Waga Hip Hop is one of the major international hip hop festivals taking place in West Africa. Each year, around early and mid-October, Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) thus welcomes international artists and media to attend this festival of urban cultures.
Created in 2000, Waga Hip Hop is the flagship event of the association Umane Culture. [1] This association stands out as an active cultural structure, which develops multidisciplinary projects, in music, theatre, dance and tales, created in 1997 by Ali Diallo (member of the Export Bureau of African Music, BEMA). The latest realisation of Umane Culture was the creation, in November 2008, of the first Burkinabé music market, Saga Musik.
At first, Waga Hip Hop was organised with local hip hop artists solely at a time when Hip Hop was booming in Burkina Faso (2001–2003) mainly thanks to the arrival of an initial studio (Abazon) whose arranger was specialised in hip hop productions (Smockey). However, very quickly, Waga Hip Hop reached an international scale, notably in 2002, with the support of international cultural organisations. Since then, and for each of its editions, Waga Hip Hop has welcomed artists coming from throughout the continent. With respect, it stands as one of the most visible festivals dedicated to the urban cultures in the West African region. [2] Unsurprisingly, Waga Hip Hop, as a yearly event, has now raised international consideration. [3]
Each year, Waga Hip Hop aims at being as largely as possible representative of all the urban cultures. As such, Waga Hip Hop not only welcomes in its organisation showcases and performances of hip hop artists but also those of other urban artists such as the now well-known Victor Démé who was discovered through a performance he gave during the festival. Besides, Waga Hip Hop regularly holds artistic residencies dedicated to the various disciplines of urban cultures such as hip hop dance, beatbox and other vocal urban music. [4] Its most famous production is “Waka Tibio”, which came out of the artistic residencies held during the 2008 and 2009 editions, and welcomed the joint performances of Fredy Massamba (DRC), King Ayisoba (Ghana), Awa Sissao (Burkina Faso) and DJ Gee Bayss (Senegal).
Besides, with the desire to expand its contribution to the whole country, Waga Hip Hop holds events in the capital city, i.e. Ouagadougou as well as throughout the country, in the different regional cities (Ouahigouya, Fada N’Gourma, Bobo Dioulasso, Pô, Koudougou). Not only a space of creation and diffusion, Waga Hip Hop also stands as an important sphere of training and formation. Indeed, and in order to support the development of the local cultural community, the festival yearly organises workshops dedicated to the local cultural operators as well as to the artists. [5]
The principal partners of Waga Hip Hop are the Francophonia International Organisation (OIF), Africalia (Belgium), Culture France but also Staycalm!, a Paris-based artistic collective which has been supporting Waga Hip Hop since its early years. Staycalm! has now become well known for its multimedia production on West African Hip Hop, “Fangafrika”.
Hip Hop artists from Burkina Faso [nb 1] | Urban artists from Burkina Faso [nb 2] | Urban Information in Burkina Faso |
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More information on the artists and organizations mentioned above can be found on their MySpace pages.
Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of 274,200 km2 (105,900 sq mi), bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and the Ivory Coast to the southwest. As of 2021, the country had an estimated population of 20,321,378. Previously called Republic of Upper Volta (1958–1984), it was renamed Burkina Faso by President Thomas Sankara. Its citizens are known as Burkinabès, and its capital and largest city is Ouagadougou. Its name is often translated into English as the "Land of Honest Men".
Ouagadougou is the capital of Burkina Faso and the administrative, communications, cultural, and economic centre of the nation. It is also the country's largest city, with a population of 2,415,266 in 2019. The city's name is often shortened to Ouaga. The inhabitants are called ouagalais. The spelling of the name Ouagadougou is derived from the French orthography common in former French African colonies.
