So Jane Goodall and I were sitting on the beach having a whisky and discussing Tanzanian hip-hop when…well, that’s it.  That’s what we did.  I don’t really suppose my story needs much more than that (though I will continue nonetheless).  After many a meeting in which I was mostly ignored, I finally found myself sitting alone on a beach with Jane Goodall, just the two of us.  I was choking down my whisky—because when one drinks with Jane one drinks whisky—and bouncing around between pleasantries until we settled on a discussion of Bongo Flava.  Bongo is the nickname for Dar es Salaam and it translates from Swahili , roughly, as “wits”, because to survive in Dar you need quick thinking, I guess.  Thus Bongo Flava is the Tanzanian variety of rap/hip-hop that has grown up in the last decades, with its origins in Dar.  We hit upon this rather unlikely topic because it turns out that Jane was not the only celebrity in the park that day.  A bunch of famous Tanzanian rappers had arrived earlier that morning to shoot some video in the forest, reportedly as part of some upcoming music video.  Jane, in her wanderings, managed to run into them and had a conversation that went something like this.

 

Jane: “So you guys sing songs?”

 

Bongo Flava Musician: “Yes!  And, in addition to all the songs about holding hands with our girlfriend and having illegitimate children, we also have a song about Gombe and Mahale National Parks!”

 

Jane: “That’s very swell.  Maybe you could also write a song about conservation!”

 

Bongo Flava Musician:  “Maybe we can!”

 

Jane: “Do you know who Dave Matthews is?”

 

Bongo Flava Musician: (perhaps lying) “Oh, yes.”

 

Jane: “Well, he is a close personal friend of mine.  If your song is good, maybe he will sing it.”

 

Bongo Flava Musician instantly high-fives a neighboring Bongo Flava musician.

 

This might be a slight paraphrase of the conversation that took place, but since I wasn’t there to bear witness, I can only relate the story as it was told to me (more or less) by Jane.  I have tried to picture the sort of love-child song originating from a collaboration between a Tanzanian hip-hop artist and Dave Matthews, but mostly I just cringe.  That said, it must be awesome to be able to say with total confidence that my buddy Dave will sing your song if it doesn’t totally suck.  I mean, that’s power, right?

 

Anyway, Jane and I chatted a bit more, watching the sun set, until we were joined by others and the conversation swerved off into American politics and the general niftiness of boat travel.  Luckily, I have this stellar picture to document the occasion: