eusèbe jaojoby - wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

7/29/15, 9:48 PMEusbe Jaojoby - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Eusbe Jaojoby

Jaojoby outside Le Bus nightclub in Antananarivo,1999

Background informationBorn 29 July 1955

Anboahangibe, MadagascarGenres SalegyInstruments Voice (tenor)Years active 1972presentAssociatedacts

Los Matadores, The Players,Kintana

Eusbe JaojobyFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Eusbe Jaojoby (born 29 July 1955), commonly knownby his surname Jaojoby, is a composer and singer ofsalegy, a musical style of northwestern Madagascar.Critics consider him to be one of the originators of themodern salegy style that emerged in the 1970s, and credithim with transforming the genre from an obscure regionalmusical tradition into one of national and internationalpopularity. Jaojoby also contributed to the creation of twosalegy subgenres, malessa and baoenjy. Jaojoby has beencalled the most popular singer in Madagascar and theIndian Ocean islands, and is widely referred to as the"King of Salegy". His success has earned him such honorsas Artist of the Year in Madagascar for two consecutiveyears (19981999) and the role of Goodwill Ambassadorfor the United Nations Population Fund in 1999.

In 1972 Jaojoby began singing in the northern coastaltown of Diego-Suarez. He performed with bands thatwere experimentally blending American soul and funkwith the Malagasy musical traditions of the region. Theartist gained popularity and toured regionally, producingfour singles with The Players before the band broke up in1979. After a short break in the 1980s to pursue a careerin journalism, Jaojoby resumed his musical career androse to national prominence with his 1988 hit "SamyMandeha Samy Mitady." He then reoriented his careertoward music, recording his first full-length album in1992 and becoming a full-time professional musician thefollowing year. He has since released eight full-lengthalbums and has toured extensively in Madagascar andabroad accompanied by his wife and adult children, whoperform in the band with him.

Contents1 Early years2 King of Salegy3 Style and legacy4 Family and personal life5 Discography6 Bibliography



Tsaikijoby

One of four early Jaojoby songsrecorded in the 1970s, performed byJaojoby and The Players (1976)

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7 See also8 References

Early yearsEusbe Jaojoby was born on 29 July 1955, in the village of Anboahangibe, near Sambava in the northeasterncoastal Sava Region of Madagascar. Jaojoby and his twelve younger brothers and sisters were raisedCatholic, and early experiences singing hymns in the local church choir[1] and traditional folk songs[2] atlocal Betsimisaraka[3] moonlight village festivals made him realize he possessed vocal talent. At the age of15, Jaojoby's father sent him to continue his studies in Diego-Suarez, one of the six regional capitals at thetime. The town was home to a large contingent of French soldiers and expatriates, and contemporaryWestern genres were commonly heard on the radio and in the town's many nightclubs.[2] Jaojoby wasinspired by these styles and particularly by Freddy Ranarison, who in the 1960s became the first Malagasymusician to use an electric guitar to perform coastal musical styles.[4]

One month after moving to Diego-Suarez, Jaojoby entered a local talent competition and managed to windespite singing unaccompanied and without a microphone. He began to perform in nightclubs whenever theopportunity presented itself. The uncle with whom he was lodging sent word of Jaojoby's activities to theyoung singer's parents, who consulted a priest before giving their son permission to continue exploring hismusical talents on the condition that he continue to perform well at school.[1] Jaojoby agreed to thisprovision, studying during the day and performing at night for several years.[2] In 1972 he began singingwith Los Matadores, the well-established house band of the Saigonais nightclub in Diego-Suarez. This groupcatered to the club's primarily Western clientele by performing cover songs and rhythm and bluescompositions in French and English, occasionally incorporating traditional instruments like kabosy anddrums,[4] or experimenting with local musical styles using electric guitar, bass and drum kit, accompaniedby traditional Malagasy language vocal performance.[1]

Experimental blending of Western and Malagasy musicalelements was occurring simultaneously among a numberof northwestern bands and musicians of Jaojoby'sgeneration. Although no single individual can be creditedwith creating the modern salegy genre, Jaojoby ranksamong the earliest originators of the nascent musicalstyle. A desire for greater freedom to write songs andfurther develop the syncretic modern salegy style ledJaojoby to leave Los Matadores in 1975 for The Players, another regional band that was less well-established but more willing to take risks. The band was managed by a Chinese shopkeeper who providedthem with a sound system and generator. The band toured northwestern Madagascar for the next four yearswith increasing success, recording two 45rpm singles and performing in Mahajanga, Diego-Suarez and othertowns and villages throughout the region before disbanding in 1979.[1]

