Angelique Kidjo to Perform at the College

African pop diva Angelique Kidjo recently brought an international crowd of 7,000 people to their feet, dancing together to an upbeat song about global peace and harmony at the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Oslo, Norway. This is just what Kidjo does, seamlessly entertaining and provoking social and cultural questions throughout her thirty years as a world music star.

If you haven’t yet heard the name Angelique Kidjo, you should, and you will hear it a lot more in the next week as the college prepares to welcome the artist Time magazine calls “Africa’s premier diva,” to campus October 2 and 3 for a Fulton Lecture and performance.

A musical and philanthropic force worldwide, Kidjo, a native of the African country Benin, humbly enjoys her status as an international superstar, uniting people with her powerful, expressive voice, infectious charisma, and numerous philanthropic endeavors. Drawing inspiration from Afropop, Latin, jazz, gospel and funk, Kidjo crafts her own genre of music that has prompted collaborations with Bono, Josh Groban, John Legend, Peter Gabriel, Alicia Keys, Vampire Weekend and countless others. President of the College Ronald Liebowitz, who first heard about Kidjo from his wife, started the conversation with Dean of the College Shirley Collado about bringing Kidjo to campus a few years ago.

“We were disappointed that few here at Middlebury had the opportunity to hear her, and so we began making inquiries,” Liebowitz said. “We then heard she was playing at Bowdoin for a special celebration there and realized our inquiries had a good chance to succeed.” Kidjo’s appearance at Middlebury was only confirmed in the past month.

Kidjo’s career is full of highlights, including performances at three Nobel Peace Prize Concerts, two Olympic Games, five United Nations General Assembly concerts, two Nelson Mandela foundation events, two Fifa World Cups and concerts at Carnegie Hall, Sydney Opera House and the Royal Albert Theater in London.

“What I want people to take from my music is empowerment, joy, strength, love,” Kidjo said, in a 2010 interview. Kidjo’s infectiously upbeat sound is reinforced by the thought-provoking messages behind her songs. In her 2007 single “Pearls,” Kidjo sings, “There is a woman in Somalia/Scraping for pearls by the roadside/There’s a force stronger than nature/Keeps her will alive/This is how she’s dying/She’s dying to survive/Don’t know what she is made of/I would like to be that brave.”

Kidjo was catapulted to fame overnight in West Africa after the release of her debut album in 1980, prompting fans to travel hundreds of miles to see her perform. The accolades have only intensified with each of her nine subsequent albums. Kidjo uses her platform as an international artist to participate in a variety of philanthropic endeavors fighting to change the way the world views Africa. Named a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in 2002, she has travelled to eleven African countries, focusing on the need to educate girls, eradicate polio and increase aid for children affected by HIV/AIDS. In 2007, the artist founded The Batonga Foundation, an organization in five African countries that gives girls a secondary and higher education to empower them to take leadership roles to change Africa. Kidjo, who was taunted as a child for attending school, works with the foundation to improve teaching standards, provide materials, grant scholarships, and increase awareness of the importance of education for all.

“She is a great musical talent, perhaps the best known African singer today, who incorporates the incredible culture and musical diversity of the African continent,” Liebowitz said. “She reflects the interests and aspirations of many of our students. She believes strongly in women’s causes, in improving the lives of many in her native Africa and beyond, in social entrepreneurship, and she sings and performs in at least six languages.”

Students and community members will have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hear Kidjo speak and perform when she visits campus on Oct. 2 and 3. On Oct. 2, Kidjo will sit down with Assistant Professor of Music Damascus Kafumbe in the McCullough Social Space at 4:30 p.m. for a free fireside chat-style discussion as a part of the John Hamilton Fulton Lecture series. The pair will discuss Kidjo’s music and philanthropic work in Africa and the world. Middlebury ID holders will be given priority entrance to the event. Kafumbe, whose top floor Mahaney Center for the Arts office was easily discernible by the Kidjo music seeping through his door, says that the talk, for him, is natural.

“The administration asked me, being an ethnomusicologist and Africanist, and also being an African,” Kafumbe said. “My life revolves around music. I’m paid to talk about, write about, play and produce music, and I moderate broader questions about understanding culture through music in class, so this is an extension of what I do.”

Though this talk is a part of the Fulton Lecture Series, it will be more of a conversation than a prepared lecture, emphasizing Kidjo’s accessibility and desire to engage. Kafumbe was impressed by the administration’s openness to a style that worked for Kidjo, saying “our community revolves around storytelling and sitting around a hearth more than standing behind a podium.”

President Liebowitz is also excited about the possibilities of the event.

“During the conversation I hope the campus will hear how her creative work in music ties into her life’s work: to her philanthropy, her work in Africa, and about her work with international organizations to make a difference in lives in the developing world,” he said.

On the evening of Oct 3, Kidjo will bring her energy and powerhouse vocals to Nelson arena for a live performance. Spectators should also expect an emphasis on drums and instrumentation, specifically in traditional African styles. Tickets are on sale now through the Box Office, $5 for students, $10 for all other Middlebury ID holders, and $20 to the general public.

Kafumbe believes that Kidjo’s visit will spur discussion of African culture and music in the African and American contexts.

“This is a very international community, but we are still on the other side of the Atlantic,” Kafumbe said. “Though Kidjo has lived in the United States for thirty years, she still embodies so many things we can learn from, especially what the sounds of her music mean and embody and foster in the diaspora.”

It is not often that the campus community has the privilege of seeing and learning from an international artist of this scale, and the two events are not to be missed. I suggest the 2007 Grammy Award winning album Djin Djin and the 2010 live concert recording Spirit Rising as good introductions to the music of Kidjo before she appears on campus. More information can be found at www.kidjo.com.