DOGO DU TOGO

“A vibrant, psychedelic journey filled with brass, retro synths and hard-hitting Afro-rock beats"★★★★★
Songlines

Emerging from Lomé, Togo , Dogo du Togo & The Alagaa Beat Band is a collective of top Togolese musicians led by Massama Dogo, aka Dogo du Togo, who are putting Togolese music on the map by blending psychedelic rock and afrobeat into a genre-defying sound Dogo calls the "Alagaa Beat."

Combining Togolese festive and ritual rhythms, hypnotic voodoo melodies, and lyrics that speak to a new generation of young Africans with a message that resonates globally, Dogo du Togo & The Alagaa Beat Band embodies the heart and soul of modern Togo in its music.

The Alagaa beat (Alagaa means trance in Ewe) and Dogo's melodies are anchored in Togo’s rich cultural history, based on traditional rhythms and unique pentatonic scales known as Mina or Mami, derived from the music of the local Vodún religion and traditions that permeate everyday life in Togo.

Dogo du Togo was born in the capital city of Lomé and was drawn to music early on, learning from elder musicians and playing in various bands as a teenager. In 2000, he moved to the United States, landing in Washington, D.C. where he founded the successful Afro-pop band Elikeh.

In 2017, Dogo began splitting his time between DC and his homeland, digging deeper into its musical traditions and reconnecting with the local music scene. There, he recorded his first solo album, Dogo du Togo, released 2022 and topping radio charts at home and attracting critical acclaim in Europe and the U.S. For his latest album, 2024’s Avoudé, Dogo assembled the Alagaa Beat Band, recruiting old friends with whom he grew up playing music on the streets of Lomé.

Both on record and in their electrifying live performances, Dogo du Togo and the Alagaa Beat Band have a sound that is undeniably Togolese, steeped in the history of the country while announcing to the world that Togo has something to say.

$20
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