Biography
Guitarist, singer, and songwriter Mama Sisoko has guided Mali’s music landscape since the closing years of the 1970s. His training commenced at age eight when he took up the battery of traditional percussion instruments, then quickly progressed to guitar. For many seasons he served as a member of the National Orchestra of Mali. He subsequently played pivotal roles in multiple ensembles whose sets ranged from traditional percussion music to fusions of European and American pop. International recognition has grown through appearances at numerous festivals worldwide and the strongly praised solo debut Amours Jarabi, issued in 1997. Despite uniformly enthusiastic reviews, limited distribution kept the album from reaching broader audiences. Tinder released Soleil de Minuit in the United States in 2001. The recording presented his introspective, spiritually charged Afro-pop to listeners abroad and met with widespread approval from world-music followers. In his songwriting Sisoko merges bright Afro-pop and Latin pop elements across material whose subjects stretch from direct reflections on love and relationships to pointed political affirmations of African culture.
Albums
