Frank Bessem's Musiques d'Afrique: Zedess (Burkina Faso)

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Zêdess is another proof of the quite recent emergence of talent from Burkina Faso, a country not known for producing that many musical talents. After a few cassettes produced locally, such as « Y'a plus boulot » (1992) and « Embouteillage » (1995), his music is now widely available for a broader audience on CD. The first CD album, « Où allons-nous? » (1998) comprises a couple of older songs. The music of Zêdess, who is a school teacher in English, combines two ingredients that are so popular in Africa: firstly, reggae music, and secondly, humourful lyrics, mainly in French, giving way for satirical reflections on social issues and politics. Song titles such as Directeur voleur, Fonctionnaire sans conscience and Vrai-faux cooperant speak for themselves. After a silent period of four years, a new album, « Sagesse africaine » has been released at the end of 2004. Born: as Seydou Zongo Style: afro-reggae, mixed with Burkinabe folklore (waarba, wuré).

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