Eusbe Jaojoby - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

7/29/15, 9:48 PM

Eusbe Jaojoby
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Eusbe Jaojoby (born 29 July 1955), commonly known

by his surname Jaojoby, is a composer and singer of
salegy, a musical style of northwestern Madagascar.
Critics consider him to be one of the originators of the
modern salegy style that emerged in the 1970s, and credit
him with transforming the genre from an obscure regional
musical tradition into one of national and international
popularity. Jaojoby also contributed to the creation of two
salegy subgenres, malessa and baoenjy. Jaojoby has been
called the most popular singer in Madagascar and the
Indian Ocean islands, and is widely referred to as the
"King of Salegy". His success has earned him such honors
as Artist of the Year in Madagascar for two consecutive
years (19981999) and the role of Goodwill Ambassador
for the United Nations Population Fund in 1999.
In 1972 Jaojoby began singing in the northern coastal
town of Diego-Suarez. He performed with bands that
were experimentally blending American soul and funk
with the Malagasy musical traditions of the region. The
artist gained popularity and toured regionally, producing
four singles with The Players before the band broke up in
1979. After a short break in the 1980s to pursue a career
in journalism, Jaojoby resumed his musical career and
rose to national prominence with his 1988 hit "Samy
Mandeha Samy Mitady." He then reoriented his career
toward music, recording his first full-length album in
1992 and becoming a full-time professional musician the
following year. He has since released eight full-length
albums and has toured extensively in Madagascar and
abroad accompanied by his wife and adult children, who
perform in the band with him.

Eusbe Jaojoby

Jaojoby outside Le Bus nightclub in Antananarivo,

1999
Background information
Born

29 July 1955
Anboahangibe, Madagascar

Genres

Salegy

Instruments

Voice (tenor)

Years active

1972present

Associated
acts

Los Matadores, The Players,

Kintana

Contents
1 Early years
2 King of Salegy
3 Style and legacy
4 Family and personal life
5 Discography
6 Bibliography
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7 See also
8 References

Early years
Eusbe Jaojoby was born on 29 July 1955, in the village of Anboahangibe, near Sambava in the northeastern
coastal Sava Region of Madagascar. Jaojoby and his twelve younger brothers and sisters were raised
Catholic, and early experiences singing hymns in the local church choir[1] and traditional folk songs[2] at
local Betsimisaraka[3] moonlight village festivals made him realize he possessed vocal talent. At the age of
15, Jaojoby's father sent him to continue his studies in Diego-Suarez, one of the six regional capitals at the
time. The town was home to a large contingent of French soldiers and expatriates, and contemporary
Western genres were commonly heard on the radio and in the town's many nightclubs.[2] Jaojoby was
inspired by these styles and particularly by Freddy Ranarison, who in the 1960s became the first Malagasy
musician to use an electric guitar to perform coastal musical styles.[4]
One month after moving to Diego-Suarez, Jaojoby entered a local talent competition and managed to win
despite singing unaccompanied and without a microphone. He began to perform in nightclubs whenever the
opportunity presented itself. The uncle with whom he was lodging sent word of Jaojoby's activities to the
young singer's parents, who consulted a priest before giving their son permission to continue exploring his
musical talents on the condition that he continue to perform well at school.[1] Jaojoby agreed to this
provision, studying during the day and performing at night for several years.[2] In 1972 he began singing
with Los Matadores, the well-established house band of the Saigonais nightclub in Diego-Suarez. This group
catered to the club's primarily Western clientele by performing cover songs and rhythm and blues
compositions in French and English, occasionally incorporating traditional instruments like kabosy and
drums,[4] or experimenting with local musical styles using electric guitar, bass and drum kit, accompanied
by traditional Malagasy language vocal performance.[1]
Experimental blending of Western and Malagasy musical
Tsaikijoby
elements was occurring simultaneously among a number
0:00
MENU
of northwestern bands and musicians of Jaojoby's
One of four early Jaojoby songs
generation. Although no single individual can be credited
recorded in the 1970s, performed by
with creating the modern salegy genre, Jaojoby ranks
Jaojoby and The Players (1976)
among the earliest originators of the nascent musical
style. A desire for greater freedom to write songs and
Problems playing this file? See media help.
further develop the syncretic modern salegy style led
Jaojoby to leave Los Matadores in 1975 for The Players, another regional band that was less wellestablished but more willing to take risks. The band was managed by a Chinese shopkeeper who provided
them with a sound system and generator. The band toured northwestern Madagascar for the next four years
with increasing success, recording two 45rpm singles and performing in Mahajanga, Diego-Suarez and other
towns and villages throughout the region before disbanding in 1979.[1]

