Mauritius artist Blakkayo. © Jean-Paul Mussoodee
In the tropics of the Indian Ocean, Blakkayo has cultivated for more than two decades, through various music projects, the fruits of the encounter between Jamaican reggae and Mauritius culture. Soz Serye, his new album which is also the first for the international scene, reveals all his wealth.
Giving meaning to his lyrics in Creole, conveying “messages” in his songs is crucial for Blakkayo, the offspring of the segga movement that appeared on this small piece of land almost a thousand kilometers east of the coast. From Madagascar. Music has a societal function, Mauritian believes: “It’s like a highway code. Otherwise you do anything in life.” No need to look elsewhere for the reason why the young forty has returned to the service when he humbly intended to “give way” after his “trilogy” of albums – which the latest Love n Respect released in 2009 had allowed him to ” be a finalist for the RFI Discovery Award.
“I feel that the young generation needs me,” he explains to justify this return, which materialized with Soz Serye (“serious thing”, in French). He who grew up listening to them at home. Local artists with current “angazé health” (“sung sung”), such as Soley Ruz and Grup Latanier, were imbued with this “philosophy” when he joined the group OSB (Otentikk Street Brothers) in the mid-1990s. , after being a part of his fan club first.
Both in substance and form, the quartet continued its work with the pioneers of the segga, both by anchoring this music in the Mauritian musical landscape with its codes and by maintaining a militant spirit. But he also gave him another dimension, more urban, under the influence of rap and Jamaican dance hall.
New album
These different elements are found in the 22 songs collected on Soz Serye, played by some of the members of the backing band Otentikk Groove that Blakkayo has been used with since they followed their group. The automatics are there, symbiosis of course, because everything seems fluid, natural. Especially since solo here his register does not differ much from the collective he made himself known with, to the extent that a number of titles at the music level (Pou Ena Zalou, Kontrole, Rwana, Dan To Lespri) could well have found their place on an OSB board.
Not to be surprised, these guitar sounds, these brass arrangements, this special way of doubling the voices of certain words, at certain times, find here one of their most perfect expressions, perfectly served in terms of post-production (mixing, mastering). Another characteristic of the artist emerges while listening, and especially at Vey Lor Nou: his sense of melody, that which becomes apparent from the first verse and seems so familiar when the choir arrives before continuing to trot in his head long after. ..
Blakkayo’s voice appears as his artistic signature, regardless of the circumstances: to toast like Jamaican deejays on Successful or Ragga Tribute, or to sing. This double dimension is reminiscent of the French Nuttea (which also participated in the 2010 edition of the Reggae Donn Sa festival organized by OSB). Shaggy, Shabba Ranks, Chaka Demus & Pliers …: born in Bois-d’Oiseaux, on the east island, fed out models from Kingston and dedicated their gimmicks to building their own singing style.
Sharing system
Immediately recognizable, by its tone, the energy that emerges. No wonder he was so often invited by his countrymen to play, starting with the dean of the segga Ras Natty Baby in 2002, or even the French from Kana who had recorded their first album in Mauritius which included the hit Plantation.
In turn, on this new album, as a big brother, the “general” for the Solda Kaz Bad crew that he created at the same time takes those who in his eyes constitute the next generation and who can benefit from a thumb. For him, it is also an opportunity to get more contemporary sound to his music: the Nigerian wave of Afrobeat (s) sweeps into the Indian Ocean!
Originally, Blakkayo had thought of titling the album Valer Fami (“Family Values”), as it explores the spirit of the family “in the broadest sense”, the brochure details on about sixty pages. Seychelles Elijah and Reunionese Olivier Araste de Lindigo, in neighbors of the other islands, were therefore invited, as well as the singer of the American reggae group Groundation. In total, to help him in his mission “education”, ten of them have joined the microphone on half of Soz Series’ songs. The musical illustration of this “sharing system” that he defends and practices.
Blakkayo Soz Series (Soulbeats poster) 2021
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