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Playlist Pieces and Context

“Pata Pata” (1966) recorded by Miriam Makeba [South Africa]

Grammy-award-winning South African vocalist Zensi Miriam Makeba (1932-2008), also known as “Mama Africa,” was an outspoken advocate against South African apartheid and one of the most prominent Black African performers of the 20th century. This tune, “Pata Pata,” was arguably one of her most iconic as it introduced many in the Western world to the idiomatic clicks in her native language of Xhosa.

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“Cabide” (2005) recorded by Mart’nália [Brazil]

Mart’nália Mendonça Ferreira, often simply known as “Mart’nália,” is a contemporary samba artist and daughter of famous samba composer Martinho da Vila. Her song “Cabide,” which describes fun-loving woman who wants to see if her partner can keep up with her, features a samba accompaniment with prominent solos by idiomatic hand-held samba percussion like the pandeiro (tambourine-type instrument) and tamborim (small high-pitched frame drum).

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“Fish Market” (1990) recorded by Steely & Clevie (1990) [Jamaica]

This Jamaican dancehall reggae tune was the product of famous Jamaican producer duo Steely and Clevie. You might notice that the prominent rhythm in this track is the dem bow rhythm, or the foundational rhythm for reggaetón; this is because the dancehall reggae track credited with solidifying “dem bow” in reggaetón, Shabba Rank’s “Dem Bow” (1991), was actually derivative of this track! When you listen to “Fish Market,” then, you listen to a little piece of reggaetón (and reggae) history.

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“El Potaje” (2019) Cimafunk ft. Chucho Valdés, Omara Portuondo, and Orquesta Aragón [Cuba]

As a Cuban-American and researcher of Cuban music, this song is a personal favorite of mine! Grammy-nominated Cuban funk artist Erik Alejandro Iglesias Rodríguez, known professionally as Cimafunk, connects Cuba’s musical present with its past in this fun tune featuring some of the giants of mid-to-late 20^th century Cuban music. Featured artists include three-time Grammy award-winning pianist and bandleader Chucho Valdés (who founded the legendary Afro-Cuban jazz group Irakere in 1973), legendary Cuban singer Omara Portuondo (whom you may know as the front woman in the Buena Vista Social Club recordings), and Orquesta Aragón (a prominent charanga group that has been active since 1939).

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“난 알아요” (I Know) (1992) Seo Taiji and Boys [South Korea]

Long before BTS and BlackPink, there was Seo Taiji and Boys’ breakout hit “I Know,” which first sparked the international popularity of K-pop and served as a milestone in the early days of the Hayllu (Korean Wave) in international popular culture. This group is also credited with helping standardize coordinated dance routines in K-pop group performances, normalizing an equal attention to the visual and musical aspects of performance K-pop fans have come to know and love. Musically, we hear strong influences from US rock and 1990s Hip Hop with the guitar riffs, rapping sections, and the idiomatic orchestra hit sample used in nearly every popular US hip hop tune of the time.

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“Demolición” (Demolition) (1964) Los Saicos [Peru]

While many think punk was born in either the UK with the Sex Pistols or the United States with the Ramones in the 1970s, several scholars have pointed to punk’s prominence and potential birth in Latin American rock and roll scenes! The Peruvian band Los Saicos, whose name translates to “The Psychos”, may very well claim the earliest recording of a punk rock tune with their 1964 recording of “Demolición.” In this song you will hear a delightfully odd mixture of beach rock, lead singer Erwin Flores’s low grumbling voice, and anti-establishment lyrics about destroying a train station.

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“Chingiss Khaanii Magtaal” (Ode to Chinggis Khaan) recorded by Batzorig Vaanchig and Adiyadorj Gombosuren [Mongolia]

This is probably one of the most famous Mongolian throat singing recordings in contemporary history, as Batzorig Vaanchig and Adivadori Gombosuren’s recording of this traditional ode to the founder of the Mongol Empire accrued over 33 million views on YouTube since its release in 2014. In this recording you hear the idiomatic Mongolian horsehead fiddle accompanying the unique Mongolian style of throat singing, in which the singer manipulates vocal chambers to sound both a guttural base pitch and multiple overtones.

