Bassekou Kouyate is the leading proponent of the Malian ngoni, a lute-like instrument found throughout West Africa.
Having collaborated with a number of Western musicians, including U2 and Carlos Santana, Kouyate is one of the world's most visible African artists. He first found fame alongside kora virtuoso Toumani Diabate in the celebrated Symmetric Trio. Part of Taj Mahal and Diabate's 'Kulanjan' project, he was also one of the key musicians on Ali Farka Toure's posthumous album Savane. This remarkable musician has now put together his own band, Ngoni ba, Mali's very first quartet to feature this ancient griot instrument. Fusing blues-driven grooves and jazz tinged flights of lyrical fancy with sweet vocal harmonies and hypnotic rhythms, this is the new sound of Africa - deeply rooted in a timeless musical tradition yet strikingly contemporary.
'There's a delicious sound to this record, whose warm, cohesive textures linger in the mind long after it finishes, luring the listener to go and play it again ... Remarkable.' Observer Music Monthly
'A genius, living proof that the blues comes from the region of Segu.' Taj Mahal
'Bassekou Kouyate is widely regarded as the next African musician with the potential to attract a global audience' The Sunday Times