Today’s playlist includes Liberian Hipco (Teddy Ride), Afrobeats (Rema), pop tunes from Zimbabwe (Jah Prayzah) and South Africa (Sho Madjozi), Franco-Algerian rock (Rachid Taha) and Ethiopian indie (Dawit Cherent). There’s also some classic 90s flavor in here (Sally Nyolo, Ali Farka Touré). The big news is the tragic death of Alphonse Ousman "Hama" Sankaré. The Malian percussionist was one of the pioneering architects of the desert blues sound. His playing defined the genre and is heard on many of its seminal recordings including the Grammy award-winning album Talking Timbuktu. Hama was a friend to VOA and today’s feature includes soundbytes from his time with Heather Maxwell in the studio plus an interview with his manager and longtime friend, Chris Nolan of Clermont Records. Song of the Week is Ghanaian dancehall tune "African Party" by Stonebwoy and out of Nairobi reporter Bill Odidi brings us a beautiful interview with young, Kenyan singer/songwriter Olivia Ambani.