Formed in 1997, Senegalese rappers Daara J were influenced by local heroes Positive Black Soul but looked to bring other musical influences to their hip-hop sound. Members N'Dango D, Aladji Man, and Faada Freddy started out by rapping over any instrumental versions of American or French rap they could find and adding their own percussion over the tracks. Eventually they got a drum machine, but with only a drum machine, one of the members would have to "sing" all the instruments. It brought a great sense of melody to the group, which allowed them to incorporate the sounds of their beloved reggae, funk, and Cuban music into their hip-hop. Reggae great Mad Professor produced their 1998 self-titled debut which was followed a year later by Xalima. The Declic label released both records, but 2003 marked a switch to the Wrasse label with the Boomerang album. ~ David Jeffries