The music of West Africa has a significant history, and its varied sounds reflect the wide range of influences from the area's regions and historical periods.
Traditional West African music varies due to the regional separation of West Africa, yet it can be distinguished by two distinct categories: Islamic music and indigenous secular music. The widespread influence of Islam on culture in West Africa dates back to at least the 9th century, facilitated by the introduction of camels to trade routes between the North of Africa and West Africa. Islam-influenced West African music commonly includes the use of stringed instruments like the goje, while more secular traditional West African music incorporates greater use of drums such as the djembe.
Contemporary styles of music in West Africa have been influenced by American music, African jazz and gospel music. The forced migration of Africans to the Americas as a result of the transatlantic slave trade gave rise to kaiso music, which has influenced the sounds of Calypso, a style with major popularity throughout West Africa.
Griots, also known as 'wandering musicians', have traditionally been a major part in the distribution of music throughout West Africa, as their purpose is to spread oral tradition through musical storytelling. The role of griots remains significant in preserving smaller ethnolinguistic groups' cultures.
Popular music
The sounds of popular music throughout West Africa are comparable to a combination of Western, Latin American and traditional African music. Genres such as Highlife, Afro-Calypso and African Jazz reflect this fusion and have developed upon these styles' sounds.
Highlife is an upbeat, multi-instrumental and jovial style of music which is sung in many regional languages including Igbo, Yoruba and Ewe. Ghanaian music scholar V. Kofi Agawu (2006) writes: "Highlife is invested with a bundle of attributes that include personal and communal pride, stateliness, self-satisfaction, and a strategic complacency". Highlife is rarely sung in English. The original form of highlife holds its origins in Ghana, however most regions that have adopted highlife music compose their own variations on its sounds, altering the pace, instrumentation and lyrics. E.T. Mensah and E.K. Nyame were two Ghanaian musicians who pioneered the Highlife genre, gaining major popularity and acclaim throughout their careers.
Highlife is regularly played by big bands composed of a wide variety of instruments. The prevalence of modern, typically European instruments in large highlife bands dates back to the 19th century; when the Gold Coast was established, European missionaries and merchants brought with them accordions, brass instruments, guitars and harmonicas. The sounds of these instruments combined with the more traditional drum-focused music of West Africa to create the fusion that is highlife. A major factor in highlife's increase in popularity during the mid-20th century was the desire to raise spirits after World War Two.
Calypso music remains popular throughout West Africa. Developed from West African kaiso, the sounds of calypso are similar to those of highlife, however the two differ slightly in lyrics and instrumentation. Lyrics in highlife are generally repeated more than those in calypso songs, despite the two genres' subject matter remaining similar - both are commonly about romantic relationships and desire.
Many genres and styles of music popular throughout the Caribbean and French Antilles have their roots in West Africa due to transatlantic slave trading under various European colonial empires. This involved mass transportation of West African people such as the Ewe and the Yoruba, who took with them the distinct sounds of their musical culture.
Afrobeat is a music genre with major popularity throughout West Africa. Originating in Nigeria in the early 20th century, Afrobeat grew in popularity in the 1960s. This growth was mainly due to the considerable fame of Fela Kuti, the ‘Father of Afrobeat’, and other pivotal artists such as Tony Allen and Ebo Taylor. Afrobeat is influenced by palm-wine music and Ghanaian highlife, as well as jazz, funk and fuji. Fela Kuti devised the term 'Afrobeat' as early as 1968 in his home country of Nigeria.
Afrobeat music is characterised by multi-instrumental bands playing a jazz and funk-inspired groove with a focus on guitar riffs and horn sections. The lyrics have historically been political in nature, with Fela Kuti's lyrics covering topics from black power to dictatorship. The earlier sounds of Afrobeat have influenced Western artists such as British producer Brian Eno and American rapper Talib Kweli, while American EDM group Major Lazer are known for the regular inclusion of rhythms inspired by Afrobeat in their music.
Afrobeat is commonly confused with Afrobeats, the latter being a more general term used to describe popular contemporary music throughout West Africa. A distinct trait of Afrobeats’ sound is its focus on drum rhythms, commonly made electronically. Davido, Wizkid, Burna Boy Tekno are highly popular West African Afrobeats artists.
Development in music of West Africa
The land masses of West Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa are massive thus showing the diverse musical heritage, cultural vibrance and historical depth. These lands have a significant role in the continent’s overall well-being. Over many centuries, culture has changed due to evolution and many other internal and external effect and so has the changed. These changes have served as a mirror to the entire region’s culture, politics, economies and also religious practices. Music has evolved from the traditional rhythms, drumming and general instrumentation to a modern contemporary version. This has included fusion of the traditional and contemporary rhythms. The evolution has also been caused by various interactions between the local and foreign people especially during the colonial era. Having a better understanding of this evolution and development of music of this region helps one to have profound insights on the complexities of the music and cultural development of the region.
