National Geographic Music (National Geographic)

Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour may be Africa's greatest living pop star. A multi-platinum selling Grammy-winner, N'dour is just as well-known these days for his philanthropic work alongside the likes of Bono and Bill Gates. And while he may not be a household name here in the States yet, a recently-released documentary film may change that very soon.

Directed by American filmmaker Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, I Bring What I Love tells the story of N'Dour's remarkable 2004 concept album, Egypt. A departure from his usual Afropop sound, Egypt was conceived as celebration of the peaceful, tolerant and creative side of Islam. A devout Muslim himself, N'Dour wanted to counter the negative, post-9/11 images of his religion, and he enlisted the help of Egyptian composer Fathy Salama and his orchestra to realize his vision. The resulting album was hailed as a triumph in Europe and the U.S. - but stirred up a surprising controversy at home, where local religious leaders didn't look kindly on N'Dour's unprecedented mixture of popular music and religious praise songs.

Five years in the making, Vasarhelyi's film deftly relates the story of Egypt and the toll it took on N'Dour and his family - while exploring the same themes of tolerance, respect and dialogue between the West and the Islamic world that were originally raised by the album. It's a winning, clear-eyed account of how music, religion and celebrity intersect in contemporary Africa - and a pretty good Youssou N'Dour biopic in the bargain.

Nat Geo Music caught up with both the singer and the filmaker while they were in New York for I Bring What I Love's theatrical release.

Nat Geo Music: How did I Bring What I Love come about? Did you initially set out to document the Egypt album?

Chai Vasarhelyi: Well when I initially set out to make a film, all I knew is that I wanted to make an uplifting film about Africa, to counter the negative stereotypes. So I was looking for a good story to tell, and when Youssou shared his Egypt project with me, I knew that I had found the story I was looking for.

When you recorded Egypt, it was to show the world how Islam is lived in Senegal - can you explain what that means to you?

Youssou N'Dour: My religion is very important to me. After 9/11 the image of Islam became [that of] a religion of terrorists and was [further] distorted by the terrorists themselves. But Muslim people are diverse and are not all the same. The majority are peaceful. There is a minority of extremists who cause damage. I'm glad that this album Egypt and the documentary I Bring What I Love show a realistic image of what Islam is in Africa.

Can you elaborate on the film's title - I Bring What I Love? What did you mean by this when you made the remark in the film?

Youssou N'Dour: It means I'm traveling all around the world with my music, and each time I bring back to Senegal what I learned, and go back on tour again with "what I love", meaning what I learned, digested, and then incorporated into my music... At the end of the day, I am who I am, I am a musician, I am a griot, I am a Muslim, and I am an activist, you can't separate these things, I have to be myself and at all times I bring what I love - as I say in the film, in Senegal on Friday many of us go to Mosque, but Friday night some of us go listen to music in the clubs. Love also has a special meaning for the album Egypt because I have loved the music of [Egyptian singer] Oum Kaltsoum for many years and was listening to her concerts on short wave radio when I was a young boy. [So] I brought this Egyptian vibe into my project.

What was your reaction to the negative reception that Egypt first received in Senegal? Were you angry? Hurt? Surprised? How did you come to terms with it?

Youssou N'Dour: I was a bit hurt because of the misunderstanding [surrounding] this album, but not angry. I've always believed in it and knew that over time, people would recognize and understand my intentions.

Chai Vasarhelyi: I was definitely taken by surprise. It happened while we were shooting the Egypt tour in Europe - where the project was very well received - and in the midst of this tour where the politics of religion and tolerance were very much in the foreground, we were confronted with this entirely different reaction from Youssou's home audience.

It's ironic that an album that was dedicated to a more tolerant, open vision of Islam was criticized by Islamic religious authorities. Were you consciously testing the boundaries between popular and sacred music when you decided to release Egypt during Ramadan?

Youssou N'Dour: Not really. I think the negative reactions came from the fact that this project was developed in secret. Part of the problem was that, before I released the album in Senegal, I went to Touba, the holy city, to shoot videos for those songs without informing the religious authorities of what we were doing. People there were shocked because they weren't used to hearing me sing about my religion, and rumors spread that Ii was in the Mosque with half naked women dancers, which of course was untrue. So, due to these misunderstandings a negative image of the album developed. But I always knew the truth and the real purpose of this album would be acknowledged later. Music is part of my life as is my faith, and Egypt is a spiritual album, combining both these important aspects of my life, that I can listen to during the holy month of Ramadan.

One thing that struck me was that none of Egypt's critics voiced their opinions on-camera in the film.

Chai Vasarhelyi: I know, and that still frustrates me to this day. I really wrestled with how to present this so it didn't appear one-sided, but it was impossible to get any of the critics to speak to me on the record. There was a lot of fear and self-censorship surrounding the record in Senegal. People were returning the cassettes to the vendors and the shops were refusing to sell them. When the television station pulled the commercial for the record it was act of self-censorship. The religious authorities in Touba have a lot of sway over the music business in Senegal, and that created a climate where nobody wanted to go on-record.

What is your relationship with the religious authorities in Touba like today? Do they appreciate what you were trying to do with Egypt now, five years later?

Youssou N'Dour: Yes, indeed! It changed as soon as they heard my intentions directly from me - and when the U.S. awarded me a Grammy for this album, they were thrilled that finally, Islam has been recognized abroad, in this positive way, especially in United States.

Did winning a Grammy improve the way Egypt was viewed in Senegal? Do you feel like you opened new doors and changed the relationship between religious music & popular music in Senegal?

Youssou N'Dour: I think so, yes. it proved that minds can change, opinions can evolve, and within periods of change, there is often crisis...

How do you feel about the album, now, 5 years after its original release?

Youssou N'Dour: I released it again in Senegal, 3 years ago, right after the Grammy, and everyone wanted it! I'm just glad that what I believed the album to be wasn't wrong, and that I kept my belief in my goal.

Was it difficult for you to give up your privacy and open your life to a documentary film crew?

Youssou N'Dour: At the beginning, yes, because I've never done that before, no journalist or TV crew has had access to my family, especially my children. but Chaï has been such a friend to all of my family that they told me "we're ok, we'll do it" and they opened up to her. She went to see them one by one to explain her project, and they all said yes!

Chai Vasarhelyi: Well, that's the whole thing about documentaries, they're all about access. The real turning point for me was how Youssou's family embraced me, and practically became my own family. I spent two years shooting in Senegal and they really were my family there. His family is very important to him, and he's very protective of them. But I think Youssou understood the importance of this, too. That I needed to look beyond his own life a little and see the impact that events had on those around him.

What did you think of the film overall? Are you happy with the final cut? Do you think it tells your story accurately?

Youssou N'Dour: I love the film! I discovered how I'm seen by others! I discovered scenes of my family talking about me, like my sister who was the head of my office, and how they lived the crisis from the inside... I'm also very touched by the scenes with my grandmother, who passed away before the film was finished and before she could see it, and these images with her will stay with me forever now... The film tells the story of my life during all the years with this album, it's not my current life, but it's part of it forever...