Ibeyi: Daughters of The Diaspora
I've been rocking with Ibeyi, the Afro-Cuban twins from France since I heard their leading single, River, in 2014. Their beautiful voices and powerful lyrics struck me first. I love everything about them. Their harmonizing voices, musicianship, and deep connection to spirituality always captivate me.
“Carry away my dead leaves
Let me baptize my soul with the help of your waters
Sink my pains and complains
Let the river take them, river drown them
My ego and my blame
Let me baptize my soul with the help of your waters
Those all means are so ashamed
Let the river take them, river drown them”
Lisa-Kainde and Naomi Diaz are artists that are not afraid to make meaningful music that successfully remixes traditional music with current trends in the present day, thus creating innovative sounds of the future. Spirituality is a common thread throughout all of their songs. They often sing in Yoruba, weaving in prayers to Orisha deities from the Yoruba religion. Daughters of the African Diaspora, Ibeyi were born in France to a Venezuelan mother and Cuban father. They grew up learning Yoruba language and traditions that originate in West Africa -- Nigeria, to be exact, and have been carried throughout the world. As a result, it is no surprise that they chose their band name after Ibeji, the name of an Orisha that represents twins.
As for myself, another daughter of the African Diaspora, I connect with the spirit of Naomi and Lisa-Kaindé's music so deeply, despite the fact that I do not speak French, speak Yoruba or practice the faith, and my knowledge of the Spanish language is very elementary. Yet, their music still speaks to me. Watch their latest Tiny Desk Concert below, and you'll see what I mean.
Ibeyi's sophomore album Ash has been in my steady rotation since it premiered in the fall of 2017. I love hearing the growth in the music and themes of this second album in comparison to their equally great first album, self-titled Ibeyi. The first album is an introduction of the sisters, exploring their personal journey in overcoming death and loss. Dedicated to their late father, Anga Díaz, who was also a famous percussionist, and older sister Yanira who died in 2013, the album is minimal and raw. It feels sad. You can tell they were in mourning over the death of their loved ones, yet there was still an undercurrent of faith, hope, and comfort as they give thanks to their father, sister, and ancestors before them.
Listen to "Think of You" as an example. "Let's remember with rhythm our loved ones that are gone. All the joy when we're singing that no joy can destroy," they sing. Also, for music nerds: Ibeyi sampled their father's rendition of the jazz classic, "Round Midnight" originally performed by trumpeter Cootie Williams and later made famous by Thelonius Monk. You see what I mean? They are always honoring the ancestors. Even the musical ones.
Ash, 2017
Back to their latest album. If Ibeyi was about death, ghosts, and grief, Ash is about resurrection, new life, and joy. And it is timely. Even though the sisters will not necessarily say Ash is a political album, you can clearly hear and feel how they are making sense of the world around all of us, especially as young Black women. Time and time again, people and systems of this world show that Black and Brown women on a global scale are not valued. We know this, we carry this, and we pass this to our daughters. Ibeyi captures this in the opening track, "I Carried This for Years." But all is not hopeless. Ibeyi reminds us that we are all we got. "Don't give up, don't give up baby. I feel the pain, feel the pain. But I'm alive," sings Naomi in "Away Away."
Survival, even in the face of death, is necessary. Take their song "Deathless," featuring saxophonist Kamasi Washington, as a mantra. "Whatever happens, whatever happened. We are deathless." Take that to heart. When asked what was the inspiration of this song, Lisa-Kaindé discusses her experience of being racially profiled and arrested at the age of 16. The first verse is her story. "To be 'Deathless' means that there’s no end. Someone wrote, 'They buried us, but they didn’t know we were seeds.' It means there’s no end to love, there’s no end to joy, there’s no end to music," says Lisa-Kaindé via Genius.com
"No Man is Big Enough for My Arms" is a standout track about women's empowerment that features the incomparable Michelle Obama. "I Wanna Be Like You" is a love letter to sisterhood. "Waves" is a quiet, visceral and emotional song sung by Naomi that links back to the rawness of Ibeyi's self-titled debut. "Transmission/Michaelion" is my favorite song for many reasons. The lyrics are beautiful, there is a choir that backs the sisters' vocals, and Meshell Ndegeocello plays the bass.
“‘Transmission’ is so important. Not only saying how you feel, but looking at how people are feeling around you and trying to understand them; finding what links us more than what divides us. Then, learning from our past and learning from other people’s past and learning from history, which is really hard. In the last year of touring [we felt] quite defeated about the world. There are days you wake up where you’re like, ‘I’m so fucking useless. I can’t do anything [to change things]. We’re gonna all die and fuck it.’ But realizing you can’t save the world, that is for sure, but you can do something little [to help people] and that’s still something. There’s a domino effect [of small actions].”
Every song on this album is an experience and journey to the future, honestly. I listen to this album and I can't help but think of liberation and freedom that I want to see for Black and Brown folks, now and in the generations to come. I think about the quote that I've seen on a t-shirt from The Dream Defenders & Rebel Threads: "I've been to the future. We won." That's how I feel when I listen to this album and Ibeyi in general. I can go on and on about how much Ibeyi's art means to me. I'll end with this recent live performance on KEXP below.
