Bassekou Kouyate
Malian musician (born 1966)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bassekou Kouyate (born 1966) is a musician from Mali. His band is known as Ngoni ba.
Bassekou Kouyate | |
|---|---|
Performing live in 2008 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 1966 (age 59–60) |
| Genres | |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Instrument | ngoni |
| Years active | 1978–present |
| Label | Outhere Records (Proper Music Distribution) |
Life and career
He was born into the Kouyate family in Garana, Barouéli Cercle, 60 kilometres from Ségou, in 1966.[1] At the age of 12, he started playing the ngoni. In the late 1980s he moved to the capital, Bamako.[2]
Kouyate's debut album, Segu Blue,[3] was released internationally in 2007 by Outhere Records and distributed in the U.K. by Proper Music Distribution. The album was produced by Lucy Durán.[2] He has also appeared on a number of albums by Toumani Diabaté[2] and has performed in several European countries.[2] In 2010, Kouyaté toured with Béla Fleck.
Kouyate's wife, Amy Sacko, is also a successful solo artist and sings lead in his band.[2][4] His father, Mustapha Kouyate, was a ngoni player and his mother Yagaré Damba was a praise singer.[1] Kouyate, together with Amy Sacko and Ngoni ba, appeared at The 2013 Proms.[5]
Discography
Albums
- Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba: Segu Blue (Outhere Records, 2007)
- Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba: I Speak Fula (Outhere Records, 2009)
- Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba: Jama Ko (Outhere Records, 2013)
- Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba: Ba Power (Glitterbeat Records, 2015)
- Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba: Miri (Outhere Records, 2019)
- Bassekou Kouyate & Amy Sacko: Djudjon (One World Records, 2024)
Contributing artist
Filmography
- 2008: Throw Down Your Heart, by Sascha Paladino: Himself
- 2013: The Africa Express, by Renaud Barret and Florent de La Tullaye: Himself
- 2016: Easy Man, by Jasper Cremers and Dennis de Groot: Himself
- 2016: Mali Blues, by Lutz Gregor: Himself
Awards
- 2008 – BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music – Album of the Year & African Artist of the Year[6]