Just like several other outstanding bass players, Etienne Mbappe comes from Cameroon. His technique and rhythmic sense are amazing and he has created a great musical genre of his own, transcending the frontiers between African music and other styles such as jazz, pop and even classical music. Parallels have been drawn between him and his equally amazing compatriot and jam partner Richard Bona
His first solo album “Misiya” definitely belongs to the same genre as Richard Bona’s, soft well arranged modern African music, where the vocals have a prominent role.?‚ His music constitutes a unique fusion between traditional Cameroonian rhythms (Makossa, Bolobo) and funk, jazz and afropop. It also reveals a singer whose voice is smooth and deep. In the Cameroonian dialect Douala he sings of love, of friendships, of his son’s eyes and also more upbeat songs that show his unique feel for dance rhythms.
Related Post
Etienne Mbappe has played with world artists like Ray Charles, Salif Keita, Manu Dibango, Zawinul, Steps Ahead and also the Parisian fusion band Ultramarine, before creating his own band “SU LA TAKE”, based in Paris. With his own band, he played for a very enthusiastic audience in clubs all over Europe and at international jazz festivals in Montreux, Montreal, Paris, Nice and Vienne.
