Habib Koité - Biography
BY Nick Castro
Habib Koite is one of the most famous singers and guitarists to come from Mali. He is a self taught prodigy who has excelled in both the academic world of music as well as the performance one. Although Koite descends from a long line of griots, and allows this rich history to inform his music, he is not confined by tradition, and often breaks barriers and defies labels with his unique blend of sounds. Koite has managed to build a commercially successful as a solo artist as well as with his band, Bamada.
Born in 1958, to a family that followed the working paths of the railroad in West Africa, Koite began playing guitar at a very early age. He would watch his grandfather and various family members playing and would learn from them in a very similar manner to his Khassonké griot ancestors. Koite would soon begin playing with his mother, who was a singer in the griot tradition as well. Koite's family was enormous and supportive of his talents and ambitions. When Koite was 20, he would attend the National Institue of Arts in Bamako, Mali, where he would quickly excel due to his natural talents and musical creativity. In less than a year Koite was conducting the school band. It was at NIA that Koite met musician Toumani Diabaté, whom he would later join on the album Shake the World (1991 - Sony).
In the late 80's Koite formed the band, Bamada, and they soon began to procure steady work across Mali. The bands honed their sound over these formative years and this solidified their top ranking at the famous Perpignan Voxpole Festival in France. It can be said that this victory was the start of the band's crossover into the mainstream music world music scene. The Festival winnings afforded the band the opportunity to record what would become one of their most famous songs, the anti-smoking anthem, "Cigarette A Bana", which can be roughly transalted as "The Cigarette is Finished", and which instantly became a classic in West Africa. His popularity throughout France, as well as in Africa, would continue to grow over the next few years and he would score another success with the song "Nanale". Soon Koite won the prestigious Radio France International award. Although the band had performed sporadically outside of Mali, this award funded their first full tour abroad. The success of this tour brought Koite into contact with many important figures in the world music business, and soon Koite was offered a chance to record his first solo album, Muso Ko (1995 - Contre Jour), which was released under the name Habib Koite & Bamada.
Muso Ko was a well received and formidable debut effort on the part of Koite and his group Bamada. From the first sounds of his guitar, Koite establishes himself as a unique voice of guitar. One can hear his signature pentatonic open tunings and subtle yet evocative guitar picking technique. Many critics of world music have tried to classify this album as rock, but the sounds and influences of African music and griot tradition are far too prevalent to be constricted by such obvious labels. The backing band is comprised of some of Mali's finest players, including Baba Sissoko, whose virtuosic talking drum playing is one of the highlights of the album. Koite's second album, Ma Ya (1998 - Contre Jour), finds him making a clean break from the sound of his previous effort; a move that would startle many listeners and critics of world music. The same critics that were labeling his initial release as rock, were now screaming the blues. The overall vibe of the album is much more subdued, where the former was lively, and introspective, where the elder was expressive. Koite also began to incorporate more of the traditional acoustic elements of his roots. This new combination of sounds quickly catapulted the album to number one on the world music charts. Ma Ya has become the album most closely associated with Koite.
Through these early years of Koite's success, he maintained a vigorous touring schedule, and many have credited this to his constantly growing popularity. In 2001, Koite released the album, Baro (2001 - Putumayo). This record finds Koite reaching further into the sounds of acoustic guitar. Many listeners have commented that the production style had grown too slick, and that Koite had become open to some the euro pop trappings that often plague weaker artists on the world music scene. Regardless, the album is still a strong artistic statement and fine example of Malian styled guitar playing.
Koite has built a reputation for himself as a constant touring musician and that fact comes to light on his album, Foly! Live Around the World (2004 - World Village), which displays the raw talent of Bamada, who, through the course of hundreds of times of performing their material, developed innovative ways to interpret their own canon of work.
Koite's most recent release is Afriki (2007 - Cumbancha), which has already gained many praises and claims that this is his finest work yet. He has continued to embrace the textures and sounds of acoustic instrumentation yet has managed to weave in many elements of other cultures, to create something wholly new. Although the rate of releases from Koite and his group seem sparse, their sparkling professionality can be attributed to Koite's now legendary perfectionist tendencies.