After having pursued a career in Senegal, Cheikh Ibra Fam is launching internationally and solo, with the album “Peace in Africa”, expected for March 2022, and of which he has been presenting extracts for a few months. He unveils “Ayitaria”, with Cheikh Lô as a guest, exclusively for Franceinfo Culture.
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Senegalese author, composer, singer and multi-instrumentalist, Cheikh Ibra Fam has performed in his country under the pseudonym “Freestyle” for fifteen years, but also within the famous Orchestra Baobab for five years. At 36, he launched in his own name and solo in an international career. In March 2022, he will release an album titled Peace in Africa on the French label Soulbeats Music, based in Bordeaux.
Exclusively for Franceinfo Culture, Cheikh Ibra Fam presents Thursday, November 25 his new clip, that of the song Ayitaria, with as a guest an artist and compatriot whom he admires, Cheikh Lô. Written in a seductive afro pop vein, this song, an ode and invitation to the party, gives the opportunity to discover the very beautiful voice of the thirty-something.
In Ayitaria (which means “come, come quickly”), Cheikh Ibra Fam sings in the Bambara language in homage to the Malian origins of his mother. This song is presented as a warm and brotherly invitation to come together and celebrate.
Ayitaria is the third track from the album whose clip was shared on social networks. Fam first came out Yolele (launched in May 2021), shot on the island of Gorée, Senegal, in tribute to the victims of slavery. Subsequently, he unveiled The Future (published at the end of September), very catchy but also very moving: we found Balla Sidibé, a great musician who died in July 2020, shortly after the recording of the song. Cheikh Ibra Fam had invited on this title the illustrious singer and percussionist of 78 years, founding member of the Orchestra Baobab. The clip pays homage to him.
In this song, it was about the beauty of Africa. On the RFI website, Fam confided at the end of September about Balla Sidibé and the recording of the title: “When he got into the studio that day, I said ‘daddy, the lyrics is it’. He said, ‘I’m your daddy, so I’m going to sing. The Future, but I’m going to focus more on life and death. ‘ So, it’s really a mystical side that I discovered in him. Three days later, he left. He was a mentor, but also a friend. I have spent my entire career with him. I had to pay him homage. “