Elzo Jamdong

A Senegalese singer, songwriter, and rapper with a kinetic yet musical flow, Elzo Jamdong first found success with the rap collective Jamdong before embarking on a successful solo career in 2014 with the release of his debut, Free Dope. Born Elhadji Diallo in Dakar in the central district of Plateau, Diallo was raised in a musical home where his father's love of jazz and Cuban music helped lay the foundation for his versatile style. A huge fan of West Coast American rap, Diallo adopted the moniker Free E (in honor of N.W.A's Eazy-E). He founded the Jamdong collective in 2006 and released a pair of well-received mixtapes, Red Alert and Gold Medal, in 2009 and 2012, respectively. Rapping and singing in his native Wolof, as well as French and English, Elzo Jamdong issued his first solo project, Free Dope, in 2014, followed closely by Freeseason in 2015. After touring for two years, both at home and in France, in support of the latter two efforts, he issued his first international effort, Freengdom, which combined elements of hip-hop, Afro-pop, and assiko. He built on that momentum in 2018 with the arrival of Macina, which included the hit single "Sai Sai," and again in 2019 with the release of Freeseason 2. The following year saw him unveil the one-off track "Bad Boy," a summery anthem that he billed as the sequel to "Sai Sai." ~ James Christopher Monger