Baaba Maal - "Freak Out"

Baaba Maal is a Senegal-based musician who’s work has been widely praised and shared as a culminating force combining indigenous African music, American R&B, Soul, Jazz, Reggae & Blues. On "Freak Out” we hear the opening’s distorted guitar and vocals before launching into a masala of rhythms and instrumentation all led by Maal’s powerful, soaring vocals. The press release for “Freak Out” describes Baaba Maal as, “Visionary singer, cultural ambassador, epic storyteller Baaba Maal wasn’t destined to be a performer - in West African culture, the ancient griot caste traditionally produces the singers and poets, and Maal was born in 1953 in the northern Senegal town of Podor into the fisherman's caste. Growing up surrounded by music, inspired by indigenous African music, American R&B, Soul, Jazz, Reggae & Blues, he defied expectation and became a musician, challenging the monopoly the griots had on information. “