Ngongo J'Ami by Batida

Single from Angolan / Portuguese artist Batida (aka Pedro Coquenão).

On the A-side thumping bass lines collide head on with 1970s Angolan semba legend Carlos Lamartine. One of Angola’s most influential musicians Carlos Lamartine began putting music out in the late 1950s and became increasingly political during the early 1970s as Angola struggled to gain its independence. The remix came about when Coquenão was finishing his record with Portuguese producer Beat Laden who created the original loop for Pedro to build an arrangement around. Done as a tribute to ‘Kota’ Carlos Lamartine, the remix got the seal of approval from the man himself.

The B-side features a beefed up remix of album track ‘Yumbala’ by London based producer A.J. Holmes & The Hackney Empire. Batida worked with an Angolan artist called Sacerdote whom challenged him to record some verses highlighting the history of Kuduro but pointing in new directions. The result was ‘Yumbala’ where Sacerdote sings: "Kids pick up a chair and sit down. Kuduro is taking a different route. I don't simply sing for fun but to contribute to this new generation. Don't open your mouth to sing in vain.”

“The guru of kuduro” - DJ Mag
“Funky meltdown of antique tunes and modern electronica from Angola” - UNCUT
“Slippery guitars of classic African dance-band music and a touch of pumping super-modern bass.” - The Telegraph

Pedro Coquenão was born in Huambo, Angola and raised in the suburbs of Lisbon, Portugal. He has been creating and interacting with music, dance, visual and radio arts under the name Batida. It means beat in Portuguese and it relates to Luanda dance/music culture.

“It’s just on another level” Gilles Peterson BBC6 👹

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