JACOB DESVARIEUX, AN ICON OF WORLD CULTURES IS GONE! Chronicle of Emmanuel ARGO
Zouk is a musical genre created by Kassav that can now be found on Wikipedia. In 2019, the group Kassav celebrated its 40th anniversary to a sold-out crowd in one of the largest European venues in Paris-La Défense Aréna, a fine consecration of a deserved worldwide success. Like other celebrities, the group also performed at the Stade de France. Through Kassav, the true meeting of the French overseas territories took place, just like the sports teams which in their composition unite a majority of overseas people who wear the colours of France which wins.
Its co-creator, Jacob Desvarieux, has just left us and we will not fail to pay tribute to him here: for his talent as a musician, for his will and that of his companions to make people accept the original character of a music without frontiers where various cultures converge, in particular those of the French Antilles, the Caribbean, Africa, the Indian Ocean...be, Africa, the Indian Ocean..., an added value to the image of France that promotes living together, federates the overseas territories and highlights our cultural diversity throughout the world: from Pointe à Pitre to Fort de France, from Cayenne to Saint Denis, Paris, Marseille, from Washington to Toronto via Rio, from Lomé to Douala via Dakar, Ouagadougou , from Johannesburg to Luanda and Maputo, from Moscow to Tokyo or Shangaï via Brussels, Lisbon, Montreux, Rome and in other capitals of the world. During my travels and representation missions, in accents and languages as different as each other, I heard that people spoke of Kassav, Zouk and Jacob Desvarieux and if the words in CreThe lyrics were difficult to pronounce in some languages, but the melodies were perfectly memorized, interpreted and appreciated. Thousands of Kassav fans are therefore in mourning. The West Indies have had an excellent ambassador of their musical wealth and from an economic point of view, the internationally renowned group Kassav weighed in on the financial side of the music industry for almost forty years.
Jacob Desvarieux recently opened up about his health, which is probably what has made him more fragile in the context of the Covid 19 pandemic.
Born in Paris of a Martinique mother 65 years ago, in the 70's, like all of us ultramarines living in metropolitan France, he was part of the "négropolitains" or "neghagonnaux". Given his talent but also his personal aura, he has, in my opinion, entered the circle of Negro-Evolutionists* like all those whose black skin colour and origin have not been an obstacle but an asset to succeed. Through his unprecedented planetary scansion of "Zouk la sé sél médikaman nou ni" with his group, he will have consoled, given hope, made dance and vibrate thousands of people around the world. This is why, within the framework of the Decade of People of African Descent 2015-2024 decided by the United Nations, I offer my support to the group Kassav for the creation of an international institute of Zouk. Furthermore, I propose that Zouk, like Gros KA, be recognized as Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO, which will confirm its universal character to the nations of the world while paying tribute to Jacob Desvarieux.
_____________________________
Author of the concept of NegroEvolution, created for a living together wherever we are, following the example of diasporas and expatriates from other nations who contribute to the economic and societal development of the world.Thus, it is as a representative of Afro-descendant diasporas around the world that Emmanuel Argo, in 2006, was appointed General Rapporteur of the World Conference on Human Rights.In 2006, Emmanuel Argo was the General Rapporteur of the G8 Civil Conference chaired by Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Also on behalf of this diaspora, Emmanuel Argo has received the support of Lech Walesa, Nobel Peace Prize winner, and Pope Francis for his universal action in favour of the remittances.