Sub-Sahara region refers to the region that lies south of the Sahara Desert. They include; Angola, Benin, Mali, Gambia, Cape Verde, Chad, Guinea, Guinea Bissau and Burkina Faso among others. Countries of West Africa include Nigeria, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ghana and Togo.
African cultures and their music had a lot of instrumentation and dances since music and dance was and is still considered inseparable. The West African cultures were known for their art and craft in drums and stringed instruments. They had diverse array of instruments including drums such as the Djembe drums, talking drums and sabar among other prominent drum instruments. They also fancied their strengths in making stringed instruments such as the famous Ngoni, balafon and the legendary Kora which will be further discussed later on. They also had quite impressive taste in wind instruments also. During different ages before the colonial rule, the people had their way of transferring their musical knowledge from one generation to the other. This brings us to discuss ways of their information transfer.
Pedagogical methods of transferring music from one generation to another Apprenticeship- This involved a skilled individual teaching their musical skill through hands-on training and observation.
Oral traditions- This was the most common especially among the Griot families of Mali and The Gambia where the practices were transferred orally from generation to generation. This included telling stories of the cultural heritages and music so that it could bond with the people. Rituals and communities- Through certain rituals, generations had to understand the chants, the dance movements and the music performed in the ritual. This automatically made them to know and understand the music.
Mentorship- Kids born to musical families were most influenced by this as they got direct engagement with their parents or relatives which made them have them as musical mentors and they gained their knowledge through practice and advices.
The following are the factors that led to growth and development of music of West Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa:
Colonisation Interaction of African people and the foreigners who came as missionaries and soldiers to induce colonial rule, had a very big impact in the growth of the music in general. This led to invention of new musical genres, new musical instruments, fusion of both the traditional African and Western and European musical styles. For example, the Kora instrument was developed and its tuning pegs were crafted into modernized guitar-like tuning pegs. Countries like Equatorial guitar which were colonised by the Portuguese got influenced by the Language and had introduction of the acoustic flamenco guitar that sky rocketed flamenco music in the region. European cultures such as the French who colonised a big portion of the Sub-Saharan region led to introduction of instruments such as the violins, guitar and brass instruments that were incorporated to music. Music such as the Yoruba music using the foreign musical instruments evolved into modern day Afrobeat. ( de Preameneu, J. B. (2020). From colonisation to globalisation (Doctoral dissertation, 서울대학교 대학원).)
Growth and identity of West African music on global music markets West African music is arguably the most famous version of African music. The diverse sounds and energies that make up the music and a little of language backing has led to an own original Afrobeat genre of music that has the whole respecting it. Afro music is known for its famous log drums and Shekere shakers that play throughout the songs. These instruments have proven to be the masterpiece in music as their timbre is unique and appeals to a larger crowd. The musical recognition has now put African music on the scope of the world and has made local musicians show case their talent to international stages. Consequently, the music has led to increased interest by other people in African countries and oversees countries therefore growth in the industry in general.
Role of Griots in preserving and transmitting musical tradition Griots also known as the Jali, are traditional West African musicians, storytellers and oral tradition historians. They are responsible for preserving and passing knowledge from one generation to another. Griots were and still are very respectable people in the society as the compose, sing and praise songs that celebrate accomplishments of individuals, families and communities as a whole. Through these people music developed from generation to generation depending on the skill level and expertise of the Griot. With an example given, Sona Jobarteh a famous Gambian Kora player was born in a family of griots which explains her successful career as a female Kora player in a field dominated by male gender. (Hoffman, B. G. (2017). The Roles of the Griot in the Future of Mali: A Twenty-First-Century Institutionalization of a Thirteenth-Century Traditional Institution. African Studies Review, 60(1), 101-122.)
Role of women in West African music In the past, instrument playing was mostly restricted for men, while women were given dancing roles. With the new era of music, women have appearing more often as musicians. This has led to development of newer sub-genres of music, new energy and development of new movements both in instrumentations and dance choreography. Today, women have been given vital musical and communal roles such in performance. They act as griots and ensure cultural preservation. Increasingly, women channel their views through music, and they can show their talent by playing instruments and performing and drawing even more women in to music. Women like Sona Jobarteh and Tata Dindin Jobarteh are strong examples of leaders in African music.