Johannesburg – Five-time GRAMMY-winning global icon Angélique Kidjo has released “Bando [Orchestral] (feat. Pharrell Williams & Quavo),” a sweeping new rendition of the standout from her acclaimed album HOPE!!, alongside an official music video starring Kidjo, Pharrell Williams and Quavo.
The release arrives just weeks before Kidjo returns to South Africa for two performances at the Standard Bank Joy of Jazz in Johannesburg on September 25 and 26.
Local audiences will experience one of Africa’s most celebrated global artists live during an extraordinary year in her four-decade career.
The “Bando” visual was directed by acclaimed filmmaker Paul Hunter, whose legendary music video catalogue includes The Notorious B.I.G.’s “Hypnotize,” Mariah Carey’s “Honey,” D’Angelo’s “Untitled (How Does It Feel)” and Michael Jackson’s “You Rock My World.”
Produced by Pharrell Williams, the new version expands the original “Bando” with the soaring sounds of Voices of Fire, the gospel choir founded by Pharrell’s uncle Bishop Ezekiel Williams, and the full force of L’Orchestre du Pont Neuf, the Paris-based orchestra led by composer and conductor Thomas Roussel.
The result transforms the song’s recurring declaration, “We’ll survive,” into an even more powerful collective anthem of resilience, possibility and joy.
Seeking to spotlight the vitality of the communities that inspired the song, Kidjo, Williams and Quavo filmed the video for “Bando” with director Paul Hunter in La Grande Borne, a public-housing project in Grigny, in the suburbs of Paris.
Even as a historic heat wave swept through the area, residents filled the streets and danced for hours, embodying what Kidjo views as a much-needed counter-narrative to rampant stereotypes.
“Most of the time, people only talk about the pain and the struggle of people in the projects, but there’s also pride and joy and celebration,” she says.
“When we made the video the whole community came out, and you could feel how proud they were to be seen and recognised.
“Even in the crazy heat, the kids were so happy and so hopeful. I hope that the song will do them justice, and lift them up even more.”
Director Paul Hunter says, “The visual world of ‘Bando’ is rooted in culture and community”.
Hunter adds, “I was moved by the song and inspired to explore the world it evokes beyond the music itself.
“The most powerful moments came from observing people simply being together, seeing the younger generation supported by those who came before them, and capturing those natural moments of connection.
“The goal was to create an experience that felt lived-in and honest, while honoring the culture and people who give the song its meaning.”
The song “Bando” takes its title from a term for an abandoned house.
However, the song looks beyond a physical place to the lives and creativity that exist within communities shaped by poverty and inequality.
At its core is Kidjo’s conviction that where someone begins should never dictate where they are able to go.
“So much of the art that we love comes from people who created something out of nothing,” says Kidjo.
“When you have so little, making art becomes a way to have agency and protect your humanity.
“It proves that you have something of value to share with the world.”
The track marks the latest evolution of a creative relationship between Kidjo and Pharrell that stretches back nearly two decades.
The two first met in 2007 during a visit to Pharrell’s Miami studio and reconnected years later at Grace For The World, the historic concert in Vatican City’s St. Peter’s Square.
After hearing Kidjo perform Celia Cruz’s “La Vida Es Un Carnaval” during soundcheck, Pharrell approached her about writing music together.
Within weeks, they were creating at his Paris studio in the Louis Vuitton offices.
The orchestral arrangement then made its debut earlier this summer as the finale of Louis Vuitton’s Spring-Summer 2027 Men’s Show in Paris, where Pharrell serves as Men’s Creative Director.
Pharrell ultimately wrote and produced three songs for HOPE!!, with “Bando” becoming one of the defining collaborations of the project.
The collaboration is one of many across the new album, her first full-length following the GRAMMY-winning Mother Nature.
Dedicated to her late mother, Yvonne, the album explores grief, resilience, love, joy and the sustaining power of hope, and features Pharrell Williams, Quavo, Ayra Starr, Davido, Nile Rodgers, Charlie Wilson, IZA, PJ Morton and more.
The release arrives amid an extraordinary run for Kidjo.
Just last week, she made history as the first African musician and first Black African to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, with Willem Dafoe and Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. joining her for the August 18 ceremony.
Hollywood also officially declared the date “Angélique Kidjo Day.”
Days later, Kidjo returned to New York to headline SummerStage in Central Park.
Now, South African audiences are next.
Kidjo will take the stage at the Standard Bank Joy of Jazz in Johannesburg on September 25 and 26, bringing her unmistakable voice, expansive catalogue and four decades of boundary-crossing artistry to one of the continent’s premier jazz festivals.
STREAM / ORDER HOPE!!
