I recently discovered African music from a small Island country called Cape Verde. Carbo Verde is how the locals call it. The realisation is that our young African lives were inundated with shallow Western music at the expense of our rich African music.


Carbo Verde



Far from the halls where Western tongues do preach,
Of lands "discovered" by those who dared to breach,
I sought no maps, no compass for my quest,
But turned to music, Africa's hidden chest.

There stood a maiden, Cape Verde her name,
A windswept siren of beauty untamed.
With a voice of salt and an ocean's embrace,
She bid me welcome to her sacred space.

"Here are my children," she whispered with pride,
"Each with a song where my spirit resides."

First came Cesária Evora, barefoot and bold,
Her voice like Morna, in melancholy told.
In Creole she sang of a Petit Pays,
A soulful lament borne by ocean's breeze.

Then her son, Ildo Lobo, a storm in his chest,
With Funaná rhythms, he sang unrest.
A troubadour's heart with a rebel's cry,
His Koladera soared to the boundless sky.

Next, Mayra Andrade, a beauty profound,
Her jazzy whispers a sultry sound.
In Portuguese she danced through night,
With global tones that took their flight.

Then Teófilo Chantre, a poet of lore,
Weaving words that the heart would adore.
In gentle ballads his stories unfurled,
Bringing Cape Verde to the world's wide world.

Tito Paris, a bard with strings that weep,
Blending Morna with Jazz, melodies deep.
His guitar sang of longing, a wanderer's plight,
His notes were stars in the island's night.

And Nancy Vieira, with a voice so pure,
Carried the past and the future, secure.
Her melodies whispered of life and of pain,
Creole songs wrapped in a sweet refrain.

Each voice a wave, each song a tide,
From Africa's heart to the world spread wide.
Yet why, dear kin, do we so oft forsake,
The songs of our soil for rhythms that fake?

Oh Africa, let us shun the western bind,
And seek the music that's ours to find.
Come hear Cape Verde, her children’s art,
And let their songs kindle fire in your heart.





Poetry by in'kwa
Read 66 times
Written on 2025-01-11 at 11:14

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