Fatoumata Diawara ( bm, ߝߊ߫ߕߎߡߕߊ ߖߊ߯ߥߙߊ߫, Fatumta Jawara, born 1982) is a

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mal ...

an singer-songwriter currently living in France. Diawara began her career as an actress in theatre and in film, including ''Genesis'' (1999), '' Sia, The Dream of the Python'' (2001) and ''Timbuktu'' (2014). She later launched a career in music, collaborating with numerous artists and releasing three studio albums beginning with 2011 debut ''Fatou''. Diawara's music combines traditional

Wassoulou Wassoulou is a cultural area and historical region in the Wassoulou River Valley of West Africa. It is home to about 160,000 people, and is also the native land of the Wassoulou genre of music. Wassoulou surrounds the point where the border ...

with international styles.

Early life

Diawara was born in 1982 in the Ivory Coast to Malian parents. As an adolescent, she was sent back to their native

Bamako Bamako ( bm, ߓߡߊ߬ߞߐ߬ ''Bàmakɔ̌'', ff, 𞤄𞤢𞤥𞤢𞤳𞤮 ''Bamako'') is the capital and largest city of Mali, with a 2009 population of 1,810,366 and an estimated 2022 population of 2.81 million. It is located on the Niger Rive ...

in Mali to be raised by an aunt. When she was eighteen, Diawara moved to France to pursue acting. She briefly returned to Mali for a film role, but fled back to Paris to avoid being coerced into marriage by her family.

Film and theatre

After moving to France, Diawara appeared in

Cheick Oumar Sissoko Cheick Oumar Sissoko (born 1945 in San, Mali) is a Malian film director and politician. Biography As a student in Paris, Cheick Oumar Sissoko obtained a DEA in African History and Sociology and a diploma in History and Cinema from the Ecole ...

's 1999 feature film ''Genesis'',

Dani Kouyaté Dani Kouyaté (born June 4, 1961) is a film director and griot from Burkina Faso, which the BBC describes as "Africa's most important film-making country". Biography Kouyaté was born in 1961 in Bobo-Dioulasso. He is the son of one of the first B ...

's popular 2001 film ''

Sia, le rêve du python ''Sia, The Dream of the Python'' (french: Sia, le rêve du python) is a 2001 film by Burkina Faso-based filmmaker Dani Kouyaté. Plot Kaya Maghan, the despotic king of Wagadou, follows the instructions of his priest by ordering the religio ...

'', and in the internationally renowned street theatre troupe Royal de Luxe. She also played a leading role in the musical '' Kirikou et Karaba''. Simultaneously with pursuing her musical career, Diawara has continued her cinematic activities, with numerous roles, appearances, and musical input in multiple feature films, including in ''

Timbuktu Timbuktu ( ; french: Tombouctou; Koyra Chiini: ); tmh, label=Tuareg, script=Tfng, ⵜⵏⴱⴾⵜ, Tin Buqt a city in Mali, situated north of the Niger River. The town is the capital of the Tombouctou Region, one of the eight administrativ ...

'', which won seven César Award nods and an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nomination in 2014.

Musical career

Diawara took up the guitar and began composing her own material, writing songs that blend

traditions of southern Mali with international influences. She has said that she is "the first female solo electric guitar player in Mali". Diawara has performed or recorded with Malian and international stars such as Cheick Tidiane Seck,

Oumou Sangaré Oumou Sangaré ( bm, Umu Sangare; born 25 February 1968 in Bamako) is a Grammy Award-winning Malian Wassoulou musician, sometimes referred to as "The Songbird of Wassoulou". Wassoulou is a historical region south of the Niger River, where the mu ...

, AfroCubism, Dee Dee Bridgewater (on ''Red Earth: A Malian Journey''), and the Orchestre Poly Rythmo de Cotonou. The EP ''Kanou'' was released May 9, 2011. She wrote every song on her debut album'' Fatou'' from World Circuit Records that released in September 2011. (

Nonesuch Records Nonesuch Records is an American record company and label owned by Warner Music Group, distributed by Warner Records (formerly called Warner Bros. Records), and based in New York City. Founded by Jac Holzman in 1964 as a budget classical label, No ...

released the ''Kanou'' EP digitally in North America on September 27, 2011, and the album ''Fatou'' on August 28, 2012.) In September 2012, Diawara was featured in a campaign called "30 Songs / 30 Days" to support ''

Half the Sky ''Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide'' is a nonfiction book by husband and wife team Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn published by Knopf in September 2009. The book argues that the oppression of women world ...

'', a multi-platform media project inspired by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn's book. September 2012 also saw her board the Africa Express Train with Damon Albarn,

Rokia Traoré Rokia Traoré (born 24. January 1974) is a Malian-born singer, songwriter and guitarist. She made six albums between 1998 and 2016. ''Bowmboï'' (2003) won the Critics Award category at the BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music in 2004 and ''Tcham ...

