Ismael Lo - Jammu Afrika

Jammu Afrika

Afrika a a a Afrika mon Afrique
Sama gent gi maa ngi ñaan Yalla wonma ko bala may ñibbi barsaq
Ma ne bes du ñakk ci bes yi Afrika don benn reew
D'ici ou d'ailleurs nous somm' des enfants d'Afrique
Mêm' si le ciel tombait luttons pour la paix
Kon jammu Afrika moom lay ñaan
Mané jammu Afrika mooy suñu natange
Afrika a a a Afrika a a
Afrika a a a Afrika mon Afrique

Yow mi nekka bittim reew man mi Lô maa ngi lay ñaan
Ak loo fa meun ta am ak noo fa meun ta mel bul fatte Afrika
Ici ou ailleurs la paix prix du bonheur
Mêm' si le ciel pleurait luttons pour nos frères
Kon jammu Afrika moom lay ñaan
Mané jammu Afrika mooy suñu natange
Afrika a a a Afrika a a
Afrika a a a Afrika mon Afrique

Onon bibbe Afrika ngimode, ngimode liggo-den leydi men
Ngaccen hasi daagal yoo Alla suren e musibaadi
Yoo Alla addu jam to Ruanda
Yoo Alla addu jam to Burundi
Yoo Alla addu jam to Casamans
Lawol Mbignona yee


Traduction (les deux premiers couplets sont en wolof, le dernier est en Pulaar)

Dans mon rêve je prie Dieu pour que cela se réalise avant mon trépas
Je dis " un jour viendra où l'Afrique sera unie "
D'ici ou d'ailleurs nous somm' des enfants d'Afrique
Mêm' si le ciel tombait luttons pour la paix
Donc je demande la paix en Afrique
car avec la paix en Afrique ce sera la prospérité

Etranger, moi Lô je te prie
quelles que soient ta fortune et ta situation de ne pas oublier l'Afrique
Ici ou ailleurs la paix prix du bonheur
Mêm' si le ciel pleurait luttons pour nos frères
Donc je demande la paix en Afrique
car avec la paix en Afrique ce sera la prospérité

Vous les enfants d'Afrique, levez-vous pour construire notre pays
Que Dieu nous épargne les malheurs
Qu'il apporte la paix au Rwanda, au Burundi,


Ismaël Lô is a Senegalese musician. He was born in Dogondoutchi in Niger on 30 August 1956 to a Senegalese father and a Nigerian mother. Shortly after Lo's birth the family returned to Senegal where they settled in the town of Rufisque, near the capital Dakar. He is a versatile singer and artist, and besides his singing abilities, he also plays the guitar and the harmonica.

In the 1970s Lo studied at the School of Art in Dakar later joining the popular group Super Diamono, but leaving the group in 1984 to start a solo career. Over the next four years Lo recorded five popular solo albums.

In 1990 Lo signed a recording deal with Barclay and recorded in France his sixth solo album, Ismael Lo. Thanks to the success of the single "Tajabone" the album became a hit in the European charts. The album launched Lo’s international career.

Iso was recorded and released in 1994, and also became a success. The album contains soft guitar melodies and traditional Senegalese mbalax. The following year Lo toured in Africa. The compilation album Jammu Africa was released in 1996. The song "Without Blame" is a duet with Marianne Faithfull.

Lo's song "Tajabone" was featured in Pedro Almodóvar's film All About My Mother.

In 2002 he was made a Knight of the Legion of Honor.

His latest album Sénégal was recorded in Dakar, Paris and London. Lo says of it, "Giving this album the title Sénégal was my way of paying tribute to my own country, in recognition of all its gifts to me".[1]

In 1997 Lo starred in Moussa Sene Absa's film 'Tableau Ferraille.'

Film "Shake Hands With the Devil" about Rwandan Genocide starts with Lo's song "Jammu Africa".