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After briefly performing with a band named Kintana,[3] Jaojoby moved to Antananarivo where he studied
sociology for two years at the University of Antananarivo before accepting an offer to work for the national
radio station as a journalist at the end of 1980.[1] The following year, Jaojoby met the manager of the local
Hilton hotel by chance while the two were waiting together at a bus stop. Accepting the manager's invitation
to audition at the hotel's Papillon bar that same night, Jaojoby performed a cover of James Brown's "Sex
Machine".[3] The manager interrupted him mid-song to offer Jaojoby a contract to give regular evening
performances there with the Rabeson family, a popular jazz act.[4] For the next three years Jaojoby spent his
days at the national radio and his evenings singing at the Papillon[1] with the exception of a short interlude
in 1982 when he was sent to East Berlin to complete an advanced course at the International Institute of
Journalism.[3] Jaojoby was promoted to Director of the Regional Information Service in Diego-Suarez in
1984, necessitating his relocation back to the northwest coast and bringing his cabaret performances to an
end.[1]

King of Salegy
After several years having focused entirely on his career
with the Regional Information Service, Jaojoby was
approached in 1987 by Frenchman Pierre Henri Donat to
contribute several recordings to Madagascar's first salegy
compilation album, Les Grands Matres du Salegy
("Grand Masters of Salegy"). The runaway success of
one of the tracks he composed and performed, "Samy

Velono
0:00

MENU

Title track from Velono (1994)

Problems playing this file? See media help.

Mandeha Samy Mitady", elevated salegy from a regional genre to one of nationwide popularity,[2][5] leading
a newspaper to declare him the "King of Salegy". High demand for live performances led the singer to return
to Antananarivo in 1988 to form a band named "Jaojoby" that included former bandmates from Los
Matadores and The Players. Jaojoby begin touring regularly at home and abroad,[1] performing his first
international concerts in Paris in 1989.[2] In the meantime, he worked as a press attach for the Ministry of
Transport, Meteorology and Tourism from 1990 until 1993, at which point he left his job to become a fulltime musician.[1][5]
The 1992 release of Jaojoby's first full-length album, titled Salegy!, was facilitated by fRoots magazine
editor Ian Anderson, who had worked with Jaojoby to record several of his tracks for a radio broadcast two
years previously.[1] Jaojoby's second album, Velono, was the first salegy album to be recorded in France,[6]
as well as the first of his albums to be produced in a professional-quality recording studio.[7] Following the
1994 release of Velono, Jaojoby became a regular on the international music festival circuit[5] and has
performed at such events as WOMAD in Reading,[8] the Festival du Bout du Monde in Brittany, WOMEX
in Spain,[9] the Festival des Musiques Mtisses in Angoulme, the MASA Festival in Abidjan, and similar
events in Germany, the Netherlands and Portugal. Jaojoby's excitement over his rise to international
celebrity was attenuated by the 1995 death of the band's original drummer, Jean-Claude Djaonarana, who
had first performed with Jaojoby as a member of Los Matadores.[1]

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Jaojoby's success and popularity attained new heights in 1998 with the release of E! Tiako. He was named
"Artist of the Year" in Madagascar for two consecutive years
(19981999),[5] and the single "Malemilemy" received regular
airplay across the island more than a year after the album was

Jaojoby in concert wearing a traditional

lamba

released.[1] In July 1999, Jaojoby was named Goodwill

Ambassador to the United Nations Population Fund and
supported the United Nations' activities in Madagascar related to
raising awareness of sexually transmitted diseases, unintended
pregnancy and other concerns relevant to the Malagasy youth
population. The lyrics of his songs commonly address social
issues, typified by a track on E! Tiako that encourages the use of
condoms to avoid contracting HIV/AIDS.[5]
Aza Arianao was recorded over five days in the summer of 2000

