TELL A STORY, UNITE A PEOPLE

In the past, griots served as storytellers and historians for their community. Now we can see that the role of the griot is changing. With more access to technology and social media in Africa, oral history is rapidly losing relevance. A challenge to preserving oral history is that traditional griots have not been given the opportunity to keep up with modern developments.

However, many technological means have been made available for Africans to preserve their tradition through new forms of storytelling. One trend is digital storytelling, which has grown tremendously in Africa during recent years. Digital storytelling captures the oral history of an African tribe or family with podcasts, music, photos and videos, instead of relying on traditional verbal communication alone.

Griots have had a significant role in African culture for centuries and will continue to do so into the future. House of Talking Drums encourages everyone to become a modern griot learning to adapt to modern developments, sharing stories, proverbs and wisdom with their friends, families and within their communities.