PRI’s The World presents the Global Hit, a daily spotlight on international musical artists or trends. Created by The World’s Marco Werman, the Global Hit features interviews with musicians, critics and deejays around the globe. He is also one of the curators of the South By Southwest Musical Festival (SXSW) – “All Music Is World Music.” Subscribe and follow:
Tunisian singer Sonia M’Barek performs a musical style with roots in the courts of Al-Andalus, the medieval Muslim kingdom on the Iberian Peninsula.
Ghana’s Ebo Taylor talks to Marco Werman about his latest album, Appia Kwa Bridge. Taylor is a master of the Ghanaian music style, highlife.
This year at Peru’s annual cajon festival, Peru paid homage to Peruvian master percussionist Alex Acuña. He’s been drumming for more than 50 years, with musicians from Elvis Presley to Weather Report. Mitra Taj sent us this audio snapshot.
Mannasseh Phiri, our DJ in Zambia, plays us a couple of tracks from Hugh Masekela’s latest album “Jabulani.” The album is a collection of traditional South African wedding songs Masekela heard growing up in the townships of Johannesburg.
Speaking Gaelic used to be discouraged in Scotland, but the Scottish band Oi Polloi is doing its part to popularize the language.
The songs on the new album “You Me Bullets Love” sound like the soundtrack to a long lost Bollywood-James Bond film. But there is no film and the music is new. The soundtrack to this imaginary film is by the Australia-based band, The Bombay Royale.
Rapper Shahin Najafi received a fatwa this past week for his controversial new song, Naqi. An Islamic website posted a $100,000 bounty on his life. But what’s really the controversy?
Zidan is hopeful about the future and that the next president of Egypt will help bring about positive change.
With the election of a bassist from Black Metal band to Greek Parliament, Greek metal fans are worried that their favorite musical genre is suffering yet another blow to its much maligned reputation. Black metal has been blamed for teen suicides, Satanism and fostering drug use. Metal heads now fear that their genre of music will now be blamed for far-right Greek nationalism.
Paul McCartney gave a free concert in Mexico City Thursday night. In a country wracked by violence, the former Beatle emphasized the message “All You Need Is Love.”
Thursday is Mother’s Day in Mexico and a few other Latin American countries. As Betto Arcos tells us, it’s a night when thousands of musicians take to the streets to serenade their mothers. And what do they play? Boleros.
Catching all the Global Hit-related acts took some tight choreography, a little bit of hustle, and regular hydration [...]
What would punk rock in North Korea sound like? One way to find out is listening to Ri Seong-woong, North Korea’s most famous punk rock star. Or is he? We find out from reporter Jason Strother.
The Toronto-based band joins anchor Marco Werman in the studio to play songs and talk about their new album, “Every Child a Daughter, Every Moon a Sun.”
Here are some things I’ve learned about the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival [...]
