New Albums
ANGÉLIQUE KIDJO
Mother Nature
Veteran African diva flies the flag for youth
UNIVERSAL
8/10
Lockdown threatened to thwart Kidjo’s bold scheme of showcasing a new generation of African singers and rappers on the 14th studio album of her globe-trotting career. But while she was stranded in a studio in France, technology meant her collaborators were able to record their contributions across three continents – yet nothing feels remotely ‘phoned-in’ here. The Zimbabwean singer Shungudzo sets a rousing pace on the opener “Choose Me” and Nigeria’s Yemi Alade lends her seductive voice to the lush Afro-pop of “Dignity”. Nigerian star Burna Boy raps on the infectious “‘Do Yourself” and his compatriot Mr Eazi duets deliciously on the uplifting “Africa, One Of A Kind”.