{"id":7062,"date":"2026-09-06T14:11:17","date_gmt":"2026-09-06T12:11:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/?p=190837"},"modified":"2026-09-06T14:11:17","modified_gmt":"2026-09-06T12:11:17","slug":"angelique-kidjo-unveils-new-music-video-for-bando-feat-pharrell-williams-quavo-ahead-of-johannesburg-performances","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/angelique-kidjo-unveils-new-music-video-for-bando-feat-pharrell-williams-quavo-ahead-of-johannesburg-performances\/","title":{"rendered":"Ang\u00e9lique Kidjo Unveils New Music Video for \u201cBando\u201d Feat. Pharrell Williams &amp; Quavo Ahead of Johannesburg Performances"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Entertainment_FQI-scaled.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\"><\/div>\n<ul>\n<li>Pharrell-Produced Reimagining of Kidjo\u2019s HOPE!! Standout Expands Original with Voices of Fire and 50-Member Orchestra<\/li>\n<li>Global Icon Set to Perform at Standard Bank Joy of Jazz in Johannesburg on September 25 and 26<\/li>\n<li>Directed by Paul Hunter (Notorious B.I.G., Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson) and Filmed in Grigny, France<\/li>\n<li>Follows Kidjo\u2019s Historic Hollywood Walk of Fame Honor<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Five-time GRAMMY-winning global icon Ang\u00e9lique Kidjo today releases \u201cBando [Orchestral] (feat. Pharrell Williams &amp; Quavo),\u201d a sweeping new rendition of the standout from her acclaimed album HOPE!!, alongside an official music video starring Kidjo, Pharrell Williams and Quavo.<\/p>\n<p>The release arrives just weeks before Kidjo returns to South Africa for two performances at the Standard Bank Joy of Jazz in Johannesburg on September 25 and 26, giving local audiences the opportunity to experience one of Africa\u2019s most celebrated global artists live during an extraordinary year in her four-decade career.<\/p>\n<p>The \u201cBando\u201d visual was directed by acclaimed filmmaker Paul Hunter, whose legendary music video catalogue includes The Notorious B.I.G.\u2019s \u201cHypnotize,\u201d Mariah Carey\u2019s \u201cHoney,\u201d D\u2019Angelo\u2019s \u201cUntitled (How Does It Feel)\u201d and Michael Jackson\u2019s \u201cYou Rock My World.\u201d Produced by Pharrell Williams, the new version expands the original \u201cBando\u201d with the soaring sounds of Voices of Fire, the gospel choir founded by Pharrell\u2019s uncle Bishop Ezekiel Williams, and the full force of L\u2019Orchestre du Pont Neuf, the Paris-based orchestra led by composer and conductor Thomas Roussel. The result transforms the song\u2019s recurring declaration, \u201cWe\u2019ll survive,\u201d into an even more powerful collective anthem of resilience, possibility and joy.<\/p>\n<p>Seeking to spotlight the vitality of the communities that inspired the song, Kidjo, Williams and Quavo filmed the video for \u201cBando\u201d with director Paul Hunter in La Grande Borne, a public-housing project in Grigny, in the suburbs of Paris. Even as a historic heat wave swept through the area, residents filled the streets and danced for hours, embodying what Kidjo views as a much-needed counter-narrative to rampant stereotypes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMost of the time, people only talk about the pain and the struggle of people in the projects, but there\u2019s also pride and joy and celebration,\u201d she says. \u201cWhen we made the video the whole community came out, and you could feel how proud they were to be seen and recognized. Even in the crazy heat, the kids were so happy and so hopeful. I hope that the song will do them justice, and lift them up even more.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe visual world of \u2018Bando\u2019 is rooted in culture and community,\u201d says director Paul Hunter. \u201cI was moved by the song and inspired to explore the world it evokes beyond the music itself. The most powerful moments came from observing people simply being together, seeing the younger generation supported by those who came before them, and capturing those natural moments of connection. The goal was to create an experience that felt lived-in and honest, while honoring the culture and people who give the song its meaning.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBando\u201d takes its title from a term for an abandoned house, but the song looks beyond a physical place to the lives and creativity that exist within communities shaped by poverty and inequality. At its core is Kidjo\u2019s conviction that where someone begins should never dictate where they are able to go.