi shirt i no no)anyway it was lightblue in colour sprinkled with some patches of navy blue(i'm sure Husnaa would love the outfit)
The attire was so beautiful and it added to the lady's beauty.She was Fati
Niger.Their entry to the stage was met with utmost uproar by the already exited audience.
The first track they performed was titled 'koma baya'.Shaba and Billy O
gave the raps while fati gave the chorus. Fati's voice was so superb that it
does'nt need any computer editing.The performance was super-super(honestly) fantastic. I forgot which track came next between 'rainy season' and 'tibani'.
I really cannot explain or demonstrate their performance because i would do great injustice.I cannot squeeze out the juice such that the story will be sweet.All i can do is to tell you to get the video of the event and even if you do get it, it wouldnt be as sensational as attending the event.The excitement was just too good,beyond decsription.The lady had fabulous fabulous voice,billy o:-a complete entertainer.

The next person to perform was Khalid Shettima.He wore traditional Fulani attire.He sang along with Fati Niger.He wasnt as active as Billy O or mighty,he was the gentle type.His tracks were titled'Khalid zo taho' and 'Nigeria'.
After Khalid's performance,billy o came back to the stage to perform.Prior to that,he had somehow spotted Maryam Baba(a.k.a Maryam Sangandale) in the audience and he unceremoniously invited her to join the band.He performed some tracks along with her.Her voice was extraordinary.

The question and answer session came after that.Mighty was asked why he was called mighty?Maryam and Fati were asked when they realised they could sing.The bomber came when a director at the history and culture bureau asked Prof what he was doing to promote the artists.Hmm!the prof fired,fortunately the head of the culture bureau was available,he even had to address the audience that the government would do everything possible to promote such artists.He pointed out that Nasiru Super was just back from France and it was a state government supported trip.

After the question and answer session it was time for the grand finale.The
kukuma rap.All the artists that performed came on stage and performed three wonderful songs.Everyone(artist) of them took a lead at a time.It was marvelous.The co-ordination was great.The three songs were:Da'a which spoke about dicipline,'nasiha' and 'mama na'.It was a very wonderful performance.

The vote of thanks was delivered by Dr.Yusuf Adamu.

That was that.For those that couldn't attend,the Prof said the video should be up for grabs sometime in December.Also during the Babbar sallah,another event will be organised with a theme 'mecca to madina'.Keep a date(as he always says  :wink: ).

Me i don try  :roll: .

[HUSNAA]

I think ur write up is almost as entertaining as the concert. I could imagine the artistes and their attires from yr descriptions, (except the blouse :lol:). I can clearly picture prof on stage as he is very outgoing and very intelligent, so his answers must have been as interesting as the night's music!!
Thanks for sharing the experience, GGNK  :P .

[Nuruddeen]

I think ur write up is almost as entertaining as the concert. I could imagine the artistes and their attires from yr descriptions, (except the blouse :lol:). I can clearly picture prof on stage as he is very outgoing and very intelligent, so his answers must have been as interesting as the night's music!!
Thanks for sharing the experience, GGNK  :P .

Kash! I missed this one wo. Anyway, thumb up for Prof Abdallah and co. I was in Jigawa  for political engagement.

[Muhsin]

I think ur write up is almost as entertaining as the concert. I could imagine the artistes and their attires from yr descriptions, (except the blouse :lol:). I can clearly picture prof on stage as he is very outgoing and very intelligent, so his answers must have been as interesting as the night's music!!
Thanks for sharing the experience, GGNK  :P .

Kash! I missed this one wo. Anyway, thumb up for Prof Abdallah and co. I was in Jigawa  for political engagement.

Off topic: Are you there for Dan Inna solidarity? Or for his formidable challenger Faruk A. Aliyu?
An gaida dan siyasa :lol:

[Abdalla]

I can definitely imagine you as a band manager prof :P.
:lol: Too bad the pay the image and the cachet isnt as good as being a professor!!!

