Ibrahim Hesnawi Kesati (1980 / 2023)
In 1975, when a friend played a Bob Marley record to Ibrahim Hesnawi, the Libyan musician was deeply struck by what he heard. “I really liked this music,” Hesnawi recalls in the liner notes of a recently released compilation of his work. “It had a strong influence on me. Both its lyrics and its melody. And I decided that I wanted to incorporate it into my own music.” And that’s exactly what he did. Over the following years, Hesnawi released more than ten reggae albums, many of which feature lyrics in Libyan Arabic. Today, he is celebrated as the “Father of Libyan Reggae,” which is also the title of the aforementioned compilation. A particular highlight from his extensive catalog is "Kesati", which is today’s song:
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