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo much of the art that we love comes from people who created something out of nothing,\u201d says Kidjo. \u201cWhen you have so little, making art becomes a way to have agency and protect your humanity. It proves that you have something of value to share with the world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>WATCH \u201cBANDO\u201d VIDEO<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Ang\u00e9lique Kidjo - Bando feat. Pharrell Williams and Quavo (Official Music Video)\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/TdLN4uqTJL4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" class=\"lazyload\" data-load-mode=\"0\">[embedded content]<\/iframe><br \/>https:\/\/angeliquekidjo1.lnk.to\/bandoorchestralAW<\/p>\n<p>The track marks the latest evolution of a creative relationship between Kidjo and Pharrell that stretches back nearly two decades. The two first met in 2007 during a visit to Pharrell\u2019s Miami studio and reconnected years later at Grace For The World, the historic concert in Vatican City\u2019s St. Peter\u2019s Square. After hearing Kidjo perform Celia Cruz\u2019s \u201cLa Vida Es Un Carnaval\u201d during soundcheck, Pharrell approached her about writing music together. Within weeks, they were creating at his Paris studio in the Louis Vuitton offices. The orchestral arrangement then made its debut earlier this summer as the finale of Louis Vuitton\u2019s Spring-Summer 2027 Men\u2019s Show in Paris, where Pharrell serves as Men\u2019s Creative Director.<\/p>\n<p>Pharrell ultimately wrote and produced three songs for HOPE!!, with \u201cBando\u201d becoming one of the defining collaborations of the project. The collaboration is one of many across the new album, her first full-length following the GRAMMY-winning Mother Nature. Dedicated to her late mother, Yvonne, the album explores grief, resilience, love, joy and the sustaining power of hope, and features Pharrell Williams, Quavo, Ayra Starr, Davido, Nile Rodgers, Charlie Wilson, IZA, PJ Morton and more.<\/p>\n<p>The release arrives amid an extraordinary run for Kidjo. Just last week, she made history as the first African musician and first Black African to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, with Willem Dafoe and Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. joining her for the August 18 ceremony. Hollywood also officially declared the date \u201cAng\u00e9lique Kidjo Day.\u201d Days later, Kidjo returned to New York to headline SummerStage in Central Park.<\/p>\n<p>Now, South African audiences are next. Kidjo will take the stage at the Standard Bank Joy of Jazz in Johannesburg on September 25 and 26, bringing her unmistakable voice, expansive catalogue and four decades of boundary-crossing artistry to one of the continent\u2019s premier jazz festivals.<\/p>\n<p>STREAM \/ ORDER HOPE!!<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/angeliquekidjo1.lnk.to\/hopeAW<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/contact\/featured\/\">CLICK HERE to submit your press release to MyPR.co.za<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Author<\/strong>: entertainment entertainment from <strong>Entertainment<strong> on behalf of <strong>music<\/strong>.<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n<p> <strong><\/p>\n<h3>Track Your Press Release HERE:<\/h3>\n<p><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"mypr-visibility-box\" readability=\"4.2608695652174\">\n<h4>Check Online Visibility<\/h4>\n<p>Verify where this release is currently indexed:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"entry-pagination pagination\">Pages: <span class=\"post-page-numbers current\" aria-current=\"page\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Page <\/span>1<\/span> <a href=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/angelique-kidjo-unveils-new-music-video-for-bando-feat-pharrell-williams-quavo-ahead-of-johannesburg-performances\/2\/\" class=\"post-page-numbers\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Page <\/span>2<\/a><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/angelique-kidjo-unveils-new-music-video-for-bando-feat-pharrell-williams-quavo-ahead-of-johannesburg-performances\/\" target=\"_blank\">CLICK HERE to Read the Original Press Release on MyPR<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pharrell-Produced Reimagining of Kidjo\u2019s HOPE!! Standout Expands Original with Voices of Fire and 50-Member Orchestra Global Icon Set to Perform at Standard Bank Joy of Jazz in Johannesburg on September 25 and 26 Directed by Paul Hunter (Notorious B.I.G., Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson) and Filmed in Grigny, France Follows Kidjo\u2019s Historic Hollywood Walk of Fame &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","autoblue_enabled":true,"autoblue_custom_message":"","autoblue_shares":[{"did":"did:plc:revymtt5qssww7e7avbruzic","date":"2026-09-06T16:04:13+00:00","uri":"at:\/\/did:plc:revymtt5qssww7e7avbruzic\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3muuenm2d6p2v","response":"{\"uri\":\"at:\/\/did:plc:revymtt5qssww7e7avbruzic\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3muuenm2d6p2v\",\"cid\":\"bafyreigm2oj7gdjgfzfke7w2jxpxnhmrzefrtbq3o6zlzonp55ybddiszi\",\"commit\":{\"cid\":\"bafyreigr6ozd4y4a5hlsdepn4zmorcoob4geqtmckxmqpdx35njyn2kc4e\",\"rev\":\"3muuenm2jzh2v\"},\"validationStatus\":\"valid\"}"}],"autoblue_post_url":"","autoblue_publish_document":false,"republication-tracker-tool-hide-widget":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[29],"class_list":["type-post","category-news","tag-mypr-africa","entry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7062","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7062"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7062\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7062"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7062"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypr.co.za\/mail\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7062"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}