OKYEREMA ASANTE (GH) + AMMAR 808 (TU)

Travel from West Africa to North Africa when AMMAR 808 joins us on the 21st of February together with Okyerema Asante.

PHONO: Okyerema Asante (GH) + AMMAR 808 (TU)
Date: 21/02-2026
Doors: 19:00, Concert: 20:00
Price: 110,-

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Okyerema Asante

Okyerema Asante is a legendary Ghanaian master percussionist and one of the world’s great talking-drum virtuosos. His rhythms have travelled from Ghana to the world stage through collaborations with Paul Simon (Graceland), Fleetwood Mac, Hugh Masekela, and Miriam Makeba.

Known for transforming himself into a full ensemble on stage, Asante combines traditional Ghanaian drumming with jazz, funk, and spiritual energy. His solo albums Drum Message and Sabi (Get Down) are celebrated as classics of Afro-jazz and world percussion.
A living bridge between African tradition and global sound, Okyerema Asante’s performances are explosive, storytelling experiences — where ancient rhythms meet modern soul.
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AMMAR 808

Denmark-based Tunisian producer Sofyann Ben Youssef has already created whole new worlds of sound. Hisstartling debut as AMMAR 808 – 2018’s Maghreb United – fused thumping TR-808 drum machine rhythms andbone-rattling bass with traditional North African folk instrumentalists and vocalists from Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco, suggesting a pan-Maghreb science-fiction mash-up worthy of William Burroughs’ most fevered dreams.

Now, for his latest album – Club Tounsi – he sets his sights on home, with an album that investigates and explores the vibrant folk tradition of his native Tunisia. “It’s a particular genre of folk,” AMMAR 808 explains.“It’s called Mezoued.” Named after the ancient mezoued goatskin bagpipes that provide the music’s sinuous melodies, it’s traditionally accompanying popular singers also backed by clattering hand drums.

Originating in the 1950s, when a surge of rural migrants flocked to the capital Tunis in search of work, it’s themusic of the downtrodden and the underdog, long frowned upon by polite Tunisian society. “It originatedwith the immigrants and the working class,” says AMMAR 808. “These people were coming from all aroundTunisia due to their economical situation. They were considered people from the ghettoes, and they were discriminated against. This music was even banished from Tunisian TV for a long time.”

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