The music of Burkina Faso includes the folk music of 60 different ethnic groups. The Mossi people, centrally located around the capital, Ouagadougou, account for 40% of the population while, to the south, Gurunsi, Gurma, Dagaaba and Lobi populations, speaking Gur languages closely related to the Mossi language, extend into the coastal states. In the north and east the Fulani of the Sahel preponderate, while in the south and west the Mande languages are common; Samo, Bissa, Bobo, Senufo and Marka. Burkinabé traditional music has continued to thrive and musical output remains quite diverse. Popular music is mostly in French: Burkina Faso has yet to produce a major pan-African success.
Idrissa Ouédraogo was a Burkinabé filmmaker. His work often explored the conflict between rural and city life and tradition and modernity in his native Burkina Faso and elsewhere in Africa. He is best known for his feature film Tilaï, which won the Grand Prix at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival and Samba Traoré (1993), which was nominated for the Silver Bear award at the 43rd Berlin International Film Festival.
The cinema of Burkina Faso is one of the more significant in Africa, with a history that spans several decades and includes the production of many award-winning films.
The Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou is a film festival in Burkina Faso, held biennially in Ouagadougou, where the organization is based. It accepts for competition only films by African filmmakers and chiefly produced in Africa. FESPACO is scheduled in March every second year, two weeks after the last Saturday of February. Its opening night is held in the Stade du 4-Août, the national stadium.
The culture of Burkina Faso in West Africa is also called the Burkinabé culture.
Articles related to Burkina Faso include:
Didier Awadi is a Senegalese rapper and a significant figure in Francophone West African hip hop. As a founding member of Positive Black Soul (PBS) with Duggy Tee, Awadi toured around the world contributing to the international popularity of Hip Hop Galsen. Awadi works as a solo artist, accompanied by his crew PBS Radikal. He participates in the Senegalese music industry through his label, recording studio, and rehearsal space, Studio Sankara. Awadi offers a conscious and revolutionary style of music strengthened by articulated and rooted messages. His motivation and inspiration is grounded in the Burkinabé revolutionary Thomas Sankara's phrase: "Let's dare to invent our future!"
Gee Bayss is one of the pioneer DJs in West Africa. Member of the group, Pee Froiss, he toured throughout the world with his sure-fire turntablism which had crowds jumping whenever the group was performing. Combining solo projects with international tours of the Pee Froiss, Gee Bayss is actively engaged in transmitting his deejaying art to the younger generations.
Burkina Faso–Sweden relations refers to the current and historical relationship between Sweden and Burkina Faso. Burkina Faso has a non-resident ambassador located in Copenhagen, Denmark and an honorary consulate in Uppsala. Sweden has an embassy in Ouagadougou, which was opened in 2010.
Serge Bambara is a hip hop artist, actor and political activist from Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso. Born in what was then the Republic of Upper Volta, the son of a Bissa father and a French mother, he moved to France to study in 1991. In 1999 he signed a contract with EMI and launched a first single, featuring the singer Lââm. In 2001 he moved back to Burkina Faso and started the studio Abazon. He has released the albums Epitaphe, Zamana, Code noir and Cravate Costards et Pourriture, and cooperated with the prominent Senegalese rapper Didier Awadi.
Victor Démé was a Burkinabé musician and singer-songwriter originating from a Mandinka family. His death was caused by a bout of malaria.
Moulaye Dicko, better known by his stage name Dicko Fils, is a Burkinabé musician of Fulɓe origin. He sings and plays the kamale n'goni.
Mamadou Djim Kola was an Burkinabe filmmaker who directed feature films and short films.
Apolline Traoré is a Burkinabé filmmaker and producer.
Kady Traoré is a Burkinabé actress, film director, and film producer.
Burkinabè Rising : the art of resistance in Burkina Faso is a 2018 long documentary film directed and produced by Iara Lee.
Malika Ouattara is a slam poet and musical artist from Burkina Faso, known as "Malika la Slameuse".
Philomaine Nanema, also Philo is a comedian and actress from Burkina Faso. She is the recipient of the 2020 ECOWAS prize for best young comedian. In 2022 she co-presented Hello Doc, a series intended to encourage COVID-19 immunisation in Africa.
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