The Grand Théâtre national Doudou Ndiaye Coumba Rose is set to officially open its doors next November. Initially scheduled for earlier, the inauguration ceremony was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Now, the new director of the site, Serigne Fall Guèye, is fully mobilized to organize an event worthy of the legacy left by the famous Senegalese drum major.
The festivities will mark a vibrant tribute to Doudou Ndiaye Coumba Rose, considered a key figure in traditional Senegalese music. His children, themselves talented musicians, will actively participate in the ceremony, as confirmed by one of his heirs, Mor Coumba Ndiaye Rose.
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However, this cultural celebration is accompanied by a major family challenge. “During his lifetime, Doudou Ndiaye Coumba Rose had declared all his works. However, today, his family still cannot get their hands on his royalties and copyrights,” revealed Mor Coumba in an interview with the newspaper L’Observateur (Saturday, August 31). A problem that has persisted since the artist’s death in 2015, leaving a void that is difficult to fill among his vast descendants.
The crux of the matter lies in the lack of consensus among the heirs to designate a single beneficiary. With his 42 children and a descendant of between 250 and 300 grandchildren, the management of the inheritance has proven complicated. The Senegalese Society of Copyright and Neighboring Rights (Sodav) thus finds itself unable to pay the deceased’s royalties, freezing the funds for the time being pending a family resolution.
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Despite tensions that have eased between the descendants, the situation remains complex. Mor Coumba Ndiaye Rose calls on the authorities to intervene to put in place a framework that will allow for adequate management of royalties. “As the old man left behind many children and women, it is necessary to find a guarantor with whom the authorities will work for the payment of royalties,” he proposed.
Doudou Ndiaye Coumba Rose’s artistic legacy continues to inspire and be exploited by public and private institutions, often in collaboration with his accomplice Julien Juga. Mor Coumba has also announced a book project on the life and work of his father, with the aim of preserving his memory and introducing new generations to the richness of his musical repertoire.
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