BiographySometimes, the best plan is no plan at all. That was the philosophy behind gathering together these three artists for Toto Bona Lokua, an album blending West-African rhythms and vocal harmonies with the roots of pop, jazz, soul and American R&B. For this album, and for their rare live performances, they did something almost unheard of in today's world of over-produced recordings: they improvised. Each brought the basics of a song, and they took turns with solos and leading each composition. The result is a sound with the varied influences of each contributor: Richard Bona is from Cameroon, Lokua Kanza from the Congo, and Gerald Toto is French-Caribbean. “What we were trying to do was step outside the reassuring structure of language and let out emotion and share that emotion with others through the music.” – Gerald Toto “The ‘No Format’ project sprang more from a desire to play together, have fun together and learn stuff from each other and be a bit spontaneous about things.” – Richard Bona “I see this as a dish cooked up by three different chefs, each busy adding a touch of garlic, a pinch of salt and a bit of spice and color. The result is like a nice collective cake, but a plain simple one without any kind of pretension!” – Lokua Kanza These amazing storytellers and singers were briefly reunited for one sold-out evening in the Theatre Jean Duceppe at the 2007 Montreal Jazz Festival. Due in part to the success of this reunion, we are pleased to offer this incredible collaboration for a Summer 2008 tour. Universal France will re-release this seminal album Spring 2008 in anticipation of this rare event. For more information on these talented gentlemen, please visit their homepages: Gerald Toto Richard Bona Lokua Kanza
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