Ba Power is an album which again showcases the incredible dexterity of Malian heavyweight Bassekou Kouyaté’s ngoni instrument. Kouyaté affectionately describes playing the banjo-like lute as his ...

Bassekou Kouyate’s Segu Blue will likely prove 2007’s standout African album. It features his ensemble ’Ngoni ba’ and realises a long-cherished dream. From Mali, Bassekou is the greatest exponent of a ...

There’s something special about the annual summer gathering that is Earagail Arts Festival. It is now in its 37th year, and its deliciously eclectic programme is spread across the county, and features ...

Bassekou Kouyaté and his band Ngoni Ba burst upon the African and world music scene a few years ago, winning top world music awards and winning the hearts and minds of African music fans everywhere.

Growing up in the West African country of Mali, Bassekou Kouyate recalls the tradition of the Ngoni running through the veins of his culture since he was a child. An instrument dating back nearly ...

Bassekou Kouyate knows exactly what his place is in this world, and he knows where he came from and where he wants to go. That existence is inseparable from the instrument he plays, the ngoni. It is ...

When a leading London daily, the Independent, tags Mali’s Bassekou Kouyaté and Ngoni Ba as “the best rock and roll band in the world”, you know there’s something very special about the seven-piece ...

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or ...

Their 2007 debut release Segu Blue was an exquisite affair that, despite becoming many critic’s African album of the year, barely hinted at the storm the band cook up live. So when I Speak Fula was ...

Malian ngoni player Bassekou Kouyate and his band, Ngoni Ba's third album continues the increasingly outward-looking trajectory of its predecessors. The debut, the lovely Segu Blue (Out/Here, 2007), ...