Baaba Maal Baaba Maal ( ff, 𞤄𞤢𞥄𞤦𞤢 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤, italics=no, born 13 June 1953) is a Senegalese singer and guitarist born in Podor, on the Senegal River. In addition to acoustic guitar, he also plays percussion. He has released several al ...

Amadou & Mariam Amadou & Mariam are a musical duo from Mali, composed of the Bamako-born couple Amadou Bagayoko (guitar and vocals) (born 24 October 1954) and Mariam Doumbia (vocals) (born 15 April 1958). Their album '' Welcome To Mali'' (2008) was nominated ...

, Nicolas Jaar, and the

Noisettes Noisettes are an English indie rock band from London, currently composed of singer and bassist Shingai Shoniwa and guitarist Dan Smith. The band first achieved commercial success and nationwide recognition with the second single of their se ...

, amongst many others. The show culminated in a 4.5k venue in Kings Cross where Fatoumata performed with

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

. Diawara has spent recent years touring the world, with a landmark performance for the English-speaking public at the 2013 Glastonbury Festival. Alongside many European gigs, her schedule has taken her to South America, Asia and Australia, as well as on multiple trips to the US, where in September 2013 she performed as part of the

Clinton Global Initiative The Clinton Foundation (founded in 2001 as the William J. Clinton Presidential Foundation, and renamed in 2013 as the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation) is a nonprofit organization under section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. tax code. It was es ...

alongside The Roots in New York. Since mid-2014 she has collaborated with

Roberto Fonseca Roberto Fonseca (born 29 March 1975) is a Cuban jazz pianist. From an early age, Fonseca was surrounded by music: his father was drum player Roberto Fonseca, Sr, his mother, Mercedes Cortes Alfaro, a professional singer (she sings on her son ...

, with numerous live performances and a joint live album, '' At Home - Live in Marciac'', along the way. In 2014 she also performed with

Mayra Andrade Mayra Andrade (born 13 February 1985) is a Cape Verdean singer who lives and records in Lisbon, Portugal. Background Andrade was born in Havana, Cuba, to parents from Cape Verde, and she and her family returned to Cape Verde a few days after ...

and

Omara Portuondo Omara Portuondo Peláez (born 29 October 1930) is a Cuban singer and dancer. A founding member of the popular vocal group Cuarteto d'Aida, Portuondo has collaborated with many important Cuban musicians during her long career, including Julio Gu ...

. February 2015 saw her first live concert as an established international star in Mali, her home country, Festival sur le Niger in

Ségou Ségou (; bm, ߛߋߓߎ, italic=no, ) is a town and an urban commune in south-central Mali that lies northeast of Bamako on the right bank of the River Niger. The town is the capital of the Ségou Cercle and the Ségou Region. With 130,690 ...

, where she shared the stage once again with her long-time friend and mentor, Oumou Sangaré,

Bassekou Kouyate Bassekou Kouyaté (born 1966) is a musician from Mali. His band is known as Ngoni ba. He was born into the Kouyate family in Garana, Barouéli Cercle, 60 kilometres from Ségou, in 1966.Frank Bessem's Musiques d'AfriqueBassekou Kouyate/ref> At th ...

, and many other domestic Malian acts. Diawara was featured in the 2020 Gorillaz single " Désolé", which later appeared on their album '' Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez''. She performed a Tiny Desk home concert in February 2022. Later that year, she published the album ''Maliba'', created as a soundtrack for a

Google Arts and Culture Google Arts & Culture (formerly Google Art Project) is an online platform of high-resolution images and videos of artworks and cultural artifacts from partner cultural organizations throughout the world. It utilizes high-resolution image technol ...

project to digitise manuscripts held in

. The album was characterised by ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...

'' as "a wondrous work of cultural preservation from one of the biggest names in contemporary African music".

Style

Noted for her "sensuous voice," Diawara sings primarily in Bambara, the national language of Mali, and builds on the tradition of "songs of advice" from the culture of her ancestral

region. In her songs, Diawara has addressed issues such as the pain of emigration; a need for mutual respect; the struggles of African women; life under the rule of religious fundamentalists, and the practice of

female circumcision Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female genital cutting, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and female circumcision, is the ritual cutting or removal of some or all of the external female genitalia. The practice is found ...

. One song that exemplifies her focus on these topics is "Mali-ko (Peace/La Paix)", a seven-minute song and video that criticises the fundamentalist conquest of Northern Mali and urges unity to quell resentment against the Tuareg minority whom some blamed for abetting the incursion. Diawara said about the song, ""I needed to scream with this song, 'Wake up! We are losing Mali! We are losing our culture, our tradition, our origins, our roots!.

