'Enough is enough! I am both black and white.'

At the time of Zap Mama’s first album release, the BBC filmed a documentary about the group for the Rhythms of the World series that was broadcast on BBC2. In addition to the musical aspects, the documentary also focussed on the issue of mixed-race, which has become the cornerstone of the concept of Zap Mama.

The group members who were interviewed showed a remarkable insight into the issues surrounding the concept of a mixed-race identity, especially given that as a country Belgium had experienced black immigration much later than France or England.

They spoke of the difficulties that their parents had faced as mixed-race couples and about the need within a mixed-race relationship to accept cultural differences, even though there are some cultural aspects that people of different races will never understand.

The group members also stressed that the parents of mixed-race children need to be fully aware of their children’s dual racial and cultural backgrounds. Failure to recognise that both sides of the child’s identity need to be nurtured and developed will only result in confusion and frustration and it will take much longer for the child to find his or her true identity.

The mixed-race members of the group were in complete agreement that it is always other people who make judgements about mixed-race individuals and draw the distinction between mixed-race people and members of their own race. Either out of jealousy or rejection, mixed-race people are accused of being too white, not black enough or not white enough, but there comes a time when the mixed-raced individual has to say, 'Enough is enough! I am both black and white.'

Time Magazine once described Marie Daulne as a 'one-woman multicultural movement'. Needless to say, Zap Mama is clearly her project. She is at one the group’s musical researcher, principal songwriter, arranger, choreographer and spokesperson.

Over the last few years, Marie has been working on material for her next album and touring with her new initiative the Zap Mama DJ Project, as well as with the full band. Much of her time has been spent in the United States, where she has been giving lectures and performances at U.S. universities accompanied by her sister, Anita.

Marie says that she particularly feels at home in New York City, a place where everyone originates from somewhere else. From her own perspective, New York is therefore a place where it is easier for the mixed-race individual to relate to the average person in the street. Another reason for her spending so much time in the United States is that Marie has developed a love affair with U.S. hip-hop. The musical transition which started around the time of the Seven album is continuing and collaboration with hip-hop musicians is likely to play an important part in her future projects. This musical transition has been largely pragmatic, allowing her to reach a wider audience and at the same time shed the world music image, which Marie considers to be an attempt to categorise her music away from the mainstream. By merging the sounds of hip-hop with African traditional music she aims to bring Africa and the urbanised western world together to share intellectual and social concerns. In so doing, she is merely extending her vision of being a bridge between two cultures to another level.

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