and released the following year.[10] In the wake of its success, Jaojoby performed at a political rally to an
audience of 50,000 partisans of candidate Marc Ravalomanana less than a month before the divisive 2001
presidential elections[1] that nearly resulted in the secession of the island's coastal provinces.[11] Jaojoby's
2004 follow-up album Malagasy, which was recorded in semi-live conditions on the island of Runion[7] in
a small venue before an audience of the artist's friends,[12] featured lyrics that sought to promote optimism
and national reconciliation; the artist announced that he would not involve himself in national politics in the
future.[12] The same year he toured extensively in France, the United States and Canada.[1]
The March 2008 release of Donnant-Donnant celebrated Jaojoby's roots as a cabaret performer of soul, funk
and other Western popular genres.[1] The track listing included previously unreleased pop songs written by
the artist in the 1970s and 1980s in French, Malagasy, Creole and English. Later that year, in September, he
became the second Malagasy musical act (after supergroup Mahaleo, in 2007) to perform at the prestigious
and historic Olympia music hall in Paris.[9] Seating was specially removed at his request to provide space
for dancing.[13] The live album Live au Bato Fou: Jaojoby was released in 2010 and features a diverse
sampling of Jaojoby's greatest hits.[3] A selection of new salegy tracks written and performed by Jaojoby
was released in 2012 under the album title Mila Anao,[14] which was ranked by NPR as one of the ten best
international albums of the year.[15]

Style and legacy

The roots of
Jaojoby's
musical style
began with his
childhood
exposure to the
WesternMalagasy
syncretism of

[Jaojoby] dusted off salegy and freed it of its image as a primitive music that served only to relieve
peasants exhausted by their labors... The soul-tinted voice of Jaojoby, warm and powerful, sings
about love and life with the frankness typical of northerners, marked with ancestral wisdom and
popular philosophy. For the first time, one realizes that salegy can be really listened to and not just
inspire maniacal dancing. To the oubliettes with the minimalist "hard salegy" of the 1970s with its
three chords, drum solos and Farfisa organ! With Jaojoby, salegy passed from a marginal genre into
the ranks of essential culture, soon afterward imitated by a wave of others...
"Jaojoby : 30 ans de scne", Madagascar Tribune (October 12, 2000)[4]

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local church
hymns, and the rhythm, harmonies and form of the traditional antsa style of northern Madagascar. The antsa
is a choral style common across northern Madagascar characterized by large group performance of minor
polyharmonies over a highly syncopated multi-rhythmic hand-clap or other percussive accompaniment.[16]
Upon relocating to Diego-Suarez, Jaojoby was exposed to Western artists and musical genres,[2] as well as
the music of Freddy Ranarison, the first local artist to popularize the adaptation of traditional Malagasy
styles to the electric guitar.[4] Singing with Los Matadores provided Jaojoby with the opportunity to cover
the hits of his idols, including Otis Redding, Percy Sledge and James Brown. During his years performing
with this band and his subsequent group, Les Players, Jaojoby adeptly covered hits from a vast range of
regional and international genres ranging from the jerk, tango and cha-cha-cha to the sega and slow romantic
ballads. Together, these musical influences formed the basis of Jaojoby's style.[2]
In the 1960s bands such as Orchestra Liberty began performing the antsa rhythm on modern drum kits with
accompanying guitar or accordion replacing the traditional vocals. It was not until the 1970s that bands like
Los Matadores and Les Players adapted the traditional vocal style to the newly electrified antsa. Guitar solos
were inspired by the performance style of traditional Malagasy instruments like the valiha and marovany,
combined with that of guitar solo work popularized in the Congo and Cte d'Ivoire.[2] As a singer with Los
Matadores, Jaojoby occasionally filled the instrumental breaks of rhythm and blues covers with improvised
vocals inspired by the salegy tradition, to the jubilation of the young Malagasy listeners gathered outside the
club's doors.[3] Later, with The Players, Jaojoby and a handful of peers in northern urban areas experimented
with incorporating vocals into the early instrumental salegy. Jaojoby described the adaptation of the
traditional antsa style to modern instruments in the following terms: "The singing is that of the cattle herders
moving their herds. The guitar imitates the great masters of the valiha. The keyboards provide the feeling of
the traditional accordions, and the bass draws from the sound of the five traditional tuned drums. As far as
the drum kit, well, it reproduces the ambiance of a Malagasy crowd on a day of celebration with all the hand
clapping, shakers and feet stomping the earth." The salegy rhythm was adapted to the modern drum kit by
Jean Claude Djaonarana, drummer of Los Matadores, who later rejoined Jaojoby's band from 1988 until his
death in 1995.[3]
French world music magazine Mondomix has called Jaojoby the most popular singer in Madagascar and the
Indian Ocean islands.[7] He is widely referred to as the "King of Salegy" by his fans and the press.[1][16] He
composes all his own music and writes the lyrics to his songs himself.[5] According to Zomar magazine,
the quality of Jaojoby's "supple tenor" voice, the creativity of his compositions and the singer's willingness
to experiment have helped to distinguish him from his peers.[3] Radio France Internationale described his
vocal performance as "clear, powerful and energetic... his trademark, which makes him stand out in the
Madagascan musical panorama".[1] Critics have credited Jaojoby with popularizing the salegy genre both
within Madagascar and on the international music scene,[2][4][17] and have identified him as an originator of
two derivative versions of salegy, malessa and baoenjy.[4][18]

