12 World Music Albums To Watch For In 2010

Nat Geo Music Handicaps The Year Ahead

by Tom Pryor

Unless you've been living under a rock-that was locked in a pressurized container in a bathysphere at the bottom of the Marianas Trench-you probably already know that Vampire Weekend's sophomore album Contra is due out on January 12th and that its already the most talked-about new release of the new year.

And while we here at Nat Geo Music definitely get a kick out of VW's whole semi-ironic, post-colonial mashup of Ivy League privilege and appropriated African guitar licks, we're also looking forward to a whole lot of other new releases in 2010.

From pioneering veterans like The Chieftains and Angelique Kidjo to relative newcomers like Nigerian singer/songwriter Nneka and Colombian rap trio Choc Quib Town, the first few months of 2010 are offering up a solid crop of aural treats for dedicated music fans.

Nat Geo Music has already done our listening and we've cherrypicked 12 of our favorite new world music releases for 2010, all due out between January and April. So, be the first on your block and tell all your friends... and don't forget to check out Nat Geo Music's own big 2010 releases, including new music from Balkan Beat Box in April, and Parisian funkateer Bibi Tanga's first Stateside release later this spring!

Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba
I Speak Fula
Sub Pop/ Next Ambiance

February 2nd

Malian musician Bassekou Kouyate is a master of the ngoni - a traditional lute-like instrument that some scholars have pegged as the precursor to the banjo. But Kouyate's new release is anything but traditional, with the help of his killer band (and heavy-hitting guests Toumani Diabaté & Ali Farka Touré), I Speak Fula rocks hard enough to be a worthy first release on the legendary Sub Pop label's new world music imprint.