Recognition and awards

She received two nominations at the

61st Annual Grammy Awards The 61st Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on February 10, 2019, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Singer-songwriter Alicia Keys hosted. During her opening monologue, Keys brought out Lady Gaga, Jada Pinkett Smith, Jennifer Lopez, and ...

for

Best World Music Album The Grammy Award for Best Global Music Album is an honor presented to recording artists for influential music from around the globe at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors i ...

for her album ''Fenfo'' and

Best Dance Recording The Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronic Recording (formerly known as Best Dance Recording) is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists f ...

for "Ultimatum" in which she was featured with the English band

Disclosure Disclosure may refer to: Arts and media * ''Disclosure'' (The Gathering album), 2012 *Disclosure (band), a UK-based garage/electronic duo * ''Disclosure'' (novel), 1994 novel written by Michael Crichton ** ''Disclosure'' (1994 film), an American ...

Filmography

* 1996: ''Taafe Fanga'' by

Adama Drabo Adama Drabo (1948 - July 15, 2009) was a Malian filmmaker and playwright. Biography Drabo was in the Malian capital of Bamako, Mali, where he showed an interest in film since his childhood. For ten years, he was a schoolteacher in a Malian vil ...

* 1999: '' La Genèse'' by

: Dina * 2002: ''

'' by

: Sia * 2008: ''

Il va pleuvoir sur Conakry ''Il va pleuvoir sur Conakry '' is a 2007 French film. Synopsis BB works as a political cartoonist at a liberal newspaper and is in love with the boss' lovely, talented computer scientist daughter, Kesso. But his choice meets with stiff oppos ...

'', by Cheick Fantamady Camara: Siré * 2010: ''Encourage'', by Eleonora Campanella * 2010: ''Ni brune ni blonde'', by

Abderrahmane Sissako Abderrahmane Sissako (born 13 October 1961) is a Mauritanian-born Malian film director and producer. His film '' Waiting for Happiness'' (''Heremakono'') was screened at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival official selection under Un Certain Regard, wi ...

* 2011: '' Les Contes de la Nuit'', by Michel Ocelot (voice) * 2013: ''The Africa Express'', by Renaud Barret and Florent de La Tulle: Herself * 2014: '' Timbuktu (Le chagrin des oiseaux)'', by Abderrahmane Sissako * 2015: ''Morbayassa'', by Cheick Fantamady Camara: Bella * 2016: ''Mali Blues'', by Lutz Gregor: Herself * 2019:
Yao
', by Philippe Godeau: Gloria

Stage performances

* 1998: ''

Antigone In Greek mythology, Antigone ( ; Ancient Greek: Ἀντιγόνη) is the daughter of Oedipus and either his mother Jocasta or, in another variation of the myth, Euryganeia. She is a sister of Polynices, Eteocles, and Ismene.Roman, L., & R ...

'' by

Sophocles Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or c ...

; adapted by Jean-Louis Sagot Duvauroux, production Sotiguy Kouyaté * 2002–2008: '' Royal de Luxe''; creator Jean-Luc Courcoult * 2007–2008: '' Kirikou et Karaba'': Karaba

Discography

Albums

* 2011: '' Fatou'' ( World Circuit/

Nonesuch __NOTOC__ Nonesuch may refer to: Plants * ''Lychnis chalcedonica'', a wildflower * ''Medicago lupulina'', a wildflower Places and structures *Nonesuch, Kentucky *Nonesuch Island, Bermuda *Nonesuch Mine, Michigan *Nonesuch Palace, mis-spelling of ...

) * 2015: '' At Home - Live in Marciac'', Fatoumata Diawara &

( Jazz Village) * 2018: '' Fenfo (Something To Say)'' (

Wagram Music Wagram Music is a French independent record company based in Paris, with offices in Berlin and Los Angeles. Record company Wagram's catalog covers various music genres such as French pop, Rock and Pop, world, electronic music, Reggae, Soul, ...

/ Shanachie Records) * 2022:
Maliba
' (3ème Bureau)

Singles and EPs

* 2011: '' Kanou EP'' (World Circuit/Nonesuch)

Collaborations

* 2009: Featured in the album ''Léman'' by

Blick Bassy Blick Bassy is a Bassa singer-songwriter from Cameroon. Bassy writes his songs in his native language, Bassa. His song "Kiki", from ''Akö'', featured as the theme song for the worldwide launch of the iPhone 6 in 2015. Early life Bassy was born ...

* 2010: Co-authoring and featuring in the album '' Debademba'' by Debademba * 2010: Featured in ''

The Imagine Project ''The Imagine Project'' is the forty-sixth and latest studio album by American jazz pianist Herbie Hancock released on June 22, 2010. Prominent guests include John Legend, India Arie, Seal, Dave Matthews, Jeff Beck, Chaka Khan, Tedeschi & Tr ...

