Just saw the famous Senegal singer
Youssou N'Dour in concert last Saturday.
I have not been following his carreer closely; I have none of his CDs beyond
Joko. The sound of the concert was not good at all, but this did not damp the enthusasm of the audience, who went up dancing at the aisle at the first opportunity. I am always pleasantly surprised by the reception these "obscure" musicians get in Hong Kong; I thought no one listens to "strange" music anymore.
Two things especially impressed me: the first was that N'Dour is a superb singer. Full stop. Regardless of nation or genre. He is blessed with a beautiful tone, vocal prowess, and of course an innate sense of rhythm. These qualities are not always obvious in his albums, which I think are often over-produced.
On top of being a supreme artist, N'Dour is humanitarian. He stayed behind after the concert to have a short meet with the audience, where he talked about the plans he has for his native land. He has always been active in human rights campaigns, and has worked, among other projects, towards providing internet access in the African continent. N'Dour's own
foundation aims primarily at fostering new musical talents in Senegal. He said during the concert: "When the west think about Africa, they think about three things: poverty, AIDS, and war. But I want to show that there is another side of Africa -- Africa has happiness too". At this moment, surely, happiness is but a distant dream for the majority of Africans, but as long as we have musicians like N'Dour -- musicians with a true heart -- we still have a hope.