In the next week or so, we will be adding interviews with Chico César (Brazil), Jorge Nasser (Uruguay) and Aterciopelados (Colombia) to our series “Music for Human Rights.” In each case we have outreached to the artists for more photos and contacts and had to do plenty of research after the actual interviewing, to make them all good television journalism. We received wonderful photos from Jorge of his rock n’ roll days complete with Telecaster, and Chico sent us a heartwarming family photo. And while one doesn’t always relish the research, sometimes it is an enriching experience all its own; looking up “Uruguayan Dictatorship,” “Landless Movement” and “Escopitarra” I found myself drawn into the multitude of Latin American historic and contemporary issues. (And the picture just gets bigger with each lead). Perhaps the most intense vector involved our interview with Emmanuel Jal, who had such an electrifying part in our “Price of Silence” video. As a Sudanese child soldier seeking refuge from the horrors of war, he was singled out by Emma McCune, a young British aid worker, who was responsible for putting him on the path to a better future. Googling her name, she emerged as a figure of extreme controversy, and in my outreach to find photos of this mysterious person I was put in touch with her mother Maggie. Not only did Maggie send me extraordinary photos of her late daughter, but she sent me a book she had written about her own journey to find herself within her daughter’s death. It’s fascinating reading, and I feel as if I now know some truths that no amount of info-surfing could ever yield.  I love this job!

This week President Barack Obama will be sworn in as our leader, and many of us will be glued to our sets, while pinching ourselves that this is all really happening. One of the surest harbingers of change is a musical one: Samba Mapangala and his stateside band Virunga will be playing not on some peripheral stage but for the invitation-only black-tie gala "Africa on the Potomac: The Pan-African Inaugural Celebration of President Barack Obama." The President's paternal grandmother will be attendance. While it is true that such familiar faces and voices as Youssou N'Dour and Angelique Kidjo will also be performing at other inaugural festivities in DC, it is heartwarming to know that Mapangala who is not nearly as well known will be bringing his singular blend of Nairobi rumba n' soukous to such a high profile setting. Maybe it will help to spread the word about this fabulous, light-hearted party music.

Several wonderful music documentaries will be making their last appearance on the channel in the next few weeks, and among my favorites showing this week is “Amadou and Mariam Live at la Gout D'Or.”  We don’t generally show full concerts, but this one had such great energy coming from both the stage and the audience, and the entire neighborhood, for that matter, that we bucked our own directive and licensed it. The band is tight, and the songs are simple, but catchy. No wonder Manu Chao decided to produce the blind couple's CD, as these elements are similar to his own music. Not only is the performance great, but you get to see one of Paris' most ethnically colorful neighborhoods, as both North and West Africans make La Gout D'Or their home.

Another great film that will be bidding us adieu soon is Jupiter's Dance.  If you haven't seen it yet, make a point to check it out in the next few weeks, and you'll hear some of the wonderfully sweet singing that Congo is famous for.

Our Best Video Finds of 2008 is playing this week, and I hope you'll check it out.   I think it's our most entertaining ever. The concept videos were really solid (from the bizarre deconstructions of SoCalled to the deliciously kitsch animated collages of Bombay Deewana) and the performances were terrific too-- who can forget the wonderfully tight harmonica quartet Svang?  Did you even KNOW that there was such a thing as a bass harmonica-- and how HUGE it is? I've often said that music is the Good News in the world, and as the various rumblings in world news reached a roar this past year, these colorful, positive statements provided us with a bit of relief.  And I'm already thinking about our next "Best of" collection for 2009!  For my part, I think that "Green Grass" by Cibelle and "Tangaroa, God of the Sea" by Tiki Taane are real contenders.  But feel free to chime in, dear viewers!

Our Music and Cultural Mini-pledge has been extended to the end of January.  If you've already made a donation, we thank you.  If not, please consider making one soon!