Music

From the depths of despair, Libianca created a song that changed her life. People (Check On Me), a tender cry for help that captured her at a crushing low point, has been streamed more than 150 million times since December. It's been…

The singer, songwriter and producer Michael Makembe has compiled an audio library with almost 1,000 recordings of people singing, clapping and playing traditional instruments In a studio in Kigali, Rwanda, Michael Makembe sits down…

When I came across the box of papers, I was shocked by the extent of Dad’s lies. After my dad, Peter, died in 2011, I found a box of papers and a photo album under his bed. That’s how I discovered he had a secret wife named Irene, and…

As day breaks over the heads of the clubbers on a Kampala rooftop, arms are raised in unison as they dance on to the bass-heavy tracks. Florence Lugemwa has only been Dj-ing for a few weeks but had the party going until after sunrise. …

Emmanuel Jal doesn’t know how old he is. He tells people he’s 38. “I don’t know exactly when I was born, just because I was born when my country was at war,” says the chart-topping hip-hop musician, who is from South…

The unusual combination of a French horn, a grand piano, an electric sitar and a glockenspiel provided the introduction to Didn’t I (Blow Your Mind This Time), a swooning soul ballad that took the Delfonics, a Philadelphia vocal trio, to…

One of Africa's most celebrated singers, Tshala Muana, who died last week aged 64, was equally known for her soulful voice and raunchy dancing which led to riots and calls for her to be banned. Such calls always failed in the face of…

My first album was called "Green Card" and the feeling behind that was that I was living in America and I was supposed to get a green card. So, I called my album Green Card and moved back to Ghana. Since then, all my albums have been…

Following widespread protests in Senegal about the rape and murder of women, the law was changed in 2020 to make rape a serious crime instead of a misdemeanour. The events opened up a conversation around sexual assault, shame and…

Kwesi Arthur is one of Ghana's most successful artists. This rapper, singer and songwriter rose to fame in 2017 with the hit song Grind Day, and from there he's gone on to win Hip Hop Song of the Year and Rapper of the Year at the Ghana…