Kickstarter

Voices of Yabonga Project Mission:

Produce a CD of traditional Xhosa songs complete with lyrics and original artwork--in both digital and physical form.

Molweni! So maybe you stumbled upon this page by accident, or because we put a link on Facebook, or because you’re interested in world music. Whatever your path was here, welcome!

We are 4 American college students (Hana, Katie, Lauren, & Rebecca) in Cape Town, South Africa. While in the townships of Guguletu & Lower Crossroads, we were inspired by the incredible talents of 25 South African youth. On a bumpy bus ride home, we were all gushing about their voices and someone threw out the idea that we make a CD of them singing. It didn’t seem like a real possibility at first, just a dream, but as we talked more and more we found out that it’s totally do-able. After all, this is Africa.

Most importantly, we ensured that the youth were on board with this project. After all, we will be recording their voices in an effort to showcase traditional Xhosa music along with their artwork. This form of cultural exchange will make the voices of the youth accessible to an international audience, as we will be making the digital copies of the music available for free to download online.

Right now, we have access to recording space in Cape Town, a camera, and 25 talented new friends. We'll be using the money we raise to produce physical copies of the CD, provide transportation for the youth to our recording space, and supplement their voices with small percussion instruments.

We appreciate your support, and cannot wait to share what we've done with you! Contact us at voicesofyabonga@gmail.com if you have any questions or comments, and be sure to check out our blog at voicesofyabonga.tumblr.com.