Biography
Born around 1964 in Kankan, Guinea, into a lineage of jelis, or hereditary praise singers, Dioubate began performing at seven. When her mother, Gnamakoro Kante, passed away six years afterward, the young singer stepped into her place with the Kankan Regional Ensemble. She later wed her cousin, a musician and educator, and together they relocated to the Guinean capital of Conakry, where the couple established Les Messagers De Morifing Diabate in 1983. There she cultivated a contemporary sound paired with boldly feminist themes. Relocating to Paris in the mid-eighties, she was noticed in 1987 by producer Ibrahima Sylla while contributing backing vocals to Ismaël Lo’s N’Diawar. The pair spent three years shaping her first solo project, finishing Lancey in 1990, yet Sylla deemed its polished, high-tech funk and provocative words too bold for immediate issuance. Returning to Guinea in the early nineties, Dioubate encountered heightened controversy and the departure of her husband, prompting Sylla to issue the album at last; it swiftly topped charts throughout Guinea and West Africa. Stern’s Records subsequently licensed it for worldwide distribution, elevating her to national prominence while cementing her status as a polarizing figure at home. The follow-up, Wambara, proved still more audacious and eclectic, again under Sylla’s guidance, as her vocals floated across funk, jazz, reggae, salsa, and West African textures. To support the release she joined the Griot Groove tour, sharing stages across continents with fellow West African performers Sékouba Bambino and Kandia Kouyaté.
Albums
