With a single from her forthcoming album KABA, the Gabonese singer transports us into her delicate world that is fueled by commitment and solidarity.
After leaving Gabon for Mali and touring with the greatest voices such as Salif Keïta, Oumou Sangaré, Check Tidiane Seck, Les Amazones d’Afrique and many others, Pamela Badjogo has surrounded herself with the guitarist of the highlife singer Pat Thomas, to unveil her second album KABA, due for release next April. Here is the third Afro-soul cut, “Toto,” delivered in the Bantu language.
The track is a call for more solidarity and sharing in the face of prejudice and preconceived ideas, as well as intolerance and discrimination in a period of global withdrawal. “Kaba” means fraternal sharing in Ndzebi, her father’s language, but she relies on her mother for inspiration in the writing of her lyrics. With strong solidarity for women’s causes, she denounces the oppressions of everyday life through her soft, deeply-accented vocals. She is also the spokesperson for Les Fées-ministres, a collective that supports women wishing to take legal action following domestic attacks in France, and president of the Malian collective Moussoya yé kobayé, co-founded with rapper Ami Yerewolo.
Listen to Pamela Badjogo in our Songs of the Week playlist on Spotify and Deezer.
