On her new CD, Time, Shakura S’Aida’s powerful voice is backed by a cast of phenomenal musicians — Brooke Blackburn, Alison Young, Kenny “Bluesboss” Wayne, Shamaka Ali, and Joaquin Nunez Hidalgo, just to name a few. They match her energy and intensity note for note.

With a regal presence on stage that belies her diminutive stature, Malian singer Khaira Arby wowed the crowd at Lula Lounge in Toronto on May 8th with a long set of her own brand of jazzy Saharan music.

It was not inevitable to everyone that Whitney Houston was going to die. Many of us expected her to make a comeback and her death came as a shock. Sway takes a deeper look into the cause of the icon’s death.

If his latest effort is any indication, Teddy Afro will become a real international superstar, and be the one artist to bring Ethiopian music to the world.

Sway interviews Juno Award winner Beat Merchant, best known for his work with Canadian rapper Belly and currently the in-house producer for newcomer Harvey Stripes.

Having worked with a music program in Toronto’s Jane-Finch area, Agile’s decision to get involved with Remix was rooted in a realization that he was becoming a male role model for youth. “It’s a different part of the journey,” he explains with respect to his career, “and a rewarding one.

Bombino sees his music as a way of bringing Tuareg culture forward into the future. “It’s so important to protect a people, to preserve the language and culture,” he says. See Bombino April 12 at Lula Lounge.

”If there are people who missed the bus and didn’t know that we had talent, and they want to come look now, then come look. We’ve got plenty.” — Tyrone “T-RexXx” Edwards on Toronto’s musical landscape

They may be flying under the radar right now, but these emerging artists are poised to be Canada’s next music icons.

Surrounded by a family of closet musicians, Charles, who is a self-taught guitarist, grew up listening to music that ranged from Puccini to Lauryn Hill.