Mina Agossi

Mina Agossi entered the world in 1972 as the daughter of a French father and Beninese mother, devoting much of her childhood to studies and journeys through Niger, Morocco, and Ivory Coast. While enrolled in a theater program in France, a neighborhood saxophonist handed her 500 francs to join him onstage; although she possessed no formal musical background, the encounter ignited an immediate passion for performance and set her on a path toward a singing career.

She made her first ensemble commitment in 1993 with a swing and New Orleans jazz band that worked regularly in France and Ireland. Growing curiosity about modern jazz soon prompted her to issue recordings under her own name, producing several stripped-down jazz sets across Europe. Her personal take on the music earned both detractors and supporters, opening doors to collaborations with Archie Shepp, Mukta, and Adam Pieronscyk.

Soon after September 11 in 2001, she documented the live album EZ Pass to Brooklyn accompanied by bassist Alexander Hiele and drummer Bertrand Perrin, the same pair that supported her follow-up release Carrousel. In 2004 the British label Candid added her to its roster, issuing Zaboum!! throughout Europe the next year and Well You Needn't in 2006.