Around the World - Show Notes
1 May 2026
What’s on this week
LISTEN TO AROUND THE WORLD ON MIXCLOUD
Music by: Adrian Quesada, Airto Moreira & Ricardo Bacelar, Alonette, Altın Gün, Ana Alcaide, Angélique Kidjo, AySay, BALU, Cheikh Ibra Fam, Chris Chalmers and the Souvenirs, Dina El Wedidi, Fauna, GANGAR, Gangbé Brass Band, Hersi Matmuja & Jacopo Conoci, Ireke, João Selva, Kareyce Fotso, Kina Shokichi & Champloose [喜納昌吉&チャンプルーズ], Kuljit Bhamra & Priti Kaur, Maryam Saleh, Mon Laferte, Parisa Karimi Molan & Tehrani Drom, Ranil, Roger Davidson and the Frank London Klezmer Orchestra, Stelios Petrakis, and The Klezmatics featuring Lavender Light Gospel Choir & Joshua Nelson.
This week’s Featured Album: Adouna by Cheikh Ibra Fam
Cheikh Ibra Fam - Gnou Mbollo - (Official Music Video)
Cheikh Ibra Fam’s new album Adouna is a vibrant work from one of Senegal’s most distinctive contemporary voices. Born in Mbour and shaped by the Baye Fall spiritual tradition, Fam grew up surrounded by poetry, painting, and Afro‑Cuban music, influences that continue to colour his songwriting. His early musical grounding came through the Kourels — the devotional Baye Fall choirs — before he stepped onto the international stage as a vocalist with the legendary Orchestra Baobab.That six‑year period sharpened his craft and broadened his musical vocabulary, preparing him for a solo career that has steadily gathered momentum.
[There is an interesting article about the Baye Fall on the BBC website.]
Adouna — meaning “Life” — is his second international album and captures the full sweep of his artistic journey. Now based on Réunion Island, Fam draws together Senegalese roots, Italian classical training, and the cosmopolitan energy of his travels. The record moves confidently between Afropop, roots rhythms, funk, and soulful balladry, always anchored by the spiritual cadence of Baye Fall chant. Across its 11 tracks, Adouna reflects on identity, resilience, and the search for connection, offering a sound that feels both grounded and forward‑looking.
There’s a clarity of purpose running through the album: a desire to celebrate life’s movement, its challenges, and its unexpected beauty. For listeners, Adouna is an invitation into Cheikh Ibra Fam’s world — a place where tradition and modernity meet, and where the spirit of Senegal travels confidently across borders. It’s a richly textured, uplifting choice for this week’s featured album.
This article is AI researched with human editing.
SOME OF THE OTHER MUSIC ON THE SHOW
Altın Gün - Neredesin - Sen Garip
Altın Gün will make their BBC Proms debut on 28 August 2026, joining Jules Buckley and the BBC Symphony Orchestra for a one‑off orchestral reimagining of their psychedelic Anatolian folk‑rock. The concert forms part of the 2026 Proms season and features a special guest appearance by German‑Turkish singer Derya Yıldırım, further deepening the show’s roots in contemporary Turkish folk traditions.
Angélique Kidjo - Jerusalema - HOPE!!
It is her 19th studio album, dedicated to her late mother and built around themes of joy, resilience, and unity. The album features an extensive list of global collaborators, including Pharrell Williams, Nile Rodgers, Quavo, Davido, Ayra Starr, Charlie Wilson, IZA, PJ Morton, The Cavemen, Fally Ipupa, Dadju, and Diamond Platnumz.
The Klezmatics Featuring Lavender Light Gospel Choir And Joshua Nelson - We Were Made For These Times - We Were Made For These Times
The Klezmatics are a Grammy‑winning New York klezmer group, long regarded as leaders of the contemporary klezmer revival. They remain a major live force, collaborating widely across genres.
Lavender Light is a New York–based gospel choir dedicated to inclusive, community‑centred gospel performance. Joshua Nelson, often called the “Prince of Kosher Gospel,” blends Jewish liturgical music with African‑American gospel.
Chris Chalmers and the Souvenirs - Way Back Home - Way Back Home
Following three albums with the Belfast-based band The 2:19, Chris Chalmers and Marty Young unveil their first project as Chris Chalmers and the Souvenirs. The pair performed nearly every instrument on the album themselves, joined by friends for key contributions.
Kareyce Fotso - Power - Gwà (feat. Blick Bassy & Romain Jovion)
Kareyce Fotso is a Cameroonian singer, composer, guitarist and performer whose work blends Bamiléké traditions with blues, folk and contemporary acoustic styles.
Blick Bassy is a Cameroonian singer‑songwriter from Mintaba, known for his delicate, blues‑inflected style, his use of the Bassa language, and a career that bridges tradition, political memory and contemporary global music.