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Velono

Title track from Velono (1994)

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After briefly performing with a band named Kintana,[3] Jaojoby moved to Antananarivo where he studiedsociology for two years at the University of Antananarivo before accepting an offer to work for the nationalradio station as a journalist at the end of 1980.[1] The following year, Jaojoby met the manager of the localHilton hotel by chance while the two were waiting together at a bus stop. Accepting the manager's invitationto audition at the hotel's Papillon bar that same night, Jaojoby performed a cover of James Brown's "SexMachine".[3] The manager interrupted him mid-song to offer Jaojoby a contract to give regular eveningperformances there with the Rabeson family, a popular jazz act.[4] For the next three years Jaojoby spent hisdays at the national radio and his evenings singing at the Papillon[1] with the exception of a short interludein 1982 when he was sent to East Berlin to complete an advanced course at the International Institute ofJournalism.[3] Jaojoby was promoted to Director of the Regional Information Service in Diego-Suarez in1984, necessitating his relocation back to the northwest coast and bringing his cabaret performances to anend.[1]

King of SalegyAfter several years having focused entirely on his careerwith the Regional Information Service, Jaojoby wasapproached in 1987 by Frenchman Pierre Henri Donat tocontribute several recordings to Madagascar's first salegycompilation album, Les Grands Matres du Salegy("Grand Masters of Salegy"). The runaway success ofone of the tracks he composed and performed, "SamyMandeha Samy Mitady", elevated salegy from a regional genre to one of nationwide popularity,[2][5] leadinga newspaper to declare him the "King of Salegy". High demand for live performances led the singer to returnto Antananarivo in 1988 to form a band named "Jaojoby" that included former bandmates from LosMatadores and The Players. Jaojoby begin touring regularly at home and abroad,[1] performing his firstinternational concerts in Paris in 1989.[2] In the meantime, he worked as a press attach for the Ministry ofTransport, Meteorology and Tourism from 1990 until 1993, at which point he left his job to become a full-time musician.[1][5]

The 1992 release of Jaojoby's first full-length album, titled Salegy!, was facilitated by fRoots magazineeditor Ian Anderson, who had worked with Jaojoby to record several of his tracks for a radio broadcast twoyears previously.[1] Jaojoby's second album, Velono, was the first salegy album to be recorded in France,[6]as well as the first of his albums to be produced in a professional-quality recording studio.[7] Following the1994 release of Velono, Jaojoby became a regular on the international music festival circuit[5] and hasperformed at such events as WOMAD in Reading,[8] the Festival du Bout du Monde in Brittany, WOMEXin Spain,[9] the Festival des Musiques Mtisses in Angoulme, the MASA Festival in Abidjan, and similarevents in Germany, the Netherlands and Portugal. Jaojoby's excitement over his rise to internationalcelebrity was attenuated by the 1995 death of the band's original drummer, Jean-Claude Djaonarana, whohad first performed with Jaojoby as a member of Los Matadores.[1]

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Jaojoby in concert wearing a traditionallamba

"Jaojoby : 30 ans de scne", Madagascar Tribune (October 12, 2000)[4]

Jaojoby's success and popularity attained new heights in 1998 with the release of E! Tiako. He was named"Artist of the Year" in Madagascar for two consecutive years(19981999),[5] and the single "Malemilemy" received regularairplay across the island more than a year after the album wasreleased.[1] In July 1999, Jaojoby was named GoodwillAmbassador to the United Nations Population Fund andsupported the United Nations' activities in Madagascar related toraising awareness of sexually transmitted diseases, unintendedpregnancy and other concerns relevant to the Malagasy youthpopulation. The lyrics of his songs commonly address socialissues, typified by a track on E! Tiako that encourages the use ofcondoms to avoid contracting HIV/AIDS.[5]

Aza Arianao was recorded over five days in the summer of 2000and released the following year.[10] In the wake of its success, Jaojoby performed at a political rally to anaudience of 50,000 partisans of candidate Marc Ravalomanana less than a month before the divisive 2001presidential elections[1] that nearly resulted in the secession of the island's coastal provinces.[11] Jaojoby's2004 follow-up album Malagasy, which was recorded in semi-live conditions on the island of Runion[7] ina small venue before an audience of the artist's friends,[12] featured lyrics that sought to promote optimismand national reconciliation; the artist announced that he would not involve himself in national politics in thefuture.[12] The same year he toured extensively in France, the United States and Canada.[1]

