Newen Afrobeat

Newen Afrobeat is an Afrobeat band that started in 2009 in Chile.[1] Newen Afrobeat revisits Fela Kuti's musical heritage. The word Newén means 'strength' in the Mapuche language.[2]

Newen Afrobeat
OriginChile
GenresAfrobeat
Years active2009 (2009)–present
MembersÁngel Marín, Álvaro Quintas, Cristóbal Dahm, Aldo Gómez, Marcelo Morales, Martin Concha, Fernando Carvacho, María Francisca "Fran Ri" Riquelme, Roberto Tito Gevert, Klaus Brantmayer, Sebastian "Seba" Crooker, Álvaro Villalobos, Macarena "Maca" Rozic, Tino Canessa, Alejandro Orellana, Tomás "Tom" Pavez, Francisca Castro, Mauricio "Mauro" Sanchez
Past membersNicholas Urbina, Enrique Camhi, Camila Fuentes

History

Newen Afrobeat was founded in 2009 by the Chilean composer and singer Nicholás Urbina, who composed the music for the first, eponymous, album released in 2013.[1][3][4] The intro of the first song Santiago incorporates parts of José Mujica's speech originally delivered in front of the 2013 UN General Assembly.[5]

Urbina relocated to the United States in the mid-2010s. The group's last concert with Urbina was at the Felabration Festival in Lagos in 2016 (founded by Yeni Kuti in 1998).

Without Urbina the group continued after various member changes and reformed into a collective releasing the EP Newen Plays Fela in 2017.[6]

A third album, Curiche (a Mapuchian word meaning 'black person'), was released in February 2019.[7][4]

The EP Newen Plays Fela Vol. II was released in 2021.

Style

Their style finds its inspiration in the Nigerian Afrobeat of Fela Kuti and their repertoire includes a number of Kuti's titles. Their music is also influenced by the aboriginal roots of their own country. Their songs celebrate the environment, indigenous rights, women's empowerment, and multiculturalism. Newen Afrobeat's live performances are also demonstrations in support of the Mapuche cause.[8]

Discography

Albums
  • Newen Afrobeat (2014)
  • Newen Plays Fela (EP) (2017)
  • Curiche (2019)[4]
  • Newen Plays Fela Vol. II (EP) (2021)

Singles
  • Chaltumay (2018)[9]
  • Open Your Eyes feat. Oghene Kologbo (2019)[10]
  • Cántaros (2019)[11]
  • No Les Creeré (2020)[12]

See also

References
  1. Deutsch, Don (2019-07-10). "Newen Afrobeat: A Chilean Collective Inspired by Fela's Music and Activism". Afropop. Archived from the original on 2021-06-22. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  2. "Dijon : Newen Afrobeat a conquis la Péniche Cancale" (in French). 2017-07-16. Archived from the original on 2019-01-03. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  3. Ponce, David; Oyarzún, Fabián Molina (2013-12-20). "Tras un carnaval al aire libre el grupo Newen Afrobeat lanza su disco este domingo - El Parque Juan XXIII, de la comuna santiaguina de Ñuñoa, será el escenario para el estreno de esta banda chilena el domingo 22 de diciembre". Emol / El Mercurio (in Spanish). Santiago, Chile. Archived from the original on 2018-10-06. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  4. Hoffner, Erik (2019-09-10). "Chilean band Newen Afrobeat sings of a future it hopes to see". Mongabay - News & Inspiration from Nature's Frontline. Archived from the original on 2021-01-22. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  5. Mujica, José (2013-09-24). Discurso de José Mujica, presidente de Uruguay. Naciones Unidas. 68th United Nations General Assembly (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-08-24.
  6. "Newen Afrobeat". Discogs. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  7. "Newen Afrobeat". bandcamp (in Spanish). Retrieved 2019-12-16.
  8. Cruz, Nando (2017-09-03). "Bailando en defensa del pueblo mapuche". elperiodico (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2018-11-28. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  9. "Chaltumay" [Thanks] (music video) (in Spanish). Newen Afrobeat. 2018. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  10. "Open Your Eyes" (music video) (in Nigerian Pidgin and English). Newen Afrobeat feat. Oghene Kologbo. 2019. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
  11. "Cántaros" [Jugs] (music video) (in Spanish). Newen Afrobeat. 2019. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  12. "No Les Creeré" [I will not believe them] (music video) (in Spanish). Newen Afrobeat. 2020. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
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