The practice and politics of hybrid soundscapes in Muziki wa Injili in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Abstract

This article examines the practice and politics of music hybridization in Muziki wa Injili (Gospel Music) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. It shows that music hybridization in Muziki wa Injili takes place when musical sounds from one music culture travel through a number of cultural frontiers including temporal, spatial and genre-defined frontiers and enter into another music culture. In this process the travelling sounds are transformed as they encounter other sounds commonly used in the new music culture. The article argues that it is through these transformations or reconfigurations that the travelling sounds from other cultures are able to enter into the culture of Muziki wa Injili. By focussing on the politics of music hybridity, the article shows that music hybrids subvert the nativistic efforts to do away with ‘foreign music’ – which includes Western, Congolese and South African music.