The musical traditions of the Baganda people of Uganda live through the efforts of kadongo kamu (small guitar) player and vocalist Albert Ssempeke. Together with his band, Aboluganda Kwagalana, all of whom have been appointed royal musicians to the king, he recorded an album, Ssempeke!, of Buganda's pre-independence royal court music at... [+] Read More

Yes No

The West African country of Mali has produced some great musicians. But as they age, people have wondered who'll step forward from the next generation. The big answer to that seems to be Habib Koité, who comes from the Khassonké griot tradition, that's the hereditary caste of musicians, but whose eyes are firmly on the future. Born in 1958, his... [+] Read More

Yes No

Salif Keita gave up a lot to pursue his dreams of a career in music. Born to royal lineage, with ancestral roots going back to Soundjata Keita, the founder of the Malian Empire in 1240, Keita was disowned by his father after announcing his plans to play music. Keita's dreams, however, were too strong to be shattered. Moving to the capitol city... [+] Read More

Yes No

Singer and multi-instrumentalist Samite is a little like Francis Bebey in that he overdubs both his own voice and various African and Western instruments (including the big East African litungu lyre, finger piano, and flutes). While he has a slight, slight folky edge in places and is not a strong solo singer, his overdubbed polyphonic vocals and... [+] Read More

Yes No

Seckou Keita is one of the leaders of the newest generation of African traditional musicians, who not only make use of the influences of their predecessors on the world music scene who introduced the world to the African kora, but also have a tendency to fuse the traditional forms and instruments with those of other cultures. Born in 1977 in... [+] Read More

Yes No