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Alhousseini Anivolla-Anewal

Alhousseini Anivolla-Anewal

Alhousseini Anivolla-Anewal
ANEWAL: Recording "Timchar" in Douala in 2025

ANEWAL: Recording "Timchar" in Douala in 2025

03:50
ANEWAL zum Afrika Fest 2022 @monamiweimar1999 (39)

ANEWAL zum Afrika Fest 2022 @monamiweimar1999 (39)

22:24
ANEWAL in Weimar/Germany

ANEWAL in Weimar/Germany

01:29
The Void - Leerstellen

The Void - Leerstellen

09:45

"Timchar breaks open the rigid genre boxes that often constrain African artists in Western markets. ANEWAL is not merely preserving nomadic traditions; he is actively expanding them, dragging the desert blues into urban recording studios and proving that musical dialogue across vast geographic divides yields breathtaking results."

Nine years after "Osas-it´s time!" and six years after "Afropentatonism", TIMCHAR bursts onto the scene with a fully reimagined sonic identity. The encounter with ANEWAL’s childhood hero, Sam Fan Thomas, ignited a musical spark that opened a completely new dimension for the experienced desert blues man:  Desert Blues collides with Makossa—raw, vibrant, and unlike anything heard before. This is the story behind the sound.

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“I remember watching Sam on Niger public TV, in black and white, and we all wanted to dance like him,” ANEWAL says. That memory became collaboration. Recorded at Studio Makassi, TIMCHAR blends ANEWAL’s grainy vocal, cyclical guitar lines and intimate performance with Sam Fan Thomas’s production and guest vocals. Additional sessions in Berlin with Tunde Agonglo extend the album’s human scale across continents.

The title TIMCHAR means “things that have gone.” Dedicated to ANEWAL’s mother and to the transmission of Tamashek culture, the album treats memory as something alive — moving through new rooms, new relationships and new rhythm.

“Desert blues has always been about connection,” ANEWAL reflects. “With Sam Fan Thomas, I found a new way to carry my story forward.”

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TIMCHAR continues Alhousseini’s long tradition of creative encounters — from Etran Finatawa to collaborations with Guy Buttery, Huun Huur Tu and Girum Mezmur — opening yet another chapter in a career defined by innovation, exchange and deep cultural roots. More information on: World Music Network UK

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Photo credits: Jean Molitor

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