On the Fly

Voices Out of Africa:
Baaba Maal and Gigi

By the Red Eye Crew
SeeingBlack.com Contributing Writers

The voice of Ethiopian singer Ejigayehu Shibabaw, better known as Gigi, is mellifluous and floats its many octaves over arrangements that are jazzy, soul-infused and integrated with the beats of her native land. Performing January 22 at Wolf Trap in Northern Virginia, she appeared with a quartet of musicians—a much smaller line-up compared to the impressive line-up on her self-titled, debut album. The stripped down sound, including a conga player, further emphasized the African roots and sensibility in her songs.

Gigi, who was 27 when her album dropped last year, grew up in a rural community listening to traditional Ethiopian gospel music, which takes on topics of the world and spins them into sounds for the masses. This early influence is evident in the young singer. Her vocalizations, all in her native language of Amharic, are full of complexity, a rich timbre and sometimes employ a call and response with the musicians or, on her album, with background vocals.

Dressed simply in a loose-fitting tent top and maroon-colored pants, Gigi stood at the mike and performed without a lot of flash. Sometimes she clapped or did a little dance that shook her thick, wiry hair, her shoulders and lifted her arms. Obviously still becoming accustoming to the performance aspects of artistry, she was a little shy about movement but forged ahead, almost as if to oblige the older musicians who looked on with encouragement and approval.

Though she sings of love, Gigi also sings about the condition of her native country, continent and people. She ended the evening with a song about Adwa, the site of the battle where Ethiopians fought and defeated Italians who attempted to colonize the country. Here, with love, she evoked the name of Africa, the homeland. It is not difficult to think of Gigi as an Ethiopian version of the young Aretha Franklin, with a voice full of power and roots in the world of spirituality and faith.

The veteran Baaba Maal, from Senegal, began his set with a single acoustic guitar with a sound so soothing it was like a lullaby. Then, as the master musicians who accompany began to fill the stage, the rhythms increased in complexity and pace so that by the finale, the lullaby was transformed into a call to the listener to rise and praise whatever spirits filled the guitar, kora and other traditional string instruments on stage.

And then there were Maal's hard-driving vocals. Though he is not from a griot family, Maal's style is very much that of the griot and his sound is intense and filled with determination and authority. Though he has flirted with Western musicals styles and synthesizers in the past, this tour in support of his latest album, "Missing You (mi yeewnil)," marks a reemphasis on his acoustic roots and the griot style of extended narrative within song.

Sometimes Maal dueled vocally, in call and response, with the musicians. At other times, he traded verses with his teacher, Mansour Seck, whose higher-pitched voice provided texture and a dueling harmony. Both artists enjoyed making careful dance steps, showing off their African finery, on the small stage. Maal likes to dress. He made one change of wardrobe, revealing a stunning gold-patterned tunic beneath his flowing robe, eliciting appreciative yells of excitement from the Africans in attendance.

Maal's stories are a mix of tales of love and social commentary that are difficult to follow in detail for those unfamiliar with Maal's native language. Yet, the spirit reaches across language barriers. At some point, when Maal sang a tribute to women, explaining the meaning in English, the audience roared its approval, happy to know the exact meaning of his words:

Just like the seed you plant at the right time in the right condition will be fruitful
So it is with women
All good things will come from her!

-- February 21, 2002

© Copyright 2001-05 Seeing Black, Inc. All Rights Reserved.