Family and personal life

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Since the mid-1990s, Jaojoby's wife and children have formed part of the standard lineup of his band. His
wife, Claudine Robert Zafinera, provides backing and occasional lead vocals. The couple's son, Elie Lucas,
plays lead guitar while their daughters, Eusebia and Roseliane, provide backing vocals and stage
dancing.[19] His children also formed a band called Jaojoby Jr. that performs covers of their father's music as
well as some of their own original salegy compositions.[2] Saramba, a group created by Claudine in
2005,[20] performs the traditional form of salegy using only accordion, percussion and vocals.[21]
While traveling to Antananarivo after a performance at the 2006 Donia Festival in Nosy Be, Jaojoby and his
family were involved in a road accident. The singer suffered four broken ribs, lung damage and a fractured
pelvis that necessitated emergency surgery in Runion, three weeks of hospitalization, and prolonged
physical therapy to enable Jaojoby to regain the ability to walk.[22] Fans of the singer used mail and internet
to successfully raise the funds required to cover medical expenses related to the accident. After several
weeks of bed rest following the surgery,[1] the artist went on to make a full recovery.[22]
On 3 June 2011, Jaojoby opened a new cabaret venue called "Jao's Pub" in the Ambohipo neighborhood of
Antananarivo,[20] where the singer and his family reside.[2]

Discography
Title[3][7][14]

Released

Label

Tracks (Length)

Tsaikijoby

1976

Discomad

2 (7'54")

Agny r

1978

Discomad

2 (6'57")

Salegy!

1992

Xenophile (1996 US)/Rogue (1992 UK) 10 (53'53")

Velono

1994

Indigo Label Bleu

11 (55'11")

E Tiako

1998

Indigo Label Bleu

11 (44'31")

Aza Arianao

2000

Indigo Label Bleu

12 (50'15")

Malagasy

2004

Discorama

12 (55'18")

Donnant-Donnant

2008

unknown

unknown

Live au Bato Fou: Jaojoby 2010

Discorama

12 (58'55")

Mila Anao

Buda Musique

14 (57'58")

2012

Bibliography
Anderson, Ian (2000). "Ocean Music from Southeast Africa". The Rough Guide to World Music, Vol.
1: Africa, Europe and the Middle East (http://books.google.com/books?
id=gyiTOcnb2yYC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false). London: Rough Guides.
ISBN 978-1-84353-551-5.
Auzias, Dominique; Labourdette, Jean-Paul (2007). Petit fut de Madagascar 2008-2009
(http://books.google.rw/books?id=lVDNQEXD5gAC&printsec=frontcover) (in French). Paris: Petit
Fut. ISBN 9782746919822.

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See also
Music of Madagascar

References

Wikimedia Commons has

media related to Jaojoby.

