The Caudan Arts Centre celebrated, for the second consecutive year, Kaya Day on August 10, the birthday of the King of Seggae, who was born in Roche-Bois in 1960. In keeping with the vision of its founders and the Kaya Estate, this event aims to restore this pillar of Mauritian culture its rightful place in the lives of Mauritians and beyond our borders… while respecting its rightful heirs. Dominique Bellier
Ras Ninin kicked off the Kaya celebrations with a major concert on July 25, where he performed his most iconic songs in his own unique style. For Kaya Day, Avneesh de Babani and the Kaya Estate are sharing the results of a long process of digitizing and archiving audio recordings, as well as collecting visual materials, press clippings, iconic posters, and more. On this day of remembrance, seggae music will be played all day long at the Caudan Arts Center, at Storë, and wherever possible, fostering connections, sharing, and raising awareness about the immense collection that has finally been brought together.
Current music distribution systems encourage the fragmentation of music collections, which, if left unchecked, will only benefit opportunists who post tracks online without the knowledge of the artists or rightsholders involved. Véronique Topize agrees that it was time to address the legacy left by the King of Seggae, having herself been preoccupied in the early years with investigating the causes of her husband’s still-unexplained death in a police cell in February 1999.
Babani tracked down all the online material so that the singer’s rightsholders would no longer be overlooked. He also consulted with the artist Henry Koombes, who had designed the entire visual identity for this music back then. Finally, it is also high time to explore and study the exceptional cultural phenomenon sparked by Kaya’s creations and philosophy…