ABSTRACT
This chapter is designed to challenge readers’ preconceptions and detail the histories of intervention, exploitation, and representation that have shaped how the entire continent of Africa is “read” and “heard.” A section on the idea of “Africa” opens the chapter, rehearsing the various stereotypes and outright fabrications that circulate regarding the continent. The section reviews the histories of colonial exploitation, making the point that Africa is not poor but, rather, actively impoverished by Europe and the West. This is followed by a section turning to examples of musical stereotypes, including the Ooga Booga Africa of Hollywood films, Lion King Africa, and Band Aid Africa. The remainder of the chapter finds African musicians, including Miriam Makeba, Fela Kuti, Didier Awadi, Angelique Kidjo, and Nneka, offered in a counterpoint with profiles of African leaders, such as Patrice Lumumba and Thomas Sankare, creating a set of powerful sounds and stories that offer a richer, more accurate, and more ethical engagement with Africa than those most readers will already know.
