🥁👨🏿🎶🇬🇵💃 In 1973, Eric Cosaque moved back to France for good. He had grown up in Guadeloupe, between Pointe-à-Pitre and Capesterre Belle-Eau, and from an early age had been rubbing shoulders with the gwoka, the tradition carried on by the groups of the time. He studied with Guy Conquet, with whom he sang. When he arrived in Paris, he set up Voltages 8 to keep the tradition alive in the capital, releasing the album Spécial Groska. The record was supported by seasoned drummers Daniel Losio, Henry Jacques-Edouard and Jean-Pierre Jerco, among others, and the few copies pressed were played over and over again at parties in Sarcelles and the West Indies. Titles such as Bataclan and Roger A Di Wha Wha became instant classics. Later in his career, Eric Cosaque successfully combined gwoka with jazz, funk and, more recently, hip hop. In 2020, Cosaque performed at Banlieues Bleues, opening for Casey and Sonny Troupé’s group Expéka, who are now also shaking up the gwoka tradition to anchor it in today’s music.
🥳🪩🎉🎤🎶 Attention event!! This album is the 500ᵉ record featured on this blog! I never thought I’d reach these heights, and now I’m thinking there must be a way to double it. Let’s get going!
