"Spend enough time dancing to “Avoudé,” the stellar 2024 album from Dogo du Togo and the Alagaa Beat Band, and you might start pricing international flights. “Avoudé” is a rich, energizing collection of electrified dance tracks built from rhythms and melodies with deep Togolese roots." - THE WASHINGTON POST

The West African nation of Togo is a bit of a musical black box, long overshadowed by nearby musical powerhouses like Ghana, Nigeria, and Côte d’Ivoire. But Togo has an untapped wealth of music traditions, as well as a few breakout artists, including singers King Mensah and Bella Bellow. Singer and guitarist Serge Massama Dogo, aka Dogo du Togo, is the latest Togolese artist to bring his country’s musical traditions to international stages, mixing alagaa trance music with contemporary African pop sounds to fashion a distinctive sound rooted in Togolese music and ritual.

Dogo draws from a deep well of sounds from across Togo, including bobobo, kamou, and kpanlogo rhythms, melodies, and scales drawn from Vodun religious rituals and others. But the bedrock of his band’s sound is the driving alagaa rhythm, a dizzying dance between snare drum and rhythm guitar, modeled on gankogui kinka bells. Alagaa means “trance” in the Ewe language, and its driving, irresistible beat is transporting. “When you listen to this music, if you don’t get in a trance, then something’s wrong with you!” Dogo explains. “The alagaa beat brings the energy right away. As soon as you bring it in, it just feels different; it takes you somewhere else.”

Secret Planet Richmond is a DIY music production team that works to bring cutting-edge international roots-based artists to Richmond year round, not just at the Richmond Folk Festival.

With only 100 seats, shows at Révéler are intimate and immersive. A romantic venue with exquisite sound and dreamy vibes, Révéler offers a unique selection of cocktails, wines, beers, bubbles, and non-alcoholic beverages. Our kitchen delivers small plates crafted with care.

SHOW NOTES

LOCATION