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Lokua Kanza
A Truly Authentic Musician
04/01/1999 -
Frédéric Garat : What does it feel like to be one of Africa's top stars on the French and European music scene?
Lokua Kanza: (Laughs). Really ? Well, I never got that impression myself ! I don't consider myself to be one of Africa's top music stars. The way I see it, I'm slowly beginning to carve out a niche for myself in the vast 'panorama' of the African music scene. The African music scene is made up of a whole host of artists, and I see myself as just one individual who goes to make up the whole. For me, the African music scene is in a constant state of flux - you know, artists appear, disappear for a while and then reappear at various stages of their career. And I'm just a small part of all that.
You scored a huge hit with the single "Shadow Dancers", which was taken from the album "Wapi Yo". Did you get a lot of pressure from your record company to come up with another commercial hit straight after that? When I first started out on the music scene my style was already very similar to the music on my new album. But back then the record companies were all telling me that the music I was writing was not authentic African music! They claimed they were more interested in 'typically' African sounds. Which basically means they wanted songs with this caricature of an African accent, where the singer goes, you know: " Bonjour, Missié " and all that.
But luckily, things have moved on from there, people's attitudes have changed a bit over the past few years (…). And I'm really proud of the music on my third album. It's true that musicians are often tempted to do exactly the same thing as they did on their last album. You know, fans loved it last time round, so I'll do the same thing again! But the way I see it, an artist's job is to create, to come up with new material all the time. Even if s/he runs the risk of getting it wrong sometimes ... I think you've just got to please yourself really and not worry about the commercial potential of a song. You have to dare a bit, take a few risks. After all, we're creative artists not salesmen !
I notice that on your new album, "3", there are a lot of special guest stars, including the famous conductor and musical arranger Jean-Claude Petit. In fact, one of the most striking things about your new album, Lokua, is the way in which the string arrangements work with your voice...
I've always wanted to have a really powerful string section in my work. I've had that idea at the back of my mind for as long as I can remember, in fact! I had a classical music training and I've always loved the sound of string instruments. I find strings a really powerful way of conveying emotion and getting straight to the heart. What's more, I really appreciated having the opportunity to work with Jean-Claude Petit. He's a really great musical arranger and working with him has really made me want to get into arranging myself. And from what he told me, Jean-Claude really enjoyed our collaboration as well.
The song "More Than Just Sex" was another major collaboration, wasn't it? You co-wrote it with Lamont Dozier, the king of the American soul scene … Lamont Dozier is a living legend on the American soul scene! It was Dozier who wrote all those famous Motown tunes. You know, he wrote songs for heaps of stars, everyone from Diana Ross to the Supremes, and hundreds of others! Dozier's love songs have this really amazing quality about them. They're quite different from the standard run-of-the-mill stuff. I mean, Dozier writes about having sex with your lover and all that, but he does so in a really deep way which goes beyond the normal love and sex thing. His lyrics can be incredibly powerful. And so, yes, I'm really proud that one of the songs on my new album was written with him.
The backing vocals on your new album are provided by Julia Sarr and Anne Papiri, two singers who have worked a lot with you in recent years. But there's also a new addition to your backing band this time round, a singer called Annie Flore.
Annie comes from Gabon, but I actually met her in France when I was performing a concert in the suburbs near Lyon. Annie came to see me after the show and we just hit it off immediately. She told me she really loved my songs and I got her to sing for me. I was really impressed by her voice, you know. She's got real talent and I think she's got the ability to go very far indeed. There's something very traditional about Annie's style, and yet at the same time her way of working and her whole musical approach is totally modern. For me, Annie Flore really represents the future of African music.
So do you think you might get round to producing an album for Annie, after you've finished working with Geoffrey Orem and Papa Wemba that is? Well, right now I'm pretty busy production-wise. I'm all set to go out to South Africa to produce three tracks I wrote for (and here Lokua breaks out into a broad grin!) Myriam Makeba. I'm really over the moon about it! I mean, I'm obviously pretty nervous about the idea of working with such a legendary singer, but at the same time I'm really looking forward to getting into the studio and starting work. I know it's going to be a truly incredible experience, going into the studio with Myriam and feeling all that amazing energy she gives off. So, basically, the plan is I'm going to go out to South Africa, re-charge my batteries with Myriam, then come back to France all fresh and re-energised for the rest of the winter!
Lokua Kanza 3 (RCA / BMG) 1998
25/03/2010 -
28/05/2004 -
01/02/2002 -
