Articles

Etienne Mbappe: Silky Master of the 4th Dimension

By Alan Bryson

Etienne Mbappe plays bass so smoothly that you could imagine he wears silk gloves—and you would be correct. In fact he is the only musician in the world who has an endorsement deal with a silk glove manufacturer. He is a musician's musician, a world class bassist based in Paris. Originally from Cameroon in Western Africa, he began his musical career in Paris in the 80s, playing with the leading names on the African music scene. He toured with the ...

Etienne Mbappe: Su La Take

By Ian Patterson

Little wonder that the late keyboardist Joe Zawinul recruited Cameroonian vocalist/bassist Etienne Mbappe to the Syndicate in 2001. His honey-sweet, yet smoky vocals, enviable writing and arranging skills and an electric bass technique second to none have also attracted the likes of kora player Toumani Diabte, guitarist/singer Ali Farka Tourre, guitarist Nguyen Le and singers Ray Charles and Salif Keita. Little wonder too, that Mbappe struck out on his own in 2003; judging by the results of Su La Take, ...

Etienne Mbapp: Misiya

By Annika Westman

Fairly unknown to big audiences, but at the same time one of the most talented African bass players, Etienne Mbappé has, since moving to Paris from his home country Cameroon in the '70s, played with musicians such as Joe Zawinul, Manu Dibango, Salif Keita, and his own fusion bands Chic and Ultramarine.

Misiya, his first solo album, definitely belongs in the same genre as Richard Bona's, soft well-arranged modern African music, where the vocals, using the soft Douala language, have ...