:Mory Kanté

Kanté was born in Albadaria, French Guinea (a part of French West Africa at the time) on 29 March 1950. His father was El Hadj Djeli Fodé Kanté and his mother, Fatouma Kamissoko, was a singer.{{cite news|title=Mory Kanté: Guinean musician dies aged 70 from chronic health problems|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/may/22/mory-kante-guinean-musician-dies-aged-70-from-chronic-health-problems|first=Laura|last=Snapes|date=22 May 2020|access-date=23 May 2020|newspaper=The Guardian|location=London}} They were one of Guinea's best known families of griot (hereditary) musicians.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-52774331|title=Mory Kanté: African music star dies aged 70|date=22 May 2020|access-date=22 May 2020|publisher=BBC News}} He was of mixed Malian and Guinean descent. After being brought up in the Mandinka griot tradition in Guinea, he was sent to Mali at the age of seven years – where he learned to play the kora, as well as important voice traditions, some of which are necessary to become a griot. As a Muslim, he integrated aspects of Islamic music in his work.

In 1971 Kanté became a member of the Rail Band, in which Salif Keita was a singer. Keïta left the band in 1973, leaving Kanté as the singer.

In 1987, he released the song "Yé ké yé ké", which was one of Africa's best-ever selling hits as well as being a European number-one in 1988, making it the first ever African single to sell over one million copies.{{cite news| url= https://www.dw.com/en/guinean-singer-mory-kante-dies-at-70/a-53537965| title= Guinean singer Mory Kante dies at 70| work=Deutsche Welle| date=22 May 2020| access-date=22 May 2020}} The album it came from, Akwaba Beach, became the best-selling African record of its time. The album also featured an Islamic song, "Inch Allah", alongside the pop hit "Yé ké yé ké". The album also featured the song "Tama", which inspired two Indian Bollywood songs, "Tamma Tamma" in Thanedaar (1990) and "Jumma Chumma" in Hum (1991), the latter film also featuring another song "Ek Doosre Se" which was inspired by "Inch Allah".{{Cite web |url=https://www.filmcompanion.in/music/how-guinean-singer-mory-kantes-music-was-lifted-to-create-tamma-tamma-loge-and-jumma-chumma-de-de/ |title=How Guinean Singer Mory Kanté's Music Was Lifted To Create 'Tamma Tamma Loge' and 'Jumma Chumma De De' |last=Srinivasan |first=Karthik |date=16 October 2018 |website=Film Companion |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200606090031/https://www.filmcompanion.in/music/how-guinean-singer-mory-kantes-music-was-lifted-to-create-tamma-tamma-loge-and-jumma-chumma-de-de/ |archive-date=6 June 2020 |url-status=live |access-date=16 October 2018}}

Kanté received unexpected fame again in 1994 when the German techno duo Hardfloor created a dance remix of "Yéké Yéké."{{cite news|title=Change the record|url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2004/oct/15/5|first=Dorian|last=Lynskey|date=15 October 2004|access-date=23 May 2020|newspaper=The Guardian|location=London}}{{cite news|title=Mory Kanté au FIJM: fin de parcours en Afrique|url=https://www.lapresse.ca/arts/spectacles/200809/08/01-666219-mory-kante-au-fijm-fin-de-parcours-en-afrique.php|date=7 July 2008|access-date=23 May 2020|first=Philippe|last=Renaud|newspaper=La Presse|location=Montreal}} {{in lang|fr}} He also appeared in 2006 as vocalist on British DJ Darren Tate's release, "Narama".{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/x3f9/|title=Review of DT8 Project – Perfect World|first=Rob|last=Crossan|year=2007|access-date=23 May 2020|work=BBC Music|publisher=BBC}}

On 16 October 2001, Kanté was nominated Goodwill Ambassador of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). He participated in that year's World Food Day ceremony at the FAO's headquarters in Rome, alongside fellow singers Majida El Roumi, Gilberto Gil, and Albano Carrisi (who were also nominated as ambassadors).{{cite news|url=https://news.un.org/en/story/2001/10/17252-un-agency-name-new-ambassadors-world-food-day|title=UN agency to name new ambassadors on World Food Day|date=12 October 2001|access-date=23 May 2020|work=UN News|publisher=United Nations}}

Kanté was among Africa's top musicians – including Tiken Jah Fakoly, Amadou & Mariam and the rapper Didier Awadi – that banded together for the recording of "Africa Stop Ebola", a song offering sound advice aimed at raising awareness in the wake of the Ebola crisis.{{cite web|last=Kozinn|first=Allan|work=The New York Times ArtsBeat|title=How to Protect Yourself From Ebola, in Song|url=http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/10/29/how-to-protect-yourself-from-ebola-in-song|date=29 October 2014|access-date=14 October 2015 }} The song, released in November 2014, transcended public service announcements and sold 250,000 copies with all proceeds going to medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF).{{cite journal|journal= Reuters|title="Avoid stigmatising Africa," musician says as W.Africa Ebola song launched|last=Hussain|first=Misha|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/health-ebola-song-idUSL6N0TE11N20141124|date=24 November 2014|access-date=14 October 2015 }}

Kanté died on 22 May 2020 at a hospital in Conakry at the age of 70. He was suffering from chronic illnesses in the last years of his life and often received treatment in France. This ceased to be possible following the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in that country. He is buried at Conakry Kipe's cemetery.{{cn|date=June 2020}}

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• Courougnegne (1981)
• N'Diarabi (1982)
• A Paris (1984)
• 10 Cola Nuts (1986)
• Akwaba Beach (1987) (#1 SUI; #13 GER; #43 SWE)
• Touma (1990)
• Nongo Village (1993)
• Tatebola (1996)
• Tamala – Le Voyageur (2001)
• Best Of (2002)
• Sabou (2004)
• La Guinéenne (2012)

• The Rough