Gokh-bi System

Gokh-bi, which means "Neighborhood," was formed in 1994 in Pikine, Guinaw Rail (the other side of the tracks), an impoverished suburb of Dakar, Senegal. The members of the band represent three different ethnic groups—the Jola, the Serer and the Wolof peoples of Senegal. Friends and brothers living in the ghetto, they discovered hip-hop and identified with the music's themes of poverty, inequality and injustice.

Started as a rap group backed by synthetic beats, the band's music has evolved into a spirited blend of traditional Senegal music, hip-hop, funk and soul with themes centering on peace, love and justice.

Since their first U.S. visit in 1999, this Senegalese hip-hop crew has exposed tens of thousands of American schoolchildren to African music and dance through performances and workshops. They have also performed live with Angelique Kidjo, Damien Marley, Michael Franti (Spearhead), Culture, Toni Blackman, The Lost Poets, and Toots & the Maytals, among others. —Courtesy Calabash Music