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#katebush #babooshka #afropop SPOTIFY: ADANGO: LINKTREE: Produced and Mixed: DJ Trotsky Vocals: Adango Additional Production: Chris Houston/Implied Music Video Editor/Graphics: Ariel Levitan Global-citizen, LA-based producer DJ Trotsky and universally-minded, Cameroon-based singer, Adango reimagine Kate Bush’s single “Babooshka.” “When you sing your song, you sing your soul. You sing because it’s how you exist in the world—at least, that’s what I believe,” shares universally-minded, Cameroon-based singer, composer, and performer Adango Salicia Zulu. The fierce and free-spirited artist isn’t contained by genres, cultures, or expectations. “I’m weird,” she says matter-of-factly. “I do things my own way.” Case in point: Adango’s first worldwide release will be a collaboration with globe-trotting, LA-based producer and songwriter DJ Trotsky on a reimagining of Kate Bush’s 1980 quirky single, “Babooshka.” The twosome drastically transforms the song with Trotsky’s sleekly modern production and Adango’s stunning vocals. “When I started the track, I was hoping to have it be some reflection of her African roots, but no one ever knows where the magic will start or where it will end. The global influence of our time kept coming and morphing, and this 1980s electro-pop version just came forth,” Trotsky shares. Trotsky tosses out the original version’s stodgy piano-based instrumentation in favor of a prismatic electro-pop approach. Through Trotsky’s POV, the reimagined track is lushly layered with delicate ambience, grimy textures, and stuttering beats that kick some swagger into the song’s waltz-like groove. For her part, Adango brings forth the desperation and the desire inherent in the narrative of a wife testing her husband's loyalty through sending him letters as a younger woman named “Babooshka.” Adango’s multi-dimensional vocals sweep skyward from sensual, bluesy phrasing to operatic heights of soaring emotionality. “What she says in the song is universal—every woman on the planet has felt that way,” Adango says. It’s a timely cover as Kate Bush is experiencing a renaissance via her song “Running Up That Hill” being prominently placed in Stranger Things; her nomination for the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame class of 2023; and the renewed interest in all things 1980s. Covering “Babooshka” could seem like a savvy move for a new artist, but Adango isn’t the type of person to chase trends—she had been working on a version of the song independent from the Kate Bush cultural hubbub. “I did not expect this cover song to be part of our conversation, but the timing seemed right in light of the new spotlight on Kate Bush’s artistry,” Trotsky says. Adango’s self-chosen name is a tribute to a feminization of the bold biblical presence of Adam. She is part of the vibrant urban music scene in Cameroon, and a member of the “HipHop développé” Collective. Adango sings and raps in her soulful voice about everyday life in sub-Saharan Africa, using various languages such as Bassa, French, and Pidgin, as well as onomatopoeia, to convey a nonverbal poetic atmosphere of her condition, her wishes, her joys, and the rhythm of life. She is inspired by traditional African female artists as well as Zambian singer-rapper Sampa The Great, and American artists such as Tracy Chapman and Macy Gray. “I like women who sing like they drink wine and whiskey 24 hours a day,” Adango says with a laugh. At present, Adango is working on her first solo album. DJ Trotsky is a global citizen born David Brownstein who works with pop artists, developing pop artists, and world-music artists. His chosen moniker is a playful shout out to the Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky and his Jewish roots. He’s lived many lives, including being a Grammy-nominated music video producer and internationally-recognized career coach. As a solo artist and producer, Trotsky continues to release new electronic tracks from hard-hitting, electro dance music to calm, atmospheric ambient meditation music. To date, Trotsky has released three albums as an artist of vibrantly-varied electronic pop produced and recorded all over the world. ###
