tour: Janka Nabay Goes to SXSW, Sabanoh tape

Bubu King!

If you search Bubu Music in Google, the first eight links are all about Janka Nabay. The ninth is the Wikipedia article on the traditional music of the Temne people from Sierra Leone, made with “old keyboards and by blowing on carburetor pipes and bamboo shoots,” and of which Janka Nabah is universally considered the King. Not only that, Janka was also the first to record Bubu music in Sierra Leone, and his music proved to unite war torn Sierra Leone over ebullient dance music, whose goal was to use the music to promote “peace, good governance and the empowerment of women.”

Janka has been in New York City, regularly playing all over the Manhattan and Brooklyn with a tour de force known as the Bubu Gang, which features members of Highlife, Skeletons, and a plethora of other Brooklyn based musicians helping to re-create Janka’s vision of Bubu with live instruments. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Janka play on more than a few occasions in Brooklyn and each time I leave with my feet sore, but my mind strong. (Bubu proves to be both cathartic and healthy workout.)

Yesterday I posted the A Side to a tape Janka recorded in Sierra Leonne on the Kickstarter blog. To follow up, here's the B-side to Sabanoh. Pledge to Janka's project on Kickstarter.

Download Janka Nabay- Sabanoh B-Side
Download the A-Side to Sabanoh here.