Carlou D - 5 - LIVE at Afrikafestival Hertme 2010

Performance - 10 July 2010 A calm and stately figure among Dakar's still-thriving music scene, Carlou D once held a rather more confrontational role - as a fully paid-up member of Senegal's politicised hip-hoppers Positive Black Soul, the crew who were once signed to Island Records. Now leading an acoustic band and making deeply spiritual music in praise of the love-peace-and-harmony teachings of his guide Cheikh Ibra Fall, Carlou's past live continues to inform how he writes and performs songs today. "The part of hip-hop which I have kept in my music is the courage to be direct," he notes. It's just that he's chosen a musical form a little less full-on. His style now combines that of the troubadour and of the pop star; think of him somewhere between the reflective, conscious sound of Cheikh Lo (a fellow member of the Baye Fall spiritual sect) and the busier, multi-layered creations of his mentor Youssou N'Dour. Fine company, indeed.