Young
musicians in African countries are creating a new kind of pop music. The tunes
and the rhythms of their music combine African traditions with various forms of
music popular today, such as hip-hop, rap, rock, jazz or reggae. The result is
music that may sound familiar to listeners anywhere in the world, but at the
same time is distinctly African. It is different also in another way- Many of
the songs are very serious and they deal with important social or political
issues in Africa today. Eric Wainaina is one of these African
musicians. He grew up in Nairobi, Kenya, in a family of musicians. As a
teenager, he listened to pop music from the United States, and later he moved to
Boston to study at the Berklee College of Music. Now he has produced a CD in
Kenya. Eric's most popular song, "Land of 'A Little Something' " is about
Kenya's problem of bribery, or paying others for illegal favors. He wants people
to listen to his songs and think about how to make Kenya a better place to
live. Another musician who writes serious songs is Witness
Mwaijaga from Tanzania. Her own experiences have helped her understand the
suffering of many African women. At the age of fifteen she lost her home, but
she was luckier than other homeless young people. She could make a living by
writing songs and singing on the street. By the time she was eighteen years old,
she had become a star. Her songs are written in rap or hip-hop style about the
problems that she sees in Tanzania, especially AIDS and the lack of rights for
women. Baaba Maal, from Senegal, also feels that pop music must
go beyond entertainment. He says that in Senegal, storytellers have always been
important people. In the past, they were the ones who kept the history of their
people alive. Baaba believes that songwriters now have a similar responsibility.
They must write about the world around them and help people understand how it
could be better. The words of his songs are important, in fact. They speak of
peace and cooperation among Africans, as well as the rights of women, love for
one's family, and saving the environment. One of South Africa's
most popular musicians is Brenda Fassie. She is sometimes compared to Madonna,
the American pop star, because she likes to shock people in her shows. But she
also likes to make people think. She became famous in the 1980s for her simple
pop songs against apartheid. Now that apartheid has ended, her songs are about
other issues in South African culture and life. To sing about these, she uses
local African languages and a new pop style called kwaito. In
recent years, people outside of Africa have also begun to listen to these young
musicians. Through music, the younger generation of Africans are connecting with
the rest of the world and, at the same time, influencing the rest of the
world.
单选题
This passage is about how African pop music is ______.
A. usually about love and romance
B. more serious than most pop music
C. popular with young people in Africa
D. mostly written just for entertainment
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】[解析] 由第一段最后一句可以得出答案,“It is different also in another way: Many of the songs are very serious and they deal with important social or political issues in Africa today.”故选B。
单选题
For people outside of Africa, African pop music is ______.
A. the same as other pop music
B. not usually very interesting
C. entirely strange to them
D. both familiar and different
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】[解析] 从第一段第三句可以得出答案,“The result is music that may sound familiar to listeners anywhere in the world, but at the same time is distinctly African.”故选D。
单选题
The musicians mentioned in this passage all ______.
A. write about serious problems
B. studied in the United States
C. lost their homes at a young age
D. write songs in a new pop style
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 总览全文可以得出结论。本文通篇都在讲有关社会和政治等严肃主题的音乐,故选A。
单选题
Eric Wainaina ______.
A. prefers to sing in English
B. listened to traditional music
C. studied music in Boston
D. performs only in the United States
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】[解析] 由第二段第三句可以得出答案,“he listened to pop music from the United States, and later he moved to Boston to study at the Berklee College of Music”,A、B、D项均有错误,故选C。
单选题
Witness Mwaijaga writes about the problems of women partly because
______.
A. she has had a difficult life herself
B. there are many problems in Tanzania
C. she has had an easy life herself
D. there are no other women singers
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 答案在第三段的第二句,“Her own experiences have helped her understand the suffering of many African women.”可见她是有亲身经历的,故选A。