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“Señora Chichera” (1976) recorded by Inti Illimani [Chile]

This song represents part of the explosion of folklorized pan-Andean ensembles that took audiences in Western Europe, the US, and the Andean regions of South America by storm in the 1970s and 1980s. These ensembles utilize a mixture of indigenous Quechua and Aymara instruments, like the notch flute kena and the pan-pipe instrument siku, with hybridized instruments like the small ukulele-like charango, and even some Western Classical instruments, like clarinet or violin. This example, performed by the famous Chilean group Inti-Illimani, offers lyrics in both Spanish and Quechua and simply proclaims a desire to order and drink chicha, a fermented corn drink enjoyed in both Andean and Amazonian regions of South America.

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“Terri C

“ਤੇਰੀ ਚੁੰਨੀ ਦੇ ਸਿਤਾਰੇ” (Terri Chunni De Sitare) (1984) by Alaap (Channi Singh) [Punjab, India/ Britain]

Most historians mark this tune and the album by the same name, released by the Punjabi-British group Alaap in 1984, as the birth of a genre known as British Bhangra. According to Falu Bakrania, “Bhangra originated as a folk song and dance genre from rural Punjab associated with Vaisakhi, a celebration of the harvest and the New Year” (2023: 36), but migrant communities in Britain blended it with locally popular music forms to create the hybridized dance music known as British Bhangra. This music then came to broadly symbolize South Asian diasporic identity in Britain during the late 20th century.

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“Gully Washer/ Trippin’ Up the Stairs” recorded by Yellow Jack [Ireland]

This combination of traditional Irish instrumental folk tunes reflects the international aftermath of the mid-late 20th century Irish folk revival, in which artists looked to promote traditional musics while negating the need for those musics to strictly be from before British contact. From this revival, groups like the Dubliners, Celtic Woman, and productions like Riverdance (1995) eventually came to international prominence. As is common in Irish folkloric sessions, the musicians here utilize two different tunes in related keys and tempi (timing) and combine them together so the music can keep going without being overly repetitive.

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“月亮代表我的心” (The Moon Represents My Heart) (1977) recorded by Teresa Tang [China]

This very famous love song, composed by Wen Ching-Hsi and popularized by Taiwanese singer Teresa Tang, remains a nostalgic favorite for many and a popular song choice for celebrating the mid-Autumn Festival in China. The Moon Festival, as it is also called, falls on the 15th day of the 8th month in the Chinese calendar and is marked by a full moon at night. Though the mid-Autumn festival has already passed this year, I hope this song will serve as a belated recognition for those who celebrate!

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“Raude meke” (2000) recorded by Black Rose [Fiji]

This popular Fijian popular song combines traditional Meke structures with contemporary popular music rhythms. Meke is one of the most well-known traditional music and dance forms in Fiji, and although there are many different types, most feature a wooden slit drum called lali ni meke, clapping with cupped hands (cobo), and muli-voice harmonized singing. While most meke are strongly associated with both their daunivucu (choreographer/composer of meke) and region of origin within the island, according to ethnomusicologist Evadne Kelly this tune is less attached to a specific Fijian community because of its hybridized nature.

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“Hora Din Moldova” (Dancing Moldova) (2009) Nelly Ciobanu [Moldova]

“Hora din Moldova” by Nelly Ciobanu was a popular song that was entered into the 2009 Eurovision competition representing the East European nation of Moldova and took home 14th place. The hora is a Romanian and Moldovian circle dance, in which dancers hold hands in a circle, doing the steps of the dance while moving the circle counter-clockwise. The dance later became a staple in Klezmer repertoire and Ashkenazi Jewish celebrations.

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“Zombie” (1974) Fela Kuti [Nigeria]

Nigerian singer and political activist Fela Kuti founded the genre of Afrobeat, a form of music that blended Sub-Saharan African rhythms and instruments with jazz and other popular musics. Kuti also continues to be an icon of Black resistance and pride around the world, inspiring even Beyoncé to perform a cover of this tune, “Zombie,” at her 2018 Coachella performance. “Zombie” was a song of resistance, mocking the harsh militaristic regime in Nigeria during the 1970s by equating the soldiers to zombies who repressed their people because they could not think for themselves.

