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I thank Ciska Klooster for her help with graphics, Dolf Motz for providing several discographies, and
Rougui Barry for her help in translating the pages in French
I also thank those artists, record companies and individual visitors of Musiques d'Afrique who made suggestions and
provided information
Welcome to Musiques d'Afrique by Frank Bessem
|| The African Music guide at www.musiques-afrique.com ||
293 artists from 29 countries!
More than 2225 albums featured
Latest site update 27 July 2010
introduction
special links
African music... music of a continent. The diversity in styles
and the sheer infinite number of artists makes it impossible to be exhaustive. This is therefore
only a selection of musicians of some African countries (mainly Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire,
Guinea, Mali, Senegal and Congo). The selection is mainly based on what I like... You'll find
complete discographies, and concise biographies of the featured
artists and bands. The emphasis is on popular urban African music.
If you have any comments, corrections or new information to add, please let me know
Important notice: as Geocities Hosting closed
on 26 October 2009, the site has been relocated to a new domain http://www.musiques-afrique.com.
Normally, you have been automatically redirected to the new web address, but it will take some until
all servers and all search engines will be updated. Please add the new URL to your favorites.
The new hosting will render pages at a higher speed.
9-11-2009: Africa loses one of its prominent drummers, Valérie Lobé.
Lobé died during a concert in Konstanz, Germany on Friday 6 November 2009. The Cameroonian drummer played drums
for various artists and bands, and recorded on countless albums of not only Cameroonian, but also Congolese and West-African
artists. He can be seen as a true panafrican artist. May his soul rest in peace!
One of the best female Wassoulou singers from the South of Mali,
Coumba Sidibé, has passed away in New York on the 9th of May, 2009.
She sang with the Ensemble Instrumental du Mali in the 1970s, and started a solo career in the 1980s, and
recorded a few albums throughout the late 1980s and 1990s.
With her deep and earthy voice, her albums and stage performances were loved, although she never got the deserved level of
acclaim outside of Mali.
Gambian salsero Laba Sosseh,
a.k.a. la Voz Africana or El Maestro died
at the age of 64 in the early morning of 20 September 2007 in a Dakar clinic. He has been ill since a few years. Sosseh has sung
in the 1960s in the African Jazz Band, and in the 1960s and 1970s in the Star Band de Dakar of which he was one
of the founding fathers. He was one of the first to
receive an African Golden Record. More recently, he had worked with Africando.
Congolese star singer and band leader Jean Bialu Madilu a.k.a. Madilu System has died of a heart attack on Saturday
morning 11 August 2007 in Kinshasa. Madilu, who alledgedly suffered from diabetis and hypertension, left a legacy of
a long musical career. He worked with Pepe Kallé and Franco. After Franco's death, he left the T.P.O.K. Jazz
and started a solo career. His last album « Bonne humeur » was released earlier this year.
R.I.P Miriam Makeba 4 March 1932 - 9 November 2008
(you can see here the song Pata Pata live 1979, with appearance of her grand daughter Zenzi)
3 July 2010:
The July 2010 World Music Charts EuropeOctober 2008:
SOIREE Senegalaise (Friday 10 October 2008)
Venue: the Melkweg, Amsterdam. With
- Issa Sow & Goree: Issa Sow video
- BQ: Bqsokone Myspace
- Baby Fatim: Baby Fatime Myspace 24 May 2007: Tropentheater Grote Zaal (Amsterdam) Zani Diabaté & Benkadi International in concert
Tropentheater Grote Zaal
www.tropentheater.nl
12 October 2006: Douk Saga died on 12 October 2006 of tuberculosis, following a period of protracted illness. More information:
external link27 May 2006:
Concert and CD presentation of Benkadi International
feat. Zani Diabate
Saturday 27 May, Grand Theatre, Grote Markt, Groningen 21.00h
Line up:
Idrissa Magassa: vocal and percussion, Zoumana Diarra: solo guitar, Richard Has: bass, Bas Blanken: guitar,
Dramane Diarra: drums, Mamour Seck: percussion. Special guest: Zani Diabaté
17 May 2006:
Veteran benga musician, Daniel Owino Misiani, died in a road accident in Kisumu on Wednesday 17 May
A minibus was coming from Riat Hills in Mamboleo when the driver lost control and rammed into the stationery van, which
had stopped at a police roadblock. Misiani, born in Shirati, Tanzania, launched his musical career after moving into Kenya
in the early 1960s. While his early recordings featured the acoustic guitar, he switched to the electric guitar and
