Zenzile: The Reimagination of Miriam Makeba

US-based, Grammy-nominated Rwandan and Ugandan singer-songwriter Somi’s Zenzile: The Reimagination of Miriam Makeba lovingly celebrates the musical contributions of the late "first lady of African song." With intergenerational contributions by Seun Kuti, Thandiswa Mazwai, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Nduduzo Makhathini, and Angelique Kidjo, a pan-Africanist thread runs through this 17-track commemoration, released on what would have been Makeba’s 90th birthday. Articulating Makeba’s sonic vocabulary, Somi distils messages of womanhood, homecoming, social justice, and political strife while employing and re-imagining several idioms. Scouring Makeba’s catalogue, South African jazz of yesteryear coalesces with contemporary contexts to both memorialize and reinvigorate. The sanguine keys of the Gregory Porter-assisted “Love Tastes Like Strawberries” meet the arresting vocal performances of both Somi and folk artist Msaki on “Khuluma”. It’s the electronically-tinged rework of “Pata Pata” that best encapsulates Somi’s aims by crafting melodies with darker hues to explore Makeba’s ethos more broadly.