1. "Jaojoby: Biography" (http://www.webcitation.org/63ra9hRXI). RFI Musique. September 2008. Archived from the
original (http://www.rfimusic.com/artist/world-music/jaojoby/biography) on December 11, 2011. Retrieved
December 11, 2011.
2. Eyre, Banning (December 2011). "Jaojoby" (http://www.webcitation.org/63rank2ej). Afropop Worldwide. World
Music Production. Archived from the original (http://www.afropop.org/explore/band_info/ID/535/Jaojoby/) on
December 11, 2011. Retrieved December 11, 2011.
3. "Jaojoby Eusbe" (http://www.webcitation.org/63tN6ULFZ) (in French). Zomar. 2001. Archived from the original
(http://www.zomare.com/jaojoby.html) on December 12, 2011. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
4. Clerfeuille, Sylvie (May 7, 2007). "Eusebe Jaojoby" (http://www.webcitation.org/63tNK8qDH) (in French).
Afrisson. Archived from the original (http://www.afrisson.com/Eusebe-Jaojoby-395.html) on December 12, 2011.
Retrieved December 12, 2011.
5. Hansen, Ole Schack (1999). "Jaojoby: The King of Salegy and Goodwill ambassador of UNFPA Madagascar"
(http://www.webcitation.org/63wNQcxjl). United Nations Population Fund. Archived from the original
(http://takelaka.dts.mg/fnuap/article.htm) on December 14, 2011. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
6. Eyre, Banning. "Salegy" (http://www.webcitation.org/62ccCkUAj). Afropop.com. Archived from the original
(http://www.afropop.org/explore/style_info/ID/28/salegy/) on October 20, 2011. Retrieved October 10, 2010.
7. Mondomix (December 11, 2011). "Mondomix Music: Jaojoby" (http://www.webcitation.org/63rYD8NFF).
Mondomix Media. Archived from the original (http://mp3.mondomix.com/jaojoby) on December 11, 2011.
Retrieved December 11, 2011.
8. "WOMAD Lineup Finalized" (http://www.webcitation.org/64694g4J7). Virtual-Festivals.com Ltd. July 21, 2005.
Archived from the original (http://www.virtualfestivals.com/latest/news/2073) on December 21, 2011. Retrieved
December 21, 2011.
9. "Eusbe Jaojoby" (http://www.webcitation.org/63rYSgwwP). Jaojoby l'Olympia. Kanto Productions. December 11,
2011. Archived from the original (http://jaojobyolympia.kantoprod.com/index.php?
option=com_content&task=view&id=14&Itemid=28) on December 11, 2011. Retrieved December 11, 2011.
10. Lavaine, Bertrand (November 9, 2001). "Jaojoby: The king of salegy" (http://www.webcitation.org/646Lnuroz). RFI
Musique. Archived from the original (http://www.rfimusique.com/musiqueen/articles/060/article_6443.asp) on
December 11, 2011. Retrieved December 11, 2011.
11. "Madagascar: sortir du cycle de crises. Rapport Afrique N156"
(http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/africa/southern-africa/madagascar/156%20Madagascar%20%20sortir%20du%20cycle%20de%20crises.ashx) (in French). International Crisis Group. March 18, 2010. Retrieved
November 30, 2010.
12. Ren-Worms, Pierre (July 20, 2004). "Jaojoby at the Thau Festival: The King of Salegy in France"
(http://www.webcitation.org/646Lag4bE). RFI Musique. Archived from the original
(http://www.rfimusique.com/musiqueen/articles/060/article_7312.asp) on December 11, 2011. Retrieved
December 11, 2011.
13. Labesse, Patrick (September 19, 2008). "Jaojoby live in Paris: Funk, sega & salegy at the Olympia"
(http://www.webcitation.org/646LBQS5y). RFI Musique. Archived from the original
(http://www.rfimusique.com/musiqueen/articles/105/article_8102.asp) on December 11, 2011. Retrieved
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14. "Jaojoby: Le 7me album verra enfin le jour" (http://www.webcitation.org/649ATMcaS) (in French). Courrier de
Madagascar. June 4, 2011. Archived from the original (http://votemfm.com/mg/index.php?
option=com_content&view=article&id=14367:jaojoby--le-7eme-album-verra-enfin-le-jour&catid=37:culture) on
December 23, 2011. Retrieved December 23, 2011.

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15. Eyre, Banning (December 18, 2012). "Top 10 World Music Albums Of 2012"
(http://www.npr.org/sections/bestmusic2012/2012/12/22/167750238/top-10-world-music-albums-of-2012). National
Public Radio. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
16. Anderson (2000), pp. 523532
17. Auzias and Labourdette (2007), p. 524
18. Auzias and Labourdette (2007), p. 122
19. "Cranky Crow World, CD Review" (http://www.webcitation.org/649MMbTzy) (in French). Rock Paper Scissors.
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20. "Mad'Art Diego" (http://www.webcitation.org/649OI3ZRa) (in French). Runweb. Archived from the original
(http://reunion.runweb.com/date-13%2F3%2F2008-id_ev-3814-lang-FR-3V-agenda,MadArt-Diego-SaintDenis.htmle) on December 23, 2011. Retrieved December 23, 2011.
21. Rado, Maminirina (January 3, 2011). "Saint-Sylvestre 2010: Les artistes sauvent les meubles"
(http://www.webcitation.org/649N6qBCf). L'Express de Madagascar (in French) (Antananarivo). Archived from the
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22. Molinaro, Franck (June 23, 2006). "Chane de solidarit Jaojoby" (http://www.webcitation.org/646Jq0jbY).
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People from Sava Region
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