'' by Herbie Hancock * 2010: Featured in the album ''Jamm'' by

Cheikh Lô Cheikh N'Digel Lô (born 12 September 1955) is a Senegalese musician. Early life He was born to Senegalese parents in Bobo Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, and began playing drums and singing at an early age. Career In 1976, he joined Orchestre Volta J ...

* 2010: Featured in the song "N'fletoun" from the '' Djekpa La You'' album by

Dobet Gnahoré Dobet Gnahoré (born 17 June 1982) is a singer from Côte d'Ivoire. The daughter of percussionist Boni Gnahoré, she plays with the group Na Afriki, consisting mainly of French and Tunisian musicians, who accompany her with the guitar, sanza, th ...

* 2011: Featured in the song "C'est lui ou c'est moi" from the '' Cotonou Club'' album by Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou * 2012: Featured in ''

Rocket Juice & the Moon ''Rocket Juice & the Moon'' is the only album by the supergroup of the same name, formed in 2008. The group consisted of Damon Albarn, Flea, and Tony Allen. Album history The project was announced in mid-2008; however due to various other pr ...

'' (

Honest Jon's Honest Jon's is a British independent record shop based on Portobello Road in Ladbroke Grove, London, operating since 1974. The shop is owned and run by Mark Ainley and Alan Scholefield, who took over from one of the original proprietors, "Hone ...

- Album) * 2012: Featured in the song "Bibissa" from the album ''Yo'' by

* 2012: Featured in the song "Nothin' Can Save Ya" from the album ''

The Bravest Man In The Universe ''The Bravest Man in the Universe'' is the twenty-seventh and final studio album by the American soul artist Bobby Womack. Released on June 12, 2012, it was his first studio album since 2000 and his first album of original material since 1994's '' ...

'' by

Bobby Womack Robert Dwayne Womack (; March 4, 1944 – June 27, 2014) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Starting in the early 1950s as the lead singer of his family musical group the Valentinos and as Sam Cooke's backing gui ...

* 2013: Featured in the song "Surma" from the '' Sketches of Ethiopia'' album by Mulatu Astatke * 2014: Co-authoring and featured in the song "Timbuktu Fasso" from the ''

'' soundtrack by Amine Bouhafa * 2014: Featured in the song "It's all coming together" by

Walter Hus Walter Hus (born 2 July 1959) is a Belgian composer and musician. He studied at the music conservatories in Ghent and Brussels. In 1984, he graduated with excellence (''Diplôme supérieur'') for piano with Prof. Dr. Robert Steyaert and soon bec ...

from the soundtrack to feature film '' N - The Madness of Reason'' by Peter Krüger * 2018: Featured in the song "Ultimatum" by

* 2019: Featured in the song "Cameroon" by Bonaparte (singer) * 2020: Featured in the song " Désolé" by Gorillaz * 2020: Featured in the song " Douha (Mali Mali)" by Disclosure * 2022: Featured in the song ‘Tama’ with Barbara Pravi

With Les Balayeurs du désert

Via association with Royal de Luxe; several of the songs had been played as accompaniment in Royal de Luxe's 'giant marionettes' street performances throughout the world. * 2005: '' Jules Verne Impact'' by Les Balayeurs du désert (apast – Album) (''Y Danse'', ''Hamleti''...) * 2007: ''La Pequeña'' by Les Balayeurs du désert (Atelier de l'événement – Album) (with an early version of ''Salimata'')

References

Interview to Fatoumata Diawara during her tour 2022 in Zaragoza. Spain
Fatoumata Diawara: “my music is a combination of my roots interpreted from my modern perspective”

External links

*
BBC Radio 3 - World Routes, November 13, 2010
accessed June 8, 2011.
"Field Report: Festival Sur le Niger 2015" by Tom Pryor
accessed November 11, 2015. * Chabasseur, Eglantine
"Fatoumata Diawara Reinvented"
RFI musique, April 8, 2009, accessed June 8, 2011. * Cummings, Tim

''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'', April 28, 2009, accessed June 8, 2011. * Denselow, Robin
"Orchestre Poly-Rythmo: Cotonou Club"
''The Guardian'', March 24, 2011, accessed June 8, 2011. * Forgan, Kat. "Staff Brenda Bilili". Songlines, July 2011, pp. 104–105. * Phillips, Glyn
"AfroCubism"
WorldMusic.co.uk, accessed June 8, 2011. {{DEFAULTSORT:Diawara, Fatoumata 1982 births Bambara-language singers Living people 21st-century Ivorian women singers 21st-century Malian women singers Malian emigrants to France Malian women's rights activists People from Bamako