A Conversation with Baaba Maal

Friday October 14, 2011

from Huffington Post

A Conversation with Baaba Maal
By Mike Ragogna

Mike Ragogna: We’re talking with Baaba Maal who is currently on tour in the United States on a series of speaking engagements based on issues facing Africa. Baaba, how are you?

Baaba Maal: I’m doing very well, Mike. Thank you.

MR: That’s great. Can you tell us a little bit about what you’re doing on your Tales From The Sahel tour?

BM: The tour is about a concept that is very new to a lot of people, even for the younger generations in Africa, but it’s something that I did in the past and I think it’s a great approach for my music, especially when you hear the kind of music and don’t understand the language but want to know more about the background of the music. We talk about life, we talk about the past, the future…we talk about culture. We also talk about the world and our perspective when it comes to the things that are going on in Africa right now. But it all goes with music. I play music in the middle of all of this to bring pigment to what we’re talking about. At the end of the conversation, we give people a way to ask questions if they want to know more about what we’ve talked about. It’s a new concept for music, it’s more storytelling. It’s not just talking about history or the past, but it’s about life in general.

MR: Nice. You’ve donated tracks to various causes, participated on the tribute album to Fela Kuti, and performed in the South African portion of Live Earth. Have you found that people are actually becoming more educated about the causes you’ve been associated with?

BM: Yeah, I think so. It also helps people realize what kind of musician I am. I am, fortunately, from Africa. and in Africa, being a musician is not someone who is just gonna write a few songs, record them, and put them on records. It had to represent something, and when you represent something, you have to make yourself a part of different projects and causes. I think it was very useful for me to participate in all of this just because it helped to clear up people’s points of view about Africa and what happens in Africa and in the hearts and minds of those in Africa. On some level, we speak universally for those Africans who can’t speak for themselves. Participating in projects like those can help people realize that Africa does have a voice. The thing that is missing sometimes is taking these projects and getting younger generations of Africans to take control. I will be touring, of course, to get this message out, but the next step is to bring these elements and ideas back home to Africa as well.

Read the full article here

Dakar Moon	3:15	Baaba Maal
Television	7:07	Baaba Maal

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