Makossa music from Cameroon is characterized by infectious rhythms, lively dance beats, and soulful vocals, creating an energetic and celebratory performance style that engages audiences with vibrant enthusiasm.
A genre very similar to Soukous with a slight difference. In Makossa, there are more prominent use of brass instrument and a call and response performance style.
Makossa music is a very popular Cameroon’s music genre in the country’s post-independence musical pride. It bears similarity with soukous, but only that Makossa has more base and metal percussion. The word “Makossa” meaning “(I) dance” takes its origin —both name and form—from Kossa, a traditional dance in Douala, the coastal regions of Cameroon. The "kossa" dances of young Douala children, with its hand-clapping accompaniment, are the origins of the makossa style with significant influences of Jazz, d'Ambass boy (Ambass Bay), Latin music, Ghanaian highlife and Congolese Rhumba.
Makossa music features soulful and rhythmic singing styles, blending indigenous Cameroonian dialects with vibrant vocal expressions and lively instrumentation.
Makossa music often explores themes of love, celebration, social issues, and cultural pride, weaving diverse narratives into its rhythmic melodies.
The word “Makossa” meaning “(I) dance” takes its origin —both name and form—from Kossa, a traditional dance in Douala, the coastal regions of Cameroon. The "kossa" dances of young Douala children, with its hand-clapping accompaniment, are the origins of the makossa style with significant influences of Jazz, d'Ambass boy (Ambass Bay), Latin music, Ghanaian highlife and Congolese Rhumba. The founding father of the Makossa genre is said to be Emmanuel Nelle Eyoum, emerging in the 1960s, while talented saxophonist and songwriter, Manu Dibango, pioneered making the music genre a global item with his 1972 hit ‘Soul Makossa.’ One Makossa musician who has enjoyed a commercially successful career is Adolphe Claude Alexandre Moundi, professionally known as Petit Pays. He is said to be the most celebrated Cameroonian musician from the late 80s to the 2000s.
Makossa music's timbre is rich, blending rhythmic percussion, dynamic brass sections, and soulful vocals, creating a vibrant and textured sound.
Makossa music boasts lively beats, straightforward bars, syncopated rhythms, intricate melodic lines, and commonly follows a 4/4 time signature, creating a dynamic and infectious fusion of traditional and modern Cameroonian sounds.