The music of West Africa has a significant history, and its varied sounds reflect the wide range of influences from the area's regions and historical periods. Traditional West African music varies due to the regional separation of West Africa, yet it can be distinguished by two distinct categories: Islamic music and indigenous secular music. The widespread influence of Islam on culture in West Africa dates back to at least the 9th century, facilitated by the introduction of camels to trade routes between the North of Africa and West Africa. Islam-influenced West African music commonly includes the use of stringed instruments like the goje, while more secular traditional West African music incorporates greater use of drums such as the djembe. Contemporary styles of music in West Africa have been influenced by American music, African jazz and gospel music. The forced migration of Africans to the Americas as a result of the transatlantic slave trade gave rise to kaiso music, which has influenced the sounds of Calypso, a style with major popularity throughout West Africa. Griots, also known as 'wandering musicians', have traditionally been a major part in the distribution of music throughout West Africa, as their purpose is to spread oral tradition through musical storytelling. The role of griots remains significant in preserving smaller ethnolinguistic groups' cultures. Popular music The sounds of popular music throughout West Africa are comparable to a combination of Western, Latin American and traditional African music. Genres such as Highlife, Afro-Calypso and African Jazz reflect this fusion and have developed upon these styles' sounds. Highlife is an upbeat, multi-instrumental and jovial style of music which is sung in many regional languages including Igbo, Yoruba and Ewe. Ghanaian music scholar V. Kofi Agawu (2006) writes: "Highlife is invested with a bundle of attributes that include personal and communal pride, stateliness, self-satisfaction, and a strategic complacency". Highlife is rarely sung in English. The original form of highlife holds its origins in Ghana, however most regions that have adopted highlife music compose their own variations on its sounds, altering the pace, instrumentation and lyrics. E.T. Mensah and E.K. Nyame were two Ghanaian musicians who pioneered the Highlife genre, gaining major popularity and acclaim throughout their careers. Highlife is regularly played by big bands composed of a wide variety of instruments. The prevalence of modern, typically European instruments in large highlife bands dates back to the 19th century; when the Gold