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We catch up with Senegalese kora master Seckou Keita to chat about his wonderful new Homeland (Chapter 1) album, a rich, beaming tapestry, and the various aspects of life that inspired it.
As we mention in the review of Homeland (Chapter 1), it’s a busy and generous album with plenty of contributors and a broad, dynamic sonic range; we wonder where the concept stemmed from. “It all started in 2017 when I was doing a collaboration with some West African musicians and artists,” Seckou begins. “The first single we did was in that year with Baba Maal called Homeland, which was like a trailer to check stuff out. But then [during] COVID, I began to really sit down and ask myself a lot of questions, like where is home for me? My UK adopted home, or my Senegalese home, or places I’ve travelled. Where is home for me? I don’t have the answer for everyone, but the only way I can express myself is through the music.”
This expression is keenly felt while listening to the album, which features a host of guest artists and musicians and is happy to play around with several styles. “Yes, there’s a lot going on,” Seckou chuckles. “And I was working with some amazing musicians and poets from around the UK and Senegal, and the music we composed was related to the places I’ve been, in my childhood and adulthood. But what was also very important was to try and get the first reaction of every artist that was participating,” he continues. “Most of the recording had already been done when I invited a guest to play, let’s say, a drum or guitar. I don’t send any music to them before; I just let them get in the studio and set up, then I play the song and as they listen and react, I’m recording it. It’s important to me because the first reaction of a human being is very important to anything in life. So, the album is thirty-five minutes long, yes, but there’s a lot there, and it’s that reaction that I wanted to create.”
Collaboration is key in Seckou’s work, with excellent projects alongside Welsh harpist Catrin Finch, among many others, springing to mind. As much as Seckou’s kora playing is easily able to mesmerise by itself, it seems the sharing is important. “It’s a way of communicating, a way of sharing, but also, importantly, a way of looking at our similarities in terms of cultural backgrounds and also being able to celebrate our differences,” he says. “My early days of travel started with collaboration and seeing the music outside of Senegal. In 1996, when I went to Norway for the first time to work at the Forde Festival, I met Indian, Cuban and Scandinavian musicians, and it was new to me. So my collaborations started then in my teens really.”
Although collaboration is an important part of Homeland and of Seckou’s music in general, the kora is still central to the sound and can be heard throughout. “I wanted to keep the originally of the sound, and that is the kora, so I didn’t want to take that colour away,” Seckou explains. “When you compose something and then add guitar and then bass and then keys, you can lose the originality of the piece because new sound and new direction is always tempting. It’s very exciting too,” he adds, “but at the same time, I wanted to keep the source of it, and the kora is the main instrument on the album. Even with the busier, urban songs and the poetry, the kora is the key.”
It is clear that the kora is very dear to Seckou, and, as we mention, throughout all of the layers and styles of Homeland, it is still the backbone of the sound. “The instrument means a lot to me; it’s a friend or wife or partner,” he says, laughing. “It’s also my tool for communication and my other voice to communicate with people around the world. But also, from my background on my mother’s side, is the griot heritage, so I’m passing down my knowledge to another generation, so the kora means a lot to me. Because of the kora, I’m here, and I was given an honorary doctorate from the University of Nottingham in July last year because of that instrument. For them to [bestow], that means they are accepting the teaching of my grandparents and my family, so for me, the kora has all of that, and it’s that wide.”
The griot tradition is key in Seckou’s work, and it’s important to note that Homeland begins and ends with griot pieces, like a homecoming of sorts. “That was the idea behind it,” he nods. “Interestingly, the opening song is a griot approach with a technique that I used to start with, and the end [song] is in an old traditional style of playing. If you know the kora, you will know the difference between the first song and the last; the first is my generation’s way of approaching [the kora], and the last is like my grandparents’ way of approaching it. So it goes full circle and back to home.”
And it fits plenty more in, as we mentioned. Homeland contains spoken word, pop music and urban sounds, among others. “It’s important to bring these elements together,” Seckou says. “Urban music is in some ways like the modern griot; some of the younger people may not be able to listen to the kora as freshly as the traditional people who listen to it. To them, urban [music] and rap and poetry may be the way to communicate. But then,” he continues, with a grin, “this is chapter one. There’s a lot more that I can talk about, but it’ll be hard to fit it into one album, so this is just chapter one. We have no choice; we’ll have to talk again for chapter two!” Seckou is clearly passionate about this project, and the live version is as important to him as the recording. “The tour will bring this all to life,” he smiles. “I have all of these artists from Senegal touring with me, and there will be poetry and spoken word. And then there will be the music behind it and choreographed dancers performing the whole album. I’m so looking forward to it.”
You can hear a new track from Seckou Keita’s Homeland (Chapter 1) in our latest KLOF Mixtape here.
Homeland (Chapter 1) – 18th October 2024 – Hudson Records
Pre-Order: https://hudsonrecords.ffm.to/homeland
SECKOU KEITA & THE HOMELAND BAND TOUR 2024
24/10/2024 – Southampton – Turner Sims
25/10/2024 – Salisbury – Wiltshire Music Centre
26/10/2024 – Shoreham-by-Sea – Ropetackle Arts Centre
27/10/2024 – Milton Keynes – The Stables
28/10/2024 – Bury St Edmunds – The Amex
30/10/2024 – Nottingham – Metronome
31/10/2024 – Sunderland – The Fire Station
02/11/2024 – Sheffield – Foundry
03/11/2024 – London – Koko
06/11/2024 – Kendal – Brewery Arts Centre
07/11/2024 – Leeds – Howard Assembly Rooms
08/11/2024 – Manchester – The Stoller Hall
09/11/2024 – Bangor – Pontio
10/11/2024 – Liverpool – Tung Auditorium, Yoko Ono Lennon Centre
12/11/2024 – Bristol – SWX
14/11/2024 – Dendermonde – Cultuurhuis Belgica
15/11/2024 – Bornem – CC ter Dilft
16/11/2024 – Zaventem – CC De Factorij
17/11/2024 – Sint-Niklaas – Cultuurcentrum Sint-Niklaas
19/11/2024 – Ternat – CC De Ploter
20/11/2024 – Brugge – CC Brugge Stadsschouwburg
21/11/2024 – Brussels – C12
Tickets and more details: https://www.seckoukeita.com/live
