For years, Alec Lomami was a man in limbo. Born in Belgium and raised in Kinshasa, Lomami was visiting relatives in the US in 1998 when the outbreak of The Second Congo War forced him to stay and seek political asylum. “Because I wasn’t born in Congo, (Congo) didn’t want to take me in,” he tells AfriPOP! in an account of his ordeal. “And because I wasn’t a Belgian citizen, they didn’t want to take me in.” Thus began a near-decade of nomadic living which culminated with Lomami landing in a US immigration jail.
A "cultural bastard," as he dubs himself, Lomami broke into the scene with two tracks — "Kinshasa" and "Pop Revolution" — crafted from strings of his multifaceted identity and experience. French raps, electronic undertones and a drive towards African modernity all encompass Lomami's work and can be heard in his Africa In Your Earbuds installment, which he sent over from his current home in Harare.
Lomami's AIYE #19 escorts you through the crew of contemporary artists breaking barriers in modern African music including Chief Boima, Dirty Paraffin, Petite Noir, Seye, Baloji, The Very Best, Amadou & Mariam and many more. Not a DJ but an excellent curator, Lomami got his friend and previous Earbuds hostBrotha Onaci to mix this batch of tunes.
Stream/download Africa In Your Earbuds #19: Alec Lomami [Mixed by Brotha Onaci] below. Lomami's upcoming Melancholie Joyeuse EP will be available for free June 30 on his bandcamp. In the meantime follow him on facebook, twitter and tumblr. Big up to Underdog for the mixtape cover!
TRACKLIST
1.DRC Music feat Bokatola System – Departure DRC
2. Amadou & Miriam - M'bifé blues – Mali
3. Mamou Sidibe – Bakoye – Mali
4. Petite Noir – Till we Ghost – DRC/SA
5. Chief Boima feat Sori Kondi – Without No Money No Family– Sierra Leone
6. Azekel – New-Ish – Nigeria/UK
7. Sam – Marijuana – DRC
8. Youssoupha feat Tabu Ley Rochereau – Les Disques de Mon Pere – DRC/FR
9. Well$ - XX – USA/DRC
10. Dirty Paraffin – Drip dry – SA
11. Alec Lomami Feat Well$ – Pop Revolution – DRC
12. Mr. OK Feat Larose – Yaya – Haiti
13. Rimer London Feat Cata Pirata – Love Dagger – SA/Netherland
14. Anbuley – Hesisinumo’ – Ghana/Austria
15. Seye – White Noise – Nigeria/UK
16. Davido – Dami Duro – Nigeria
17. Bana C4 – Ca Donga (part 2) – DRC
18. The Very Best feat Baloji – Super Mom – Malawi/DRC
19. Stromae – Alors on Danse – Rwanda/Belgium
Previously on Africa In Your Earbuds: DJ MOMA, AWESOME TAPES FROM AFRICA, PETITE NOIR, OLUGBENGA, RICH MEDINA, VOICES OF BLACK, LAMIN FOFANA, CHICO MANN, DJ UNDERDOG, DJ OBAH, SABINE, BROTHA ONACI, DJ AQBT, JUST A BAND, STIMULUS, QOOL DJ MARV, SINKANE, CHIEF BOIMA.
