Search - Bisso Na Bisso :: Racines

Bisso na Bisso, the new African Hip Hop

Tom Gitaa | Minneapolis, Minnesota USA | 06/20/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Rapper Passi has done it. This Paris based African musicin has been able to fuse traditional African music that we are accustomed to such as the Zairean lingala music and combined it with the new Hip Hop beat to produce some very club danceable tunes. I would highly recommend this one."

Find this album and buy it. Ten stars out of five.

Charles Curtis | Jackman, Maine | 07/09/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Pourqoui est-ce que ce groupe n'est pas connu partout le monde entier? C'est un vrai mystere..



This album is a work of poetry. A wondrous, magical thing, one that will entrance and enchant you, making you glad to be alive. I promise you.



The group is a creative collaboration, a "super group" of seven Congolese rappers living in France.



Technically, you could call it hip hop or rap. But it really isn't. Not in its heart. This album has nothing to do with Compton or 8th Mile. No, it's music out of the soul of a happy little village in central Africa; fused with touches of reggae, bossa nova and electronica; with a little Parisian sophistication thrown in. There is little alienation and absolutely no machismo, cynicism or bitterness here. Sadness, defiance and even a little anger? A gimlet yet paradoxically hopeful take on the evil in the world? Sure. But only as a codicil drowning in overwhelming gladness, hope and one hell of a happy bass line.



This is a very political album. The themes concern being Congolese in exile in Paris, but longing for home. They lay it out flat in the first track "L'Union," when they sing: "Moi je viens de Congo.. je ne veux pas mourir en France.. Paris est comme un urban prison.." They come from Congo, they won't rest in France. Paris traps their souls.



The other major themes are the beauty of Africa, the terror of war, and the need for African & Congolese unity. As in especially "L'Union" and "Apres le Guerre."



"L'union: La rassemblement de tout le peuple congolaise" "Stop le guerre, il est inutile de nous battre.."



The corruption of the Congolese government is humorously skewered in "Dans La Peau d'Un Chef."



As are superstition and witchcraft in "Légendes Africaines."



The desperation of exile in Paris is treated in "Le Cul Entre 2 Chaises."



"Amiyo" is a glad little love song: "Amiyo, ton couer est ma maison, mon amour est ton toit, j'ai besoin de toi.."



Tata Nzambé is a hymn to God the Father, which is evidently what the title means in the Congolese.. this song simply rocks. Each of the seven takes turns rapping about their hope & faith, while the bass and drum lines enfold and envelope you, and their female sidekick (I forget her name, but her voice is angelic) shoots harmony all thriough the track and your heart. Sublime.



The title song "Bisso na Bisso" is an repetitive rythmic anthem: "bisso bisso bisso na bisso" - meaning "everyone all together" or "tout ensemble." The video won TV5's video of the year award back around the time the album came out (2000, I think?) It has the guys wandering through a village back in the Congo, among all the goats and kids (human ones, I mean) teeming them, while the village women beat their grain out in time to the song with these great pestles. Not something you'll likely see on MTV or VH1 anytime soon. Great stuff.



Every song here is sublime, most are so joyful that it'll make you wonder why you haven't been to the Congo. Until you remember that niggling civil war, which you've probably never heard about in the first place.. mais c'est pas notre histoire, pas notre lutte, eh? La musique est bonne, et ca suffit.. aucune probleme de conscience ici. Non. Pas de tout.



To lift the sublime opening line from one my favorites, "Bisso Fri:" Chewy chewy choo. Choo.



Chewy chewy choo, Indeed."

THE BEST HIP-HOP ALBUM FROM AFRICA

Mzilikazi wa Afrika | Johannesburg, South Africa | 06/17/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"You don't have to be a Congolese or speak French but this CD will take you to Congo and around Afrika. Bisso na Bisso was voted the best up and coming group at the Kora awards held in Sun City, South Africa, last year not by mistake...this is one of the best hip-hop group from Afrika. They represent the african youth...the new generation. The song, Tata Nzambe, is the heart & soul of this CD...one will think twice after listening to it. While, Liberte, is another gem, a great collaboration with some of Africa's very best musicians. And the song, Africa by Night, is a marvelous tune with beat to keep you dancing. With Bisso na Bisso around, African music will never be the same again...THEY ARE YOUNG, ENERGETIC & CREATIVE: This CD speaks volumes about them. There is no doubt, the best music comes from Afrika and this is one of the greatest CD from the continent."