formed Shirati Jazz in 1967. In the 1970s, D.O. Misiani and Shirati Jazz ranked among the most successful musical
groups in Kenya.15 May 2006: Cheikha Rimitti, the legendary rai music star, died Monday, 15th May, victim of a heart attack. The 'Mother of Rai'
was 83 years old. She just released a new album before her death.7 March 2006: Malian blues guitarist Ali Farka Touré died
African star blues guitarist Ali Farka Toure died on Tuesday 7 March in Bamako. A
great monument of African music and a cultural ambassador of Malian and African culture passed away. Ali received
two Grammy Awards for the albums Talking Timbuktu and In the Heart of the Moon, a joint recording with
Toumani Diabaté
For further readings: BBC news item BBC obituary24 October 2005:
US tour of Nawal (Comoros)
more info...October 2005:
First European tour of Ekankan (Senegal) and special guest singer Souleymane Faye with first concert
dates in the Netherlands and Switzerland cancelled
more info...June 2005:
Cameroonian singer-composer Cyril Effala died on 9 June 2005. He was only 35 years old. He made two albums,
Black against White and Masque but is known among Cameroonians for his song
Mr. l'Abbé.19 April 2005: Malian musicians try to stop the sales of pirated cassettes themselves as
the Government of Mali is not taking sufficient action16 March 2005: Belgian authorities detain African star
musician Bassekou Kouyaté15 March 2005: Piracy of cassettes and CDs force Mali K7 and Seydoni Mali to close their doors!March 2005:
First European tour of Haira Arby and Bassekou Kouyaté with concert dates in Holland and Belgium
tour data...21 January-3 February 2005:
First European tour of Daniel O. Misiani & Shirati Jazz with concert dates in Holland and Germany
tour data...16 January 2005:
Young Senegalese mbalax singer
Ndongo Lo died
13 December 2004:
Read all the Kora Awards
here...12 December 2004:
The yearly Kora Awards ceremony takes place for
the ninth time, at the Sandton Convention Centre in South Africa.
Among the 103 nominated African artists are Chantal Taiba, Kamaldine and
8 years old Madson Junior.
12 December 2004:
8 year old boy nominated for the Kora Awards in
South Africa.
Read more...2 - 4 December 2004: 2nd Frikyiwa Festival in the Cotton Club, Paris, with on
2 December: Baye Coly (Senegal, saxophone) and Bachir Sanogo (Burkina Faso, kamelen n'goni)
3 December: Hadja Kouyate; Ramata
Doussou;
4 December: Ali Boulo Santo; Aïssata Baldé (Senegal).
20 November 2004:
Concert by Odemba OK Rumba Allstars (with Dizzy Mandjeku, Decca, Gege,
Djo Mali, Malage de Lugendo and Nana & Baniel) in the
Royal Tropical
Institute Theater in Amsterdam. Read about the concert
here. 13 August 2004:
Beninese Africando singer Gnonnas Pedro died of cancer.
Read more...10 May 2004:
South African pop star Brenda Fassie dies.
Read more...8 February 2004:
Grammy Award for Cesaria Evora.
Read more...6 December 2003:
The 2003 All Africa Kora Awards.
Read more...4 December 2003:
African artists among Grammy Awards nominees.
Read more...1 December 2003: Festival Planète Frikyiwa in Paris (3-6 December 2003).
Read more...17 July 2003:
Baaba Maal's kora player Kawding Cissoko died at age of 38.
Read more...15 June 2003:
Death of Momo Wandel Soumah (Guinea).
Read more...21 March 2003:
Pap Touray died in Banjul.
Read more...8 March 2003:
Youssou N'Dour cancels US tour as a protest against Iraq war.
Read more...19 February 2003:
Papa Wemba arrested in Paris.
Read more...25 December 2002:
Malian diva Mokontafe Sacko died.
Read more...12 December 2002:
Prince Claus Award for Youssou N'Dour.
Read more...31 October 2002:
Salif Keita US tour nearly completed.
Read more...15 October 2002:
Orchestra Baobab in Dutch album charts.
Read more...9 October 2002:
Dutch prince had plans for Sahel opera.
Read more...November 2001:
UNESCO International Music Council Award for Oumou Sangaré November 3, 2001: Kora All Africa Music Awards in Sun City, South Africa May 28, 2001: Francis Bebey, nestor of African music, died. December 2000:
The 2000 World Music Charts: Geoffrey Oryema, Amadou & Mariam under the first 10 nominees.
February 2000: Release of the new Youssou N'Dour album Joko!
The 1998 World Music Charts: the first three nominees are from West Africa (Baaba Maal, Habib Koité and Africando).
November 30, 1998: Pépé Kallé died of a heart attack on Sunday morning 29 November 1998. November 24, 1998: The Cameroonian artist Pierre Tchana died from complications after brain surgery.
Pierre Tchana was very successful during past decades with his Cameroonian version of salsa music. Back to top
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