Family and Background

Viviane Ndour (born Viviane Chidid) is a Senegalese pop singer who is the former sister-in-law

Sister-in-law

A sister-in-law is the sister of one's spouse, the wife of one's sibling, or sometimes the wife of one's spouse's sibling...

 of Youssou N'Dour

Youssou N'Dour

Youssou N'Dour is a Senegalese singer, percussionist and occasional actor. In 2004, Rolling Stone described him as, in Senegal and much of Africa, "perhaps the most famous singer alive." He helped develop a style of popular music in Senegal, known in the Serer language as mbalax, a type of music...

. She is known by some as the "Queen of Mbalax

Mbalax

Mbalax is the national popular dance music of Senegal and The Gambia. Mbalax is a fusion of popular Western music and dance such as jazz, soul, Latin, and rock blended with sabar, the traditional drumming and dance music of Senegal...

." She has two children, a boy and a girl, with her ex husband Bouba Ndour.

Viviane was born in Senegal in one of the coastal cities near the Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

. Her music combines traditional Senegalese mbalax

Mbalax

Mbalax is the national popular dance music of Senegal and The Gambia. Mbalax is a fusion of popular Western music and dance such as jazz, soul, Latin, and rock blended with sabar, the traditional drumming and dance music of Senegal...

 music with elements of U.S. rap and R&B. She released her first album in 1999 and formed a group called Le Jolof Band in 2001. Most of her songs are in either English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 or Wolof

Wolof language

Wolof is a language spoken in Senegal, The Gambia, and Mauritania, and is the native language of the Wolof people. Like the neighbouring languages Serer and Fula, it belongs to the Atlantic branch of the Niger–Congo language family...

 though a few are in French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

, the official language of Senegal

Senegal

Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...

. She is Muslim.

Albums and Videos

As of 2009, Viviane currently had two albums actively selling on the market, in grocery stores and even in the shop in Senegal's airport. Those two albums were Bataclan Cafe (being the most recent) and Man Diarra which arrived in 2005.

Bataclan Cafe contains work recorded live in concert and her monster hit "Beggue Na Lenn" (meaning "love you all" in English) which she has a video for; receiving regular spins on Senegalese television in 2007. The hit single off the 2005 Man Diara album was "Kagna La Giss". In the song she sings vibrantly about missing her loved one, and dreaming and wishing of his return. Like many Wolof songs, and as tradition in music of the region, the song builds and builds to a climax and the final verse captures her giving shout-outs to various people. In 2010 she gained her first taste of international notoriety by doing a commercial for the Ritz cracker company where she can be heard singing her song "Ta Ta Viviane!"

Other Popular Songs And Videos

Other hit videos of her are tracks such as "Welcome to Africa" with Mokobe, and possibly her greatest achievement, "Cheri Boy" in which we find Viviane effortlessly blending hip-hop, R&B, Reggae, and traditional Senegalese sound all in one track. The beat of the song has a soft, smooth reggae feel, the chorus is sung R&B style, and the verses are 16 bar raps like American style hip-hop.

Relationship To American Music

A story that briefly details Vivianes relationship with American music is relayed by Likembe on his blog...

"It's said that the first time Viviane heard Aaliyah's "Are You That Somebody" she thought it was Americans copying Senegalese music. Her remake, "Goor Fit," featured on Entre Nous/Between Us/Ci Sunu Biir, proved to be one of her most memorable and popular songs, so naturally there had to be still another version, "Am Fit," from 2003's Fii Ak Fee (Jololi). I've always liked Aaliyah's original, but Viviane's versions take the song to transcendent new levels."

Live Shows

While some of her songs may borrow American styles, Viviane Ndour still stays true to her roots as a Senegalese artist. In her live shows, the songs do not follow the usual 3 to 5 minute formats of American songs. She usually has a live band, and the drum work is provided in traditional fashion as a dancer will make movements responding naturally to whatever changes in rhythm the drummer may decide to make. Unscripted, whenever Viviane decides, she will again return to the song, but much of it is separated with interaction/ad libs with the audience.

Albums:
Entre Nous/Between us/Ci sunu biir: 1999
Nature: 2001
Le Show: 2001
Tere Nelaw: 2002
Fii ak Fee: 2003
Viviane et Freres: 2004
Man Diarra: 2005
Bataclan Cafe: 2007
Wuyayooy:2010

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