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Global Hits
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PRI's The World, Global Hits >>
Senegalese musician Baaba Maal is one of the artists who helped to make "world music" a known genre.
As categories go, "world music" includes a very big area to say the least.
But Baaba Maal's songs are recognizable and unique.
The singer and guitar player has just begun a 34-date tour of North America with his band. It's an acoustic tour and we welcome Baaba Maal and three of his band members to our studios.
Baaba Maal's current tour has a special goal. Last year Maal was appointed Youth Emissary by the United Nations' Development Program. And as such, he's hoping to help improve the living conditions of disadvantaged people not just across Africa, but in the US as well.
"I want people to listen to the music first, enjoy the music," explains Baaba Maal about this US visit. "But at the same time as I always say, through singing and dancing we talk about good issues for human beings on earth. And I talk about people who live with poverty for example, using music is an African form of communication."
Maal does not believe it's odd that he should come to the United States to talk about poverty, even though Africa itself is composed of countries that are among the poorest on earth.
Maal says, "The planet is like a big market now, and people are living the same things in the same conditions. And they need support from all the leaders and all the organizations that are here. They all need education for their children, they all need to have jobs to work, they all need to be free for themselves and to see their future for themselves." 03/26/04 >> go there
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