Magic System

Magic System
Magic System during the opening ceremony of the 15th Anoumabo Urban Music Festival, in April 2023.
Background information
Origin	Abidjan, Ivory Coast
Genres	Zouglou, Coupé-décalé
Years active	1996–present
Labels	EMI (2003–2013) Virgin Records (2002–2006) Rec. 118 (2016–2017) Warner Music (2013–2020) Universal Music (since 2021)
Members	A'Salfo Manadja Tino Goudé
Past members	Didier "Pépito" Deigna
Website	www.magic-system.fr

Magic System is an Ivorian zouglou and coupé-décalé music group, formed in 1996 in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. When it was created, the group was composed of friends, the best known of whom today are A'Salfo, Goude, Tino and Manadja. The sounds drawn from zouglou ignited the African scene for more than a decade. Their songs are also used to denounce unhappiness and all forms of abuse in Ivorian society. They developed a reputation for high-energy live shows. However, dissensions arise within the group, which breaks up and gives birth to the group as it is known today with the four "magicians".

The music group is famous for its performance of festive theme songs, their biggest hits are the singles "Premier Gaou" (2002), "Un gaou à Oran" (2004), "Bouger Bouger" (2005), "C cho ça brûle" (2006), "Zouglou Dance" (2007), "Même pas fatigué !!!" (2009), "Ambiance à l'africaine" (2011), "Chérie coco" (2011) and "Magic in the Air" (2014). In 2024, their song, "Akwaba" was chosen as the anthem for the soccer tournament La Coupe Afrique des Nations and also won Manie Musicale.

Personal Bios of the Members

Salif Traoré, better known by his stage name A'salfo, is an Ivorian artist, songwriter, and an important member of the Ivorian band Magic System. He is also a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador and the founder of the Anoumanbo Music Festival. A'salfo developed a passion for music early in life, inspired by his older brother, a guitarist. In the late 1990s, he co-founded the group Magic System with three other musicians. The band gained widespread recognition with the release of their hit song Premier Gaou, which marked a turning point in their career.

History

The group originates from Abidjan, Ivory Coast, and has more than 50 members, called "magicians". The current members are part of the original group: A'Salfo (Salif Traoré), Goude, Tino (Étienne Boué Bi) and Manadja (Adama Fany). The current group is also made up of four other people who draw inspiration from the zouglou movement, an Ivorian cultural expression combining music and dance used by young people to address problems and ills in society. Divisions arose within the group from its beginnings, due to its large size and the presence of two main singers: Camso and A'Salfo. Camso and two other members decided to create the group "Les marabouts", which enjoyed considerable success in West Africa and within the African community in Europe.

Starting in 1996, the four magicians performed at local parties and events throughout the Ivory Coast. It was not until 1997 that their first album Papitou was released with the single "Momo", which was a commercial failure. They nevertheless persisted and recorded their second album, Premier Gaou, which was released two years later in Ivory Coast. Despite its local success, the group encountered difficulties obtaining distribution in France, as no label initially showed interest in producing the title.

The album is entirely financed by Ephrem Youkpo, journalist/radio and TV host (initiator of La Nuit du zouglou in 1998 in France and since then boss of the x-pol music label). Convinced of the potential of the project presented by Tony Adams, Youkpo took charge of financing the album. Faced with the refusal of the major record companies to distribute the album, Ephrem Youkpo decided to entrust the distribution of Premier Gaou to Sonima upon its release in January 2000. Also in 2000 the group was then invited to open for Bisso Na Bisso, a group of Congolese rappers led by Passi. In 2001, the third album, Poisson d'avril, had mixed success. The following year, the remix of "Premier Gaou" by Bob Sinclar relaunched the title dating from 1999 and introduced the group to the French public. Under this impetus, Magic System successively released three other albums: Un Gaou à Paris (2003), Petit Pompier (2005) and Cessa kié la vérité (2005).

On 2 April 2012, the group released its first best-of album, D'Abidjan à Paris, with the new unreleased single "Tango Tango". On 19 May 2014, the opus Africainement Vôtre was released, containing the hit "Magic in the Air", produced by RedOne in collaboration with Chawki, whose clip has several hundred million views. On 13 June 2014, the group Bana C4 performed a cover of the song "Premier Gaou", with Magic System which appears in the clip. Singer K-Reen contributes backing vocals to the song. The album Radio Afrika was released on 29 June 2015. On 1 May 2016, Didier Bonaventure Deigna, drummer and backing vocalist of the group, drowned in Jacqueville (Ivory Coast) while trying to rescue a person. On 16 June 2017, Magic System released a new album entitled Ya Foye. In 2018, the song "Magic in the Air" became the anthem of the France national team during the 2018 FIFA World Cup, performed in the stadium with each goal of the Blues. At the end of 2020, the group left Parlophone and Warner to sign with the new label Universal Music Africa, with the aim of releasing a new album Envolée zougloutique on 21 June 2021.

Discography

Studio albums

Year	Album	Peak chart positions			Certifications (sales thresholds)
		BEL (Fl)	BEL (Wa)	FRA
1996	Papitou	—	—	—
1999	Premier Gaou	—	—	19
2001	Poisson d'Avril	—	—	—
2003	Un gaou à Paris	—	—	73
2005	Cessa kiè la vérité	—	55	13
2007	Ki Dit Mié	—	—	25	SNEP: Gold
2007 A	Zesa Ke
2007 B	Fo Dil AZ
2007 CSF	Hara Kie
2007 TN	Aada Kak
2007 MKG	Hoseresden
2008	Zerhasa U Paris
2011	Toutè Kalé	—	35	7	SNEP: Platinum
2012	D'Abidjan à Paris	—	29	16	SNEP: Gold
2014	Africainement vôtre	185	21	11	SNEP: Gold
2015	Radio Afrika	—	74	25
2017	Ya foye	—	113	122

Singles

Year	Single	Peak chart positions								Certifications (sales thresholds)	Album
		BEL (Fl)	BEL (Wa) Ultratop	BEL (Wa) Ultratip	FRA	GER	NED	POL	SWI
1997	"Momo"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—		Papitou
2001	"1er Gaou"	—	10	—	4	—	—	—	30	SNEP: Gold	1er Gaou
2003	"Amoulanga"	—	—	—	94	—	—	—	—
	"Un gaou à Paris"	—	—	—	58	—	—	—	—		Un gaou à Paris
2004	"Un gaou à Oran" (with 113 & Mohamed Lamine)	—	3	—	9	—	65	—	29		Cessa kiè la vérité
2005	"Bouger Bouger" (featuring Mokobé)	—	9	—	7	—	—	—	38	SNEP: Gold
2006	"C'chô, ça brûle" (with Akil, Cheb Bilal & Big Ali)	—	—	2*	4	—	—	—	—	SNEP: Gold	Single only
2007	"Ki dit mié"	—	—	2*	8	—	—	—	96		Ki dit mié
	"On va samizé" (featuring Amine)	—	—	—	26	—	—	—	—
2008	"Zouglou Dance - Joie de vivre"	—	18	—	2	—	—	—	66
2009	"Même pas fatigué !!!" (with Khaled)	—	10	—	1	—	—	—	49		Liberté (Khaled album)
2010	"Ambiance à l'Africaine"	—	28	—	11	—	—	—	—		Toutè Kalé
2011	"Chérie Coco" (featuring Soprano)	—	11	—	2	—	—	—	69
	"La danse des magiciens"	—	27	—	36	—	—	—	—
	"Vas-y Molo" (feat Shaggy & Mohamed Allaoua)
2012	"Tango Tango"	—	—	12*	99	—	—	—	—
2013	"Mamadou"	—	—	17*	—	—	—	—	—
2014	"Magic in the Air" (featuring Chawki)	10	1	—	3	64	—	20	23		Africainement vôtre
	"Tu es fou"	—	46	—	30	—	—	—	—
2015	"Sweet Fanta Diallo (Adieu soleil)"	—	—	35	84	—	—	—	—
2017	"Ya foye"	—	—	—	122	—	—	—	—
	"All Around the World"	—	—	—	178	—	—	—	—
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

*Did not appear in the official Belgian Ultratop 50 charts, but rather in the bubbling under Ultratip charts.

Featured in

Year	Single	Peak chart positions				Certifications (sales thresholds)	Album
		BEL (Wa) Ultratop	BEL (Wa) Ultratip	FRA	SWI
2003	"On n'sait jaimais" (Leslie feat. Magic System & Sweety)	—	3*	8	22		Je suis et je resterai (Leslie album)
2020	"Quoi qu'il arrive" (Keen'V feat. Magic System)	—	—	—	—

*Did not appear in the official Belgian Ultratop 50 charts, but rather in the bubbling under Ultratip charts.

External links

• Magic System Official Myspace Website
• Magic System Official Website
• RFI Music.com (French, with audio samples)
• Feb 2005 interview (in French)
• Songs by Magic System translated into English