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Mohammed Alidu to launch new album Yedanai
On this latest work, he fuses rhythms from his Dagomba background with flavours from across Ghana and other places into a palatable fare.
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Recorded in his Bizung Studio at Tamale and Colorado in the United States, Alidu is helped along by Daniel Nunez (guitars), Johnny Jyemo (drums) and Ysmael Reyes (concert flute). They have created what Alidu describes as Dagomba and Ghana-based music well enough to be enjoyed all over the world.
Alidu shuttles between Colorado and Tamale where he runs the Bizung School of Music and Dance. He is a descendant of a long line of master drummers known as the ‘Bizung’ who have lived in Tamale for centuries.
He is also part of the US-based Playing for Change movement created in 2002 to inspire and connect the world through music. The organisation believes music has the power to break down boundaries and overcome distances between people.
Most of the songs on the ‘Yedanai’ album are rendered in Dagbani, the most widely spoken language in northern Ghana. According to Alidu, singing in Dagbani is all part of the crusade to promote the language and the culture of the people who speak it.
“Some great, beautiful music abounds in northern Ghana. I’m only contributing my bit to bring it out to the world and let all people who love it also contribute positively to it. There are others who are also doing what they can for the culture in different ways and more will come up in the future to continue what we are doing,” Alidu says.
Songs on the ‘Yedanai’ album offer different moods and paces that resonate with aspects of contemporary popular music. So one can, for instance, point at the title track and say it has Afrobeat elements. ‘Tanasu’ also has a Highlife feel while ‘Pandemic International’ flirts with Reggae.
Alidu’s explanation is that music from northern Ghana is so broad that it connects with stuff from across Africa and the African Diaspora.
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“When we play, we fall on what’s from our roots. Depending on what type of music it is, it may ring a bell with some people but we always look inward first to tap on the extraordinary range of rhythms and time signatures we have,” he stated.
Drummer Johnny Jyemo and guitarist Daniel Nunez, both from the United States, will also feature at the album luanch.