Music

How a young musician captured the music of Rwanda

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

After my dad died, I tracked down his secret family

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

The musician drumming up ambition in Kampala’s slums

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.

Obituary: Songwriter & producer, Thomas Bell

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

My music is different

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

Kwesi Arthur: From owing school fees to BET nomination

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