Product Description OYAYA! by Angélique Kidjo .com Over the years, Benin-born singer Angelique Kidjo has mixed her native African music with elements of other styles. While 1998's Oremi looked at the music of the United States and 2002's Black Ivory Soul found Kidjo tasting the fruits of Brazilian music, the third installment of Kidjo's New World trilogy, Oyaya!, is her take on Caribbean music. Here she retraces old slave trade routes to connect African root music styles to such offshoots as salsa, bolero, meringue, calypso and ska. Of the 13 originals, Congo Habanera is a particularly potent combination of salsa-fueled grooves, watery highlife guitars and African drumming. Singing in French, Fon and Mino, Kidjo's world-class voice can be keening and hard-edged ("Bissimilai") or coy and gentle ("N'yin Wan Nou Wé"), often juxtaposing the two extremes in the same song ("Bala Bala"). Angelique Kidjo continues to crest with Oyaya!, again proving that everything is within reach of her considerable talent. –-Tad Hendrickson