The March 2008 release of Donnant-Donnant celebrated Jaojoby's roots as a cabaret performer of soul, funkand other Western popular genres.[1] The track listing included previously unreleased pop songs written bythe artist in the 1970s and 1980s in French, Malagasy, Creole and English. Later that year, in September, hebecame the second Malagasy musical act (after supergroup Mahaleo, in 2007) to perform at the prestigiousand historic Olympia music hall in Paris.[9] Seating was specially removed at his request to provide spacefor dancing.[13] The live album Live au Bato Fou: Jaojoby was released in 2010 and features a diversesampling of Jaojoby's greatest hits.[3] A selection of new salegy tracks written and performed by Jaojobywas released in 2012 under the album title Mila Anao,[14] which was ranked by NPR as one of the ten bestinternational albums of the year.[15]

Style and legacyThe roots ofJaojoby'smusical stylebegan with hischildhoodexposure to theWestern-Malagasysyncretism of

[Jaojoby] dusted off salegy and freed it of its image as a primitive music that served only to relievepeasants exhausted by their labors... The soul-tinted voice of Jaojoby, warm and powerful, singsabout love and life with the frankness typical of northerners, marked with ancestral wisdom andpopular philosophy. For the first time, one realizes that salegy can be really listened to and not justinspire maniacal dancing. To the oubliettes with the minimalist "hard salegy" of the 1970s with itsthree chords, drum solos and Farfisa organ! With Jaojoby, salegy passed from a marginal genre intothe ranks of essential culture, soon afterward imitated by a wave of others...



local churchhymns, and the rhythm, harmonies and form of the traditional antsa style of northern Madagascar. The antsais a choral style common across northern Madagascar characterized by large group performance of minorpolyharmonies over a highly syncopated multi-rhythmic hand-clap or other percussive accompaniment.[16]Upon relocating to Diego-Suarez, Jaojoby was exposed to Western artists and musical genres,[2] as well asthe music of Freddy Ranarison, the first local artist to popularize the adaptation of traditional Malagasystyles to the electric guitar.[4] Singing with Los Matadores provided Jaojoby with the opportunity to coverthe hits of his idols, including Otis Redding, Percy Sledge and James Brown. During his years performingwith this band and his subsequent group, Les Players, Jaojoby adeptly covered hits from a vast range ofregional and international genres ranging from the jerk, tango and cha-cha-cha to the sega and slow romanticballads. Together, these musical influences formed the basis of Jaojoby's style.[2]

In the 1960s bands such as Orchestra Liberty began performing the antsa rhythm on modern drum kits withaccompanying guitar or accordion replacing the traditional vocals. It was not until the 1970s that bands likeLos Matadores and Les Players adapted the traditional vocal style to the newly electrified antsa. Guitar soloswere inspired by the performance style of traditional Malagasy instruments like the valiha and marovany,combined with that of guitar solo work popularized in the Congo and Cte d'Ivoire.[2] As a singer with LosMatadores, Jaojoby occasionally filled the instrumental breaks of rhythm and blues covers with improvisedvocals inspired by the salegy tradition, to the jubilation of the young Malagasy listeners gathered outside theclub's doors.[3] Later, with The Players, Jaojoby and a handful of peers in northern urban areas experimentedwith incorporating vocals into the early instrumental salegy. Jaojoby described the adaptation of thetraditional antsa style to modern instruments in the following terms: "The singing is that of the cattle herdersmoving their herds. The guitar imitates the great masters of the valiha. The keyboards provide the feeling ofthe traditional accordions, and the bass draws from the sound of the five traditional tuned drums. As far asthe drum kit, well, it reproduces the ambiance of a Malagasy crowd on a day of celebration with all the handclapping, shakers and feet stomping the earth." The salegy rhythm was adapted to the modern drum kit byJean Claude Djaonarana, drummer of Los Matadores, who later rejoined Jaojoby's band from 1988 until hisdeath in 1995.[3]

French world music magazine Mondomix has called Jaojoby the most popular singer in Madagascar and theIndian Ocean islands.[7] He is widely referred to as the "King of Salegy" by his fans and the press.[1][16] Hecomposes all his own music and writes the lyrics to his songs himself.[5] According to Zomar magazine,the quality of Jaojoby's "supple tenor" voice, the creativity of his compositions and the singer's willingnessto experiment have helped to distinguish him from his peers.[3] Radio France Internationale described hisvocal performance as "clear, powerful and energetic... his trademark, which makes him stand out in theMadagascan musical panorama".[1] Critics have credited Jaojoby with popularizing the salegy genre bothwithin Madagascar and on the international music scene,[2][4][17] and have identified him as an originator oftwo derivative versions of salegy, malessa and baoenjy.[4][18]