Parisa Karimi Molan & Tehrani Drom - Sizeh Salam Getirmishem - Unveiled
Parisa Karimi Molan is an Iranian vocalist currently based in Montréal who released her debut album, Unveiled, in early 2026. Her work is deeply rooted in Persian classical music and the folk traditions of her East Azerbaijani heritage.
Ana Alcaide - Florinda la Cava - Single
Inspired by the medieval legend of Florinda la Cava, whose story symbolically marks the fall of the Visigothic kingdom. It is the second single from her forthcoming album, continuing Alcaide’s long‑running exploration of Toledo’s myths, memory, and emotional symbolism.
喜納昌吉&チャンプルーズ/ Kina Shokichi & Champloose - Jing Jing - Blood Line (2016 remaster)
Okinawan folk‑rock pioneers formed in the mid‑1970s, fusing electric guitars with the island’s traditional sanshin and distinctive Ryukyuan scales. Their breakthrough song “Haisai Ojisan” became a cultural landmark in Japan, bringing Okinawan identity and political consciousness into the mainstream. Kina’s songwriting often carries strong peace and anti‑war themes, shaped by Okinawa’s history and its post‑war relationship with Japan and the US military presence.
Ranil - Bahia - Ranil y Su Conjunto Tropical - Galaxia Tropical (Analog Africa No.43)
Ranil is a legendary figure in the Peruvian Amazonian Cumbia (or “Cumbia Amazónica”) scene, a genre that blends traditional rhythms with psychedelic, guitar-driven rock-and-roll. He developed a unique, unpredictable style that locals called “llullampeo,” characterized by sharp guitar grooves and restless percussion. Rather than sign with major labels in Lima, he founded his own imprint, Producciones Llerena, to maintain full control over his music. Although he died in April 2020 during the pandemic, his work has gained global recognition through compilations like “Galaxia Tropical” and “Ranil y Su Conjunto Tropical” released by the Analog Africa label.
Dina El Wedidi - El Leila Farha (feat. Wael El Fashny) - Single
Dina El Wedidi is a prominent Egyptian singer, songwriter, and producer known for her “New Arab Folk” style that blends traditional Egyptian folk music with contemporary genres like jazz, rock, and electronic. She began her career in 2008 with the El Warsha theater troupe in Cairo, where she learned traditional Egyptian storytelling and folk singing. A major turning point came in 2012 when she spent a year under the tutelage of Brazilian music legend Gilberto Gil, with whom she has since performed at international festivals worldwide.
I researched with human editing.
Where and when to hear Around the World
Friday:
Akaroa World Radio New Zealand - 2:00 pm local time
NAR-GROUP Germany – 2:00 pm local time
Mosel Radio Germany – 2:00 pm local time
NAR-Alf Germany – 2:00 pm local time
Waterwaves Radio England - 9:00 pm local time
Essential Radio Scotland - 10:00 midnight
Saturday:
Best City Radio (Belfast, Northern Ireland) - 6:00 am local time
Power 101FM Malawi - 11:00 local time
Flirt FM (Galway’s Community of Interest & Student Station) 101.3 - 10:45 am local time Ireland
Stirling Community Radio - 2:00 pm local time Scotland
RCFM (Radio City FM) Duisburg, Germany - 3:00 local time
World FM New Zealand - 10:00 pm local New Zealand Time
Sunday:
Power 101FM Malawi - 12:00 local time
NFRS Osaka Japan - 12:00 noon local time
973FM in Singapore - 11:00 pm local time
Circl8 Chester England - 12:00 noon local time
DCRFM (Dover Community Radio England - 7:00pm local time
Prodigal Sun Radio - 8:00 pm local time
Slice Audio Northern Ireland - 10:00 pm local time
Holywood Radio - Northern Ireland - 10:00 pm local time
Monday:
Armagh City Radio - 12:00 midnight local time (01:00 pm CET)
SparkFlame Radio - 00:00 am GMT (01:00 CET)
Circl8 Chester England - 12:00 noon local time
Stirling Community Radio Scotland - 10:00 pm local time
Waterwaves Radio England - 9:00 pm local time
BR2 Pure Gold Radio – Costa Blanca, Spain - 10:00 pm local time
World FM New Zealand - 10:00 am local time
Akaroa World Radio New Zealand - 10:00 pm local time
Tuesday:
Waterwaves Radio England - 9:00 pm local time
Wednesday:
World FM New Zealand - 4:00 am local time
Slice Audio Northern Ireland - 4:00 am local time
Best City Radio Northern Ireland - 10:00 pm local time
Radio Skye Scotland - 10:00 pm local time
Thursday:
Waterwaves Radio England - 9:00 pm local time