La Boa
Meets Tony Allen

The late Afrobeat pioneer’s rhythms are brought into a new context by Bogotá’s La BOA (La Bogotá Orquesta Afrobeat), led by multi-instrumentalist and producer Daniel Michel, in an album that connects Allen’s sound to the heartbeat of Colombia’s capital.

Tony Allen, the legendary drummer and architect of Afrobeat, left behind a rhythmic legacy that transcends time and borders. Now, La BOA—La Bogotá Orquesta Afrobeat—breathes new life into his timeless beats with their latest album, La BOA Meets Tony Allen.

Built around Allen’s recordings from the Afrobeat Makers Series on the Parisian imprint Comet Records, the album reimagines Afrobeat’s Lagos roots through Bogotá’s rhythms and the restless creative energy of the Colombian capital.

The project began in New York, where Daniel Michel, La BOA’s creative director as well as producer and founder of Mambo Negro Records, met Eric Trosset, head of Comet Records and custodian of Tony Allen’s recordings, including those from the Afrobeat Makers Series. Fascinated by Michel’s decade-long journey of fusing Afrobeat with Colombian sounds, Trosset saw the potential for a groundbreaking collaboration.

“Tony Allen’s drumming has always been more than just rhythm—it’s a language. Working with his recordings felt like being in conversation with a master storyteller,” Michel explains. “Even though this project was posthumous, his energy and creativity were so alive in the tracks. It was an incredible privilege to honour his legacy while bringing his voice into a new dialogue with Colombia’s music.”

Michel’s Mambo Negro Records has been a cornerstone of Colombia’s underground music scene, championing Afro-Colombian and independent sounds for over ten years. Under Michel’s direction, La BOA—already a decade into shaping Afrobeat through influences from cumbia, bullerengue, and Pacific coastal grooves—crafted an album that honours Allen’s artistry while embracing Bogotá’s creative identity as an Andean city rooted in tropical fusion.

Tony Allen’s beat forms the heart of the album, a canvas upon which La BOA paints their Afro-Colombian vision. Recorded over seven months, the process included sessions in studios, on tours, and even in a garden in the South of France, where Michel captured the album’s bullerengue-infused closing track, “Te Voy a Ver”, during a summer touring schedule that coincided with other Colombian artists, including members of fellow Bogotá group La Sonora Mazuren.

“Tony’s tracks weren’t always recorded to a strict click, which meant listening closely and adapting to his unique pocket—it’s like deciphering his artistic fingerprint,” Michel reflects. “We wanted the recording process to capture that same sense of fluidity and spontaneity.”

The album features La BOA’s regular lineup— Daniel Michel (bass, guitar, synthesizers), Diana Sanmiguel (percussion, vocals) David Cantoni (percussion) Andrés “Bongie” Giraldo (drums) and their horn section of Marco Fajardo (saxophone), Luis Alejandro Luque (trombone), and Carlos Tabares (trumpet)—alongside additional contributions from León Pardo (trumpet), José Miguel Vega (trombone), Cuban trombonist Hugo Ayanegui, and Marcos Diaz (tenor saxophone). Cristrombón, a Colombian trombonist with Lyon’s Kumbia Boruka, delivers a deep, resonant solo on “Tarifa Plena”, while guitarist Juan David Lacorazza adds intricate, textured lines to “Tambor”, complementing Allen’s rhythm. Adding to the album’s depth are standout contributions from Tumaco’s Bejuco, whose music draws on the traditions of Colombia’s Pacific coast, and Bogotá-based emcee N. Hardem.

Bejuco infuses “Cuento” with rhythms steeped in the cultural heritage of Colombia’s Pacific coast, layering salsa-tinged elements that lock seamlessly into Allen’s drum patterns. Recorded in Tumaco and mastered at Mambo Negro in Bogotá, their collaboration channels Afrobeat’s ethos of rhythm as resistance, delivering a pointed critique of inequality and the stark divide between privilege and working-class neighbourhoods.

On “Tarifa Plena”, N. Hardem bridges Afrobeat with Bogotá’s hip-hop scene through sharp, introspective lyricism. His verses flow over dark, atmospheric tones, lending the track an edge that underscores the album’s cross-genre dynamism.

La BOA Meets Tony Allen feels like a destined chapter in the band’s journey—a natural evolution that stays true to Tony’s beat and the essence of Afrobeat. At the same time, it’s a powerful reflection of Bogotá’sfusive spirit, bringing Afrobeat’s adaptability into dialogue with the city’s restless creativity.