: dance music of west African origin that combines syncopated African rhythms with elements of jazz
Examples of highlife in a Sentence
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Butterss’ double-bass throbs ground the music in chamber-jazz austerity; later, Bellerose shifts into slack, funky drummer mode, as Parker’s guitar takes on a muted highlife gait, then morphs into concentric ripples of distortion that psychedelicize your mind.
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Dave Segal, SPIN, 15 May 2026
Rema isn’t the only star soundtracking raves this season, as Amaarae honors dance music from the Black diaspora by borrowing from her native Ghanaian highlife, Brazilian baile funk, Jersey club and more for her third studio album Black Star.
—Heran Mamo, Billboard, 29 Aug. 2025
Afrobeats can be thought of as modern Nigerian and Ghanaian pop that employs local styles like highlife or fuji, some signature polyrhythmic drum patterns, and often other Black music like hip-hop, R&B, and dancehall.
—Mankaprr Conteh, Rolling Stone, 14 Mar. 2025
At 90, the Ghanaian highlife pioneer Ebo Taylor finds a new voice.
—Sopan Deb, New York Times, 22 Jan. 2025
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Dave Segal, SPIN, 15 May 2026
Rema isn’t the only star soundtracking raves this season, as Amaarae honors dance music from the Black diaspora by borrowing from her native Ghanaian highlife, Brazilian baile funk, Jersey club and more for her third studio album Black Star.
—Heran Mamo, Billboard, 29 Aug. 2025
Afrobeats can be thought of as modern Nigerian and Ghanaian pop that employs local styles like highlife or fuji, some signature polyrhythmic drum patterns, and often other Black music like hip-hop, R&B, and dancehall.
—Mankaprr Conteh, Rolling Stone, 14 Mar. 2025
At 90, the Ghanaian highlife pioneer Ebo Taylor finds a new voice.
—Sopan Deb, New York Times, 22 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for highlife
Cite this Entry
“Highlife.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/highlife. Accessed 23 May. 2026.
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