Bikutsi is a musical genre from Cameroon. It developed from the traditional styles of the Beti or Ewondo people, who live around the city of Yaoundé. The form arose in patriarchal communities where women were forbidden “to raise their voices in public”, but they would gather together after a hard day’s work, without the men, to sing and dance of joys, sorrows and frustrations.
The word ‘bikutsi’ literally means ‘beat the earth’ or ‘let’s beat the earth’. The name indicates a dance that is accompanied by stomping the feet on the ground. The thriving dance music in Cameroon’s day-to-day life has its foundation in the specific historical processes of the 1970s and 1980s, which led to the recognition of Bikutsi as a distinct genre of Cameroonian dance music.
In its modern form, Bikutsi is very popular, and rivals makossa as the country’s most renowned style.
Tracklist:
1. Abanda Aviateur – Mabon Ka
2. Choutouale
3. Richard Band – Événement
4. Akiba Remix
5. Govinal – Eya Eya
6. Déesse – Femme Amoureuse (Remix)
7. Mani Bella – Pala Pala (El Diablo Dj Edit)
8. La Répudiée
The cover picture shows the monument of reunification in Yaoundé.