Hehehe! Me a Band Manager?! Y'know, it could work! And believe me, it would be better than being a boring ol' professor (and I don't look professional at all, despite Muhsin's self-intimidation!). The pay (all those doubloons clinking away in your pocket), the image (aah, imagine the holidays -- one week in Niafunke, another in Saly, another in Maradi, before taking off to organize a Fulbe Rap concert in Conakry -- heaven!), and the cachet? The pleasure of seeing something so wonderful being appreciated! Being a band manager will make closer to Muhsin, he won't be scared of me anymore!

And Gogan Naka was right! You would have loved the dress worn by Fati Nijar, who is actually from Nijar Republic. As he reported she really has a wonderful voice. My God! If she were to stand at the Royal Albert Hall, she would give any saprano a run for their money. Her range, pitch, timber were simply wonderful! She has an operatic quality, and Wagner would certainly have loved her voice;  I hope they don't exploit her by turning her into some Lata Mangeshkar. He custome was a powder blue pant suit, and she had a black headscarf -- sharp contrast. We had photos and we will upload....

....which bring me to wonderful news. We have decided to open up a Hausa Rap page where we will showcase the rappers, including ages, phone numbers (they don't have emails, unfortunately) as well as clips of their best numbers. Gogan Naka's review of K-Boys was spot on. And you know something, the light skinned boy is STILL in senior high school (finishing next year) at Bukavu Barracks Secondary School! Hehehehe! Now talk about Kris Kross meets Lil' Bow Wow! Except he is much taller; but he is just about 17, very talented and very committed to his art.

I have finished transfering the raw footage of the concert into the video editor, and today (Sunday) I burnt the lot on a DVD and gave it to Salisu. He promises to do his magic trick and eventually you will be able to see streaming footage of the video -- minus me, of course; I am afraid I am not a stage material; pudgy and warbly. Yuk!

I have also finished producing the music from the concert. Luckily the mikes from the performers fed directly into the recording mixers, so the sound is easier to control. It has been cleaned up now and we have a crystal clear recording. However, the musicans are kind enough to also lend their best tracks (which they performed on stage) and these will be uploaded by Salisu. I think a reviewer mentioned that two of Shaba's songs were indistinct -- well we are uploading the studio versions. One of them, Shake Like Shaba, has a nice rap mid-section which goes like:


Daya biyu uku,
Sai ku ce da ni
hudu!
Labari zan fada na 'yan mata
Hudu
Sun yi ado sun fito wajen karfe
Hudu
Ni kuwa na hau achaba za ni kwana
Hudu
Lokacin ba yunwa na ci amala
Hudu
Na ci na koshi cikina
Tunbun dunku!
Matan nan ko sun wuce suna ta
Fadu!
Guda Basakkwaciya, dayar kuwa 'yar kwana
Hudu
Ta ukun 'yar Zazzau, Inyamura ta
Hudu
Da budar baki na ce Inyamurar nake so
'Yar Inyamura ta ce da ni na buga
to idan na buga, ke ma kin buga, aha, kin buga, kin buga...

Hilarious! Pick any Old Skool rap (that's my number, bro!) and note the lyrical beauty of Shaba's composition in other rappers' poetics.

Of course Billy-O's Rainy Season was one of the highlights of the concert. This demo track has been receiving repeated radio play on Radio Freedom. It is quite simply ingenious and Billy-O (Bello Ibrahim, would you believe?!?) has pioneered a distinct form of Hausa rap in his combination of Enghausa. A portion of the lyrics in Rainy Season goes like this:


Farkon ganinki na yi wo confusing
Sai da zuciyata ta yi ta squeezing
Sai da temperatureta ta yi raising
Jiri nake ca ake na sha poison
Ni ko so nake a san ina da reason
Reason na farko kina da kyan dressing
Reason na biyu kullun ki son ki weaving...
Oh Rainy season.

Positively ingenious -- he has provided a template which everyone now copies!