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“ دارم می‌رم به تهران” (Daram Miram Be Tehran) (2006) Andy Madadian [US/ Iran]

After the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran, many Iranians fled and formed new diasporic communities in different places around the world, with one of the most famous being in Los Angeles. The Iranian-American community in Los Angeles, often called “Tehrangeles,” formed their own booming popular music industry, with a lot of their music featuring a particularly infectious rhythm that was temporarily banned in Iran called “shish-o-hasht.” Listen for this rhythm in the drums throughout this Tehrangeles pop tune by one of the first stars of the nascent industry, Andy Madadian.

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“三番叟 (さんばそう)” (Sanbasō) (2010) recorded by Seiji Tsuruzawa [Japan]

This dance piece comes from the repertoire of an elite form of Japanese theater called 能 (Nō) and 歌舞伎 (Kabuki theater). Nō theatre is one of the oldest continually practiced forms of theater in existence, and its repertoire serves as some source material for Kabuki theater. The Sanbasō dance, the melody for which is played by a shamisen (plucked string instrument) in this recording, represents a celebratory prayer for abundance and prosperity.

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“Ha’ele Ki Pilitania” (2021) BLKB3RY [Tonga]
BLKB3RY is a contemporary Tongan musician who draws on Tongan music cultures, other Polynesian musics, and Jamaican Reggae in his compositions. This song was identified in a July 2025 Precise Digital interview with the artist as the most meaningful for him because he grew up with the song and learning the dance. This recording of “Ha’ele Ki Pilitania” is actually a cover, as the original was composed by Penitutuʻila to commemorate Tongan Queen Kuini Sālote Tupou III’s historic arrival at the coronation of British Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953. The song’s text praises her grace, as she ignored the pouring rain and kept the top of her carriage down simply so she could wave and properly acknowledge the crowds of people around her.

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“Makisi” (2023) Mokoomba [Zimbabwe]
Mokoomba is a Zimbabwe-based band that draws on Zimbabwean and Ethiopian influences in their music. Rather than summarize the meaning of this song for these artists, I will quote the group’s description of the meaning for this tune here:
“Every year there is a ceremony "Lukumbi" that brings together the Luvale people and other guests. Everyone including the chief and his deputies, some government officials and of course, the village beauties join this week of celebration. It's a huge feast; there is ululation and there is dancing performed by young masked male dancers "Makishi" (or Makisi) in Ngangela language and by girls who would have undergone the "Wali" initiation ceremony. For the first time in history the MAKISI masquerade and dancers are featured in a music video. MAKISI is a sacred culture and tradition of the Luval people along the Zambezi River in Zimbabwe and Zambia.” (https://youtu.be/nj2wLjrUKJA?si=cCmWkzrkMOpPUzxO).

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“Barbaras Rhabarberbar” (Barbara’s Rhubab Bar) (2023) [Germany]
This German tongue-twister became a viral hit song when musical comedians Bodo Wartke and Marti Fischer uploaded their rapped version of it to Tiktok in 2023. The song is about a woman from a small village named Barbara whose Rhubarb cakes are so tasty she opens a bar, where three bearded barbarians and their barber (who drinks beer) become regulars. The rhyme apparently comes from a tradition of German one-word tongue-twister games. This one culminates in Rhabarberbarbarabarbarbarenbartbarbierbier (Rhubarb Barbara Bar Barbarians' Beard Barber Beer) according to Stefan Drege’s 2024 article for DW (linked here).

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“فلكلور فلسطيني - ياظريف” (Ya Zareef/ Don’t Leave!) (2006) El-Funoun Folkloric Popular Dance Troupe [Palestine]
This recording is by one of the most famous Palestinian folkloric dance troupes, El-Funoun, and represents one of their many recordings of dabke, a popular and nationalistic dance and music indigenous to the Arabic-speaking nations of the Levant area (which principally includes Palestine, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon). While the subject of this song isn’t necessarily joyful (it is a plea for a man to not leave his homeland), the dance form itself features prominently in many Palestinian, Lebanese, Jordanian, and Syrian celebrations.

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“Dil Zaberne Khasene” (Silver Wedding) (1976) The Klezmorim [US]
This klezmer tune was recorded from one of the most influential Klezmer groups in the US Klezmer revival of the 1970s, “The Klezmorim” out of Berkeley, California. Klezmer is a rich tradition of Ashkenazi Jewish dance band music, with roots running centuries deep. It became globally popularized through the revival in the 1970s, which re-valorized the music as an expression of young Jewish identity both in the US and, eventually, in many other parts of the world.