The French singer, composer and DJ of West Indian origin continues to build bridges between Africa and the West Indies with this new electro-creole remix from the album Ouvre la porte – Remix Album, by the eternal adventurer El Gato Negro.
David Walters and El Gato Negro share an admiration for Calypso Rose, who David remixed on his track “Back to Africa.” Yet “Toca Y Toca” opens new doors, reflecting the vast dialogue between the West Indies and Africa. Indeed, Gato Negro never ceases to radiate Soleil Kréyol, the name of his album (released last January) featuring Seun Kuti, the youngest son of Afrobeat legend Fela Kuti. Since then, there has been no shortage of opportunities for uniting these two shores of the Atlantic: Gato Negro shows good humour in visuals that see him travel to the market places of Kampala for the shooting of his video “Manyè” last October.
This new remix, from the forthcoming album Ouvre la porte, is part of a multicultural project by this veritable migratory bird, who has been travelling South America for 15 years as part of the group Calle 13, taking stock of the traditional rhythms like cumbia, salsa, paso, cha cha and bolero. This journey gave rise to an attachment to the African continent, from the trance of Afro-Colombian rhythms to the reggaeton of Cuba.
To orchestrate his vision, he summoned the greatest gurus of the world’s tropical scene: artists from Argentina, Canada, Venezuela, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Guatemala, as well as French composers David Walters, DjeuhDjoah & Lieutenant Nicholson, all under the watchful eye of Guts and his remastering skills. A cosmopolitan release whose mantra can be summed up in a single sentence: “The sky does not belong to you, the ground does not belong to you, my blood does not belong to you.”
Ouvre la porte – Remix Album will be released on November 20 via Cosmovision Records.
