tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post113465694775125818..comments2024-03-19T07:48:54.021-06:00Comments on Gus Van Horn: Protecting French at the Expense of the FrenchGus Van Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05126749051688217781noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-1135206864571670572005-12-21T17:14:00.000-06:002005-12-21T17:14:00.000-06:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-1134685624117031682005-12-15T16:27:00.000-06:002005-12-15T16:27:00.000-06:00Yo, Gus, that bit about the French radio law is so...Yo, Gus, that bit about the French radio law is something I've come across before, though from the other side of it, you might say. The restriction really cut into the album sales of many of the leading African pop singers from such countries as Mali, Senegal, and the Congo; the singers are francophone (coming from former French colonies) but most of their songs are in their native languages. They are superstars in their home countries and throughout west Africa, but a tidy bit of their market was among their countrymen resident in France (especially Paris), who would hear the latest hits on the radio, buy their albums, and provide venues for concerts. (And quite a few French youth liked it too, apparently.) And that's some good stuff--Salif Keita, Youssou N'Dour, Baaba Maal, Mansour Seck, Wasis Diop, Kanda Bongo Man, Papa Wemba, Franco, Koffi Olomide, and so on. As a result, many of the musicians have been trying to break into the American market (with limited success), and the French have been inundated with crap.Adrian Hesterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13394227341130065130noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-1134685369512047212005-12-15T16:22:00.000-06:002005-12-15T16:22:00.000-06:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Adrian Hesterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13394227341130065130noreply@blogger.com