I am quite impressed that Gogan Naka observed that only Nasiru Garba Supa's Arewa came on stage with REAL instruments! The rappers relied exclusively on their computer programs (FruityLoops and Cakewalk Pro), and it was midway in the concert that Shaba strut his stuff with brilliant REAL synthesizer playing. What the Kano rappers -- and I would imagine Nigerian and African rappers -- play of course is TECHNO (Patrick Crowley, anyone? Remember Megatron Man, also Giorgio Moroder's Munich Machine). You just program the machine and get on with the singing -- not everyone's cup of expresso, but hey, it is a genre!

Oh, BTW, GGNK, the Director BC is not Betty Sue (hehehe!) but SUE MACE! Thanks for attending and giving a such a wonderful review. The boys would really love this (NONE of them has any steady job, would you believe!) and feel appreciated. The Director BC wanted to encourage them so much that she agreed to DOUBLE their fees (they normally charge five thousand naira per individual per formance; we gave them ten).

Babbar Sallah, insha Allah, it is Mecca II Medina, a trio of British Da'awah rappers; jamming with definitely Billy-O, Shaba and some others. Think of SOLDIERS OF ALLAH and NATIVE DEEN, and you have an idea of Mecca II Medina sound like.

Oh, and a world premier of FULFULDE RAP! So watch this space.....

Abdalla

[bakangizo]

I have finished transfering the raw footage of the concert into the video editor, and today (Sunday) I burnt the lot on a DVD and gave it to Salisu. He promises to do his magic trick and eventually you will be able to see streaming footage of the video -- minus me, of course; I am afraid I am not a stage material; pudgy and warbly. Yuk!

I have also finished producing the music from the concert. Luckily the mikes from the performers fed directly into the recording mixers, so the sound is easier to control. It has been cleaned up now and we have a crystal clear recording. However, the musicans are kind enough to also lend their best tracks (which they performed on stage) and these will be uploaded by Salisu.

Thanks, Prof.

Is there any chance of obtaining the "hard" copy of the above if you are through?

[HUSNAA]

....which bring me to wonderful news. We have decided to open up a Hausa Rap page where we will showcase the rappers, including ages, phone numbers (they don't have emails, unfortunately) as well as clips of their best numbers.

Wonderful!! Looking forward to it!!

I have finished transfering the raw footage of the concert into the video editor...... eventually you will be able to see streaming footage of the video -- minus me, of course; I am afraid I am not a stage material; pudgy and warbly. Yuk!

Prof dont undermine yrself. You are a brilliant and dynamic person. Yr personality is  overwhelming in reality and its just as strong in cyberspace so it will definitely radiate out in the video. U shouldnt have cut yrself out.

Oh, BTW, GGNK, the Director BC is not Betty Sue (hehehe!) but SUE MACE! Thanks for attending and giving a such a wonderful review. The boys would really love this (NONE of them has any steady job, would you believe!) and feel appreciated. The Director BC wanted to encourage them so much that she agreed to DOUBLE their fees (they normally charge five thousand naira per individual per formance; we gave them ten).

Its a real shame that they are jobless, but also they make us proud because instead of going down the usual route of drugs and 'yam fashi, they have chosen an alternative path, which it is up to us the rest of the public to positively encourage, even if this scene is not part of Hausa culture per se and u will eventually find some bigots who will tell u that this is anti Islamic like they said about playing snooker some yrs ago and I was like 'well what do u expect the youth to do when u take away the football fields and give them to some potbellied political sycophants so that the youth have nowhere to vent their energies and testesterone induced aggressions?'

Babbar Sallah, insha Allah, it is Mecca II Medina, a trio of British Da'awah rappers; jamming with definitely Billy-O, Shaba and some others. Think of SOLDIERS OF ALLAH and NATIVE DEEN, and you have an idea of Mecca II Medina sound like.

Oh, and a world premier of FULFULDE RAP! So watch this space.....

Abdalla

Oh Gosh oh gosh, u are raising my temperature!!! I am so excited. This sounds so fun and fabulous. Find them online before u meet them face II face:
http://www.mecca2medina.com/front.htm

[gogannaka]

I think ur write up is almost as entertaining as the concert. I could imagine the artistes and their attires from yr descriptions, (except the blouse :lol:). I can clearly picture prof on stage as he is very outgoing and very intelligent, so his answers must have been as interesting as the night's music!!
Thanks for sharing the experience, GGNK  :P .

You are welcome.I wish i could express it better.
Hehe i forgot to tell you the Prof's outfit,it was beautiful also. I heard someone(my neighbour at the event) making a comment that where do they get to buy such outfit cos he doesen't see them in the market. It was a dyed 'jampa'(green and white).Looked Carribean to me.The trouser was a casual black one.

Oh, BTW, GGNK, the Director BC is not Betty Sue (hehehe!) but SUE MACE! Thanks for attending and giving a such a wonderful review.

You are welcome. I didnt know why i called her Betty Sue (apologies).She did enjoy the concert because i saw her nodding her head in amusement.I wonder if she understands Hausa?

We pray the Mecca II medina concert will even be better.More grease to your elbows.

[dan kauye]

Great reviews! Sounds like the show was off the hook.Wud definately be attenting one in the future if I'm around. :D   :D  :D  


Glad that everyone had fun...Props to Abdallah,G-naka,Muhsin & Bakan Gizo .Do ya thang..

[Abdalla]

GGK:

Hehe i forgot to tell you the Prof's outfit,it was beautiful also. I heard someone(my neighbour at the event) making a comment that where do they get to buy such outfit cos he doesen't see them in the market. It was a dyed 'jampa'(green and white).Looked Carribean to me.The trouser was a casual black one.

Yes, quite a few people also talked to me about my "outfit". It is really a poor man's "suit". I bought it in the Dakar central market this year for about N300 (when you convert!). I have similar outfits from Ghana and Mali. I have always encouraged the idea of horizontal fashion -- fashion from other African countries to share our cultural heritage.

GGK

She did enjoy the concert because i saw her nodding her head in amusement.I wonder if she understands Hausa?

Nah, Sue could not speak a single word of Hausa. She is fluent in Japanese and Latvian, though! So give her time. Her nodding her head to the music communicates the universality of music as a message -- regardless of color, religion, language. Wish the world would be as harmonious!

Rainbow (Nation?)

Is there any chance of obtaining the "hard" copy of the above if you are through?

Why not? I have quite a few things on the boil at the moment, but as soon I get some space, I will retrieve the files as MP3s and burn them on a CD. We can make arrangements for you to have a copy. If you are in the Kano region, why not drop by Supha Studios, Zoo Road (Shamlad Building, near No 1 Restaurant) to say hello to Shaba! The K-Boys are also submitting a demo CD of their works and once I get that I will upload to Dandali.  We are thinking of producing a an album of the best Kano Rap (beside the Koukouma Rap album). So keep an eye on things around here...

Husnaa

it is up to us the rest of the public to positively encourage, even if this scene is not part of Hausa culture per se and u will eventually find some bigots who will tell u that this is anti Islamic

I am opening up a separate thread on the issues you raised, seeing as we have possibly come to the end of this.

Abdalla

[bakangizo]

Abdalla:

Why not? I have quite a few things on the boil at the moment, but as soon I get some space, I will retrieve the files as MP3s and burn them on a CD. We can make arrangements for you to have a copy. If you are in the Kano region, why not drop by Supha Studios, Zoo Road (Shamlad Building, near No 1 Restaurant) to say hello to Shaba! ...

Thanks, Prof. Just give the 'go' when its ready and I would be there. :lol:

[admin]

Here are the links. Test them and let me know....
to download from the downloads page, you may need to register as a member of the all new work in progress kanoOnline...

Songs:
http://www.kanoonline.com/mb/index.php?option=com_artistavenue&task=singleCd&id=1&Itemid=31

Musicians:
http://www.kanoonline.com/mb/index.php?option=com_artistavenue&Itemid=31

Downloads:
http://www.kanoonline.com/mb/index.php?option=com_remository&Itemid=30

Video Clip:
http://www.kanoonline.com/mb/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1