Kambasemba originated in late 2005 when Ney Corte-Real met John Berry out in a village festival, where John's friend Haiki was performing with her sister El Shaday as a dancer. Ney was providing the percussion for this performance, and during an after-gig conversation John and Ney realised they had a common interest in latin music. Ney gave John a CD of an Angolan artist named Bonga, and asked him to call him if he liked it, which he did. the rest, shall we say, is history, with the lineup developing to the outfit now known as Kambasemba.