Family and personal life



Since the mid-1990s, Jaojoby's wife and children have formed part of the standard lineup of his band. Hiswife, Claudine Robert Zafinera, provides backing and occasional lead vocals. The couple's son, Elie Lucas,plays lead guitar while their daughters, Eusebia and Roseliane, provide backing vocals and stagedancing.[19] His children also formed a band called Jaojoby Jr. that performs covers of their father's music aswell as some of their own original salegy compositions.[2] Saramba, a group created by Claudine in2005,[20] performs the traditional form of salegy using only accordion, percussion and vocals.[21]

While traveling to Antananarivo after a performance at the 2006 Donia Festival in Nosy Be, Jaojoby and hisfamily were involved in a road accident. The singer suffered four broken ribs, lung damage and a fracturedpelvis that necessitated emergency surgery in Runion, three weeks of hospitalization, and prolongedphysical therapy to enable Jaojoby to regain the ability to walk.[22] Fans of the singer used mail and internetto successfully raise the funds required to cover medical expenses related to the accident. After severalweeks of bed rest following the surgery,[1] the artist went on to make a full recovery.[22]

On 3 June 2011, Jaojoby opened a new cabaret venue called "Jao's Pub" in the Ambohipo neighborhood ofAntananarivo,[20] where the singer and his family reside.[2]

DiscographyTitle[3][7][14] Released Label Tracks (Length)

Tsaikijoby 1976 Discomad 2 (7'54")Agny r 1978 Discomad 2 (6'57")Salegy! 1992 Xenophile (1996 US)/Rogue (1992 UK) 10 (53'53")Velono 1994 Indigo Label Bleu 11 (55'11")E Tiako 1998 Indigo Label Bleu 11 (44'31")Aza Arianao 2000 Indigo Label Bleu 12 (50'15")Malagasy 2004 Discorama 12 (55'18")Donnant-Donnant 2008 unknown unknownLive au Bato Fou: Jaojoby 2010 Discorama 12 (58'55")Mila Anao 2012 Buda Musique 14 (57'58")

BibliographyAnderson, Ian (2000). "Ocean Music from Southeast Africa". The Rough Guide to World Music, Vol.1: Africa, Europe and the Middle East (http://books.google.com/books?id=gyiTOcnb2yYC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false). London: Rough Guides.ISBN 978-1-84353-551-5.Auzias, Dominique; Labourdette, Jean-Paul (2007). Petit fut de Madagascar 2008-2009(http://books.google.rw/books?id=lVDNQEXD5gAC&printsec=frontcover) (in French). Paris: PetitFut. ISBN 9782746919822.



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See alsoMusic of Madagascar

References1. "Jaojoby: Biography" (http://www.webcitation.org/63ra9hRXI). RFI Musique. September 2008. Archived from the

original (http://www.rfimusic.com/artist/world-music/jaojoby/biography) on December 11, 2011. RetrievedDecember 11, 2011.

2. Eyre, Banning (December 2011). "Jaojoby" (http://www.webcitation.org/63rank2ej). Afropop Worldwide. WorldMusic Production. Archived from the original (http://www.afropop.org/explore/band_info/ID/535/Jaojoby/) onDecember 11, 2011. Retrieved December 11, 2011.

3. "Jaojoby Eusbe" (http://www.webcitation.org/63tN6ULFZ) (in French). Zomar. 2001. Archived from the original(http://www.zomare.com/jaojoby.html) on December 12, 2011. Retrieved December 12, 2011.

4. Clerfeuille, Sylvie (May 7, 2007). "Eusebe Jaojoby" (http://www.webcitation.org/63tNK8qDH) (in French).Afrisson. Archived from the original (http://www.afrisson.com/Eusebe-Jaojoby-395.html) on December 12, 2011.Retrieved December 12, 2011.

5. Hansen, Ole Schack (1999). "Jaojoby: The King of Salegy and Goodwill ambassador of UNFPA Madagascar"(http://www.webcitation.org/63wNQcxjl). United Nations Population Fund. Archived from the original(http://takelaka.dts.mg/fnuap/article.htm) on December 14, 2011. Retrieved December 14, 2011.

6. Eyre, Banning. "Salegy" (http://www.webcitation.org/62ccCkUAj). Afropop.com. Archived from the original(http://www.afropop.org/explore/style_info/ID/28/salegy/) on October 20, 2011. Retrieved October 10, 2010.

7. Mondomix (December 11, 2011). "Mondomix Music: Jaojoby" (http://www.webcitation.org/63rYD8NFF).Mondomix Media. Archived from the original (http://mp3.mondomix.com/jaojoby) on December 11, 2011.Retrieved December 11, 2011.

8. "WOMAD Lineup Finalized" (http://www.webcitation.org/64694g4J7). Virtual-Festivals.com Ltd. July 21, 2005.Archived from the original (http://www.virtualfestivals.com/latest/news/2073) on December 21, 2011. RetrievedDecember 21, 2011.

9. "Eusbe Jaojoby" (http://www.webcitation.org/63rYSgwwP). Jaojoby l'Olympia. Kanto Productions. December 11,2011. Archived from the original (http://jaojobyolympia.kantoprod.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=14&Itemid=28) on December 11, 2011. Retrieved December 11, 2011.

10. Lavaine, Bertrand (November 9, 2001). "Jaojoby: The king of salegy" (http://www.webcitation.org/646Lnuroz). RFIMusique. Archived from the original (http://www.rfimusique.com/musiqueen/articles/060/article_6443.asp) onDecember 11, 2011. Retrieved December 11, 2011.

11. "Madagascar: sortir du cycle de crises. Rapport Afrique N156"(http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/africa/southern-africa/madagascar/156%20Madagascar%20-%20sortir%20du%20cycle%20de%20crises.ashx) (in French). International Crisis Group. March 18, 2010. RetrievedNovember 30, 2010.

12. Ren-Worms, Pierre (July 20, 2004). "Jaojoby at the Thau Festival: The King of Salegy in France"(http://www.webcitation.org/646Lag4bE). RFI Musique. Archived from the original(http://www.rfimusique.com/musiqueen/articles/060/article_7312.asp) on December 11, 2011. RetrievedDecember 11, 2011.

13. Labesse, Patrick (September 19, 2008). "Jaojoby live in Paris: Funk, sega & salegy at the Olympia"(http://www.webcitation.org/646LBQS5y). RFI Musique. Archived from the original(http://www.rfimusique.com/musiqueen/articles/105/article_8102.asp) on December 11, 2011. RetrievedDecember 11, 2011.

14. "Jaojoby: Le 7me album verra enfin le jour" (http://www.webcitation.org/649ATMcaS) (in French). Courrier deMadagascar. June 4, 2011. Archived from the original (http://votemfm.com/mg/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=14367:jaojoby--le-7eme-album-verra-enfin-le-jour&catid=37:culture) onDecember 23, 2011. Retrieved December 23, 2011.



15. Eyre, Banning (December 18, 2012). "Top 10 World Music Albums Of 2012"(http://www.npr.org/sections/bestmusic2012/2012/12/22/167750238/top-10-world-music-albums-of-2012). NationalPublic Radio. Retrieved July 27, 2015.

16. Anderson (2000), pp. 52353217. Auzias and Labourdette (2007), p. 52418. Auzias and Labourdette (2007), p. 12219. "Cranky Crow World, CD Review" (http://www.webcitation.org/649MMbTzy) (in French). Rock Paper Scissors.

August 12, 2004. Archived from the original(http://www.rockpaperscissors.biz/index.cfm/fuseaction/current.articles_detail/project_id/173/article_id/2585.cfm)on December 23, 2011. Retrieved December 23, 2011.

20. "Mad'Art Diego" (http://www.webcitation.org/649OI3ZRa) (in French). Runweb. Archived from the original(http://reunion.runweb.com/date-13%2F3%2F2008-id_ev-3814-lang-FR-3V-agenda,MadArt-Diego-Saint-Denis.htmle) on December 23, 2011. Retrieved December 23, 2011.

21. Rado, Maminirina (January 3, 2011). "Saint-Sylvestre 2010: Les artistes sauvent les meubles"(http://www.webcitation.org/649N6qBCf). L'Express de Madagascar (in French) (Antananarivo). Archived from theoriginal (http://www.lexpressmada.com/4807/print-article-19610.html) on December 23, 2011. RetrievedDecember 23, 2011.

22. Molinaro, Franck (June 23, 2006). "Chane de solidarit Jaojoby" (http://www.webcitation.org/646Jq0jbY).Potomitan. Archived from the original (http://www.potomitan.info/reinion/jaojoby.php) on December 21, 2011.Retrieved December 21, 2011.

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Categories: 1955 births Living people Malagasy male singers Malagasy Roman CatholicsPeople from Sava Region

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