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Angelique Kidjo’s “Bomba” Remixed By Velly & Featuring Vocals By ZZ Ward Out Today – All Royalties To Be Donated To Humanitarian Aid Programs In Kenya

March 24, 2015

New York, NY – (March 24, 2015) – “Bomba” from Angelique Kidjo’s Grammy Award-winning album, Eve, has been remixed by Maurice “Velly” Conaway with vocals by ZZ Ward. Produced by Pat Dillet and mixed by Tony Maserati, the track is out tomorrow, March 24, via TuneCore and is available for purchase on iTunes—with all of the artists donating 100% of their royalties to humanitarian aid programs in Kenya. The song was also made available in Austin during SXSW exclusively through DropKloud, the new app for sharing exclusive content with fans. Check out the lyric video here.

“‘Bomba’ is the name of a traditional item of African women’s clothing,” explains Kidjo, “and the song ‘Bomba’ is a tribute to African women—to their resilience and their beauty.” The track is inspired by a visit Kidjo made with UNICEF to a village in the Samburu district of Kenya. “A group of women welcomed me with a beautiful chant, which became the guiding light of my album Eve,” she says.

Of her collaboration on the remix with Velly and ZZ Ward Kidjo notes, “I have always loved musical collaborations and I felt that the strong message of the song deserved to be shared with a new audience.” Rostam Batmanglij of Vampire Weekend collaborated with Kidjo on the album version and Velly—a young producer from Timbaland’s team who has worked with notable acts including Slide Hampton, Victor Wooten, Busta Rhymes and Mya—remixed the song, which Kidjo says, “reinvented it and kept its African identity.” Kidjo discovered ZZ Ward’s soulful voice and decided to ask her to bring her energy and enthusiasm to the track, stating “in this new version I deeply feel she is helping me shine a new light on the beauty of African women!”

Kidjo’s new LP, Sings with the Orchestre philharmonique du Luxembourg, will also be released on March 31 via 429 Records. Watch a video trailer here, and pre-order the album on iTunes here. See below for Kidjo’s upcoming tour dates, including an orchestral concert (with more to be announced).

Angelique Kidjo is a beloved two-time Grammy Award winner, longtime UNICEF goodwill ambassador and a recipient of this year’s Crystal Award from the World Economic Forum. Her accolades span a 20-year discography and thousands of concerts around the world. She has enjoyed a long history of notable collaborations with greats from the jazz and pop worlds, including Carlos Santana, Bono, John Legend, Josh Groban, Peter Gabriel, Branford Marsalis, Dianne Reeves, Roy Hargrove and Alicia Keys. In an expansive career marked as much by extraordinary musical achievement as passionate advocacy and philanthropy for her African homeland, Kidjo has found many ways to celebrate the rich, enlightening truth about the continent’s women beyond the media spotlight.

ANGELIQUE KIDJO TOUR DATES

March 24   SESC                          Sao Paolo, Brazil
March 25   SESC                          Sao Paolo, Brazil
April 4       Power House            Brisbane, Australia
April 5       Bluesfest                    Byron Bay, Australia
April 6       Bluesfest                    Byron Bay, Australia
April 8       Recital Centre          Melbourne, Australia
April 12      Sydney Opera House      Sydney, Australia
April 23      Festival International de Louisiane         Lafayette, LA
April 26      New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival    New Orleans, LA
June 20      Clearwater Festival      Croton-On-Hudson, NY
June 26       Kate Wolf Festival        Laytonville, CA
July 3         Orchestre Régional Bayonne Côte Basque      Biarritz, France*

* orchestral concerts

“I like to tell people that if you don’t know Angélique, you haven’t lived because there’s not one person who would be in her presence and not be changed.”
—Alicia Keys

“Angélique is such a force of nature. Her organic body movements and heartfelt voice embody not only the joy and energy of African music but also the soul of Africa.”
—Quincy Jones

“Angélique’s spirit is irrepressible, and she brings life to everything she touches.”
—Peter Gabriel