WINNERS SHOW Music of
SAHARA Africa 3rd edition of the AFRO PEPITES SHOW:
·•● Winner of Category AFROS PEPITES: WALFADJARI // Mauritania
// Peulh,
Reggae ●
WALFADJIRI seduces a large public with soft Peulh tastes coming
from Mauritanian Sahara. A band well determined to make you discover its
country…
Title
in competition: KAAW
Site: www.reverbnation.com/walfadjiri
Social
networks: FACEBOOK
INFO for ORGANIZORS, MEDIA,… : WALFADJARI are based
in Arafat
Nouakchott (Mauritania) // Contact Pro : no manager yet
Biography: « Walfadjiri band, from Nouakchott, is composed
of six young people who met thanks to popular theater and scouting. Thus this
cohesion strength in their endless search for the virtues of solidarity and
tolerance.
The music style carried by the band Walfadjiri from Nouakchott gives the
feeling that the music coming from the Sahara and those coming from wet and
clayey grounds from Chemama (the river valley) come from the same inspiration.
Here or elsewhere this music accompanies women and men beyond frontiers. Tis is
what explains this capacity Walfadjiri has to please any public, while
remaining devoted to the style of nomad
shepherds’ music.
From
N'diarou’s notes to Fantang’s ones without forgetting Vaghou’s ones, Walfadjiri’s repertory, rich and diverse,
is nostalgic, committed and engagé and combative. Watching and listening to the musicians from Walfadjiri, one appreciates
immediately the versatility and homogeneity of this band, perceives the variety
of the songs; the diversity of the music forms and the rhythms complementarities. »
·•● 2nd of Category AFROS PEPITES: Fanta
DISCO // Mali, France // Tradi-Modern ●•·
Fanta DISCO, Bamako’s
diva makes you travel and offers you a modern version of traditional Mandingo tunes..
Title
in competition: Na Doctor
Site : www.myspace.com/fantadisco
Social
networks : not available
INFO for ORGANIZORS, TOUR MANAGERS, MANAGERS, MEDIA,…: Fanta DISCO is
based in Paris (France) // Contact Pro : CONTACT
Biography : BAMAKO’s DIVA. Fanta SISSOKO is born in Bamako and her parents were
griots (story-tellers): Bakary SISSOKO is a famous player of the n’goni in Mali
and Daba TAMKARA is also a famous singer. .. Since when she was 15, Fanta sings
during ritual ceremonies and was for the first time in a Malian TV show in «
Rencontre avec nos Artistes », and this gave her national consecration.
All over Mali she is asked for concerts, performances... Some videos in that time are still widely broadcasted
and these records are also part of the artistic and cultural inheritage of Mali...
The way she sings, her « feeling », were
uncommon for a story-teller and Fanta represented a new, modern creation in
this Mandingo universe which is usually more anchored in tradition... This
is obviously why she was then called by the flattering nickname « Fanta Disco
»; she is how she was recognized in Mali... From 1985 Fanta Disco was asked w
the Malian government to sing for several concerts during the Summit of African
Chiefs of States... After several performances during big concerts with Salif
Keïta, Fanta created her own band with Diawara Fadiala and Moriba Koïta
(n’goni). Diawara is a virtuoso guitar player. With Diawara, Fanta began to
create her own songs...
Today, her idea is to create more “modern” versions while keeping the
original real Malian instruments... The
result is this surprising music which mixes a Mandingo style very pure with
current techniques of production.
·•● 3rd of Category AFROS PEPITES: Sidiki DIABATE
// Mali // Rap ●•·
Sidiki DIABATE, this
young Malian rapper also called « Kora’s Little Prince » develops the
magic power of traditional and digital instrumental mix…
Title in competition: Dondo tèmèna
Site: no site
Social
networks: FACEBOOK
INFO for ORGANIZORS, TOUR MANAGERS, MANAGERS, MEDIA,… : Sidiki DIABATE is
based in Bamako (Mali) // Contact Pro : CONTACT
Biographie : Sidiki
DIABATE, « Kora’s Little Prince » is born in Bamako, Mali and is from
the 72th generation of one the greatest families of story-tellers and players
of Kora, which the story-tellers’ instrument par excellence.
Sidiki DIABATE is the son of Toumani DIABATE (Grammy
Awards 2006 and 2010) and grand-son of Sikidi DIABATE (named in 1977 at the
FESPAC in Nigeria as the « Kind of Kora ») ; therefore, even
though it is necessary to be careful when
recalling the genealogy of a young musician, this name he did not choose is not
a coincidence. Indeed, Sidiki already masters the use of the great 21-string
calabash. We should not forget that these 21 strings transmit memories,
knowledge and culture and it is only through work and study that Sidiki could
reach maturity and a personal expression while respecting tradition.
First, Sidiki followed his lessons with his father Toumani DIABATE who taught him the basis. He improved then thanks to his uncle Madou Sidiki DIABATE,
then thanks to Madi KOUYATE (the
young brother of the Master of Kora Soriba KOUYATE in Senegal, who was the
first to use kora to play jazz and add effects (wawas)).
Music teacher after 4 years of studies at INA (national institute of arts in Mali) Sidiki deepens his knowledge of musics of
the world in the Conservatory Balla Fasseké KOUYATE.
« Kora’s Little Prince » perpetuates the
style of DIABATE family: a simultaneous play with 4 fingers.
So, thanks to this simultaneous basis of play, he got the chance to fly
to other universes, other music styles such as hip hop, jazz, funk.
Sidiki is not only a Kora player, he is a full artist,
playing the piano as well, Sidiki is author, composer and singer but also
programmer, arranger and sound system engineer.
His originality comes from the magic he can give birth from the mix of
traditional instrument (Kora) and digital programming.
In 2010 Sidiki received twice an award in Mali:
He received the Hip Hop Awards of the best beat maker with
his band hip hop GRR, he received the award of the best rap band thanks to the
music composition of Sidiki, mixing traditional and modern music.
Sidiki gave his first concert in Europe with Vieux
Farka TOURE, son of Ali Farka TOURE, in Ardeche, France, in 2006.
In 2007 he was invited to the Paris festival
« Sous la Plage » .
In 2008 he did his first tour in Europe and Northern
Africa with his father Toumani DIABATE to promote the album Mande Variation. He
shared the stage with some famous artists such as BJORK, Damon ALBARN, Eliades OCHOA, Feu
Mangala CAMARA, Kasse Madi DIABATE (Mandingo
music tenor)
Thanks to his collaboration with rapper IBA One, the
public can enjoy particularly the songs tché teché teché, Mogo tesséna, Al
Hamdoulilah (songs from the album “the first”)
He is now the arranger of the young traditional
artists working with the rappers from Mali thanks to his successful mix of
traditional and modern music.
In 2008 he participates to the realization of the
first book about him « Sidikiba’s Kora Lesson » for which he recorded
his first album solo, as addendum to the book.
He is currently preparing his second solo album, record in the Studio
Africa in Bamako. In this album Sidiki
DIABATE will propose us new compositions, with world music orientations.
While his solo album is ready, you can discover the
single « You Know » that he recorded in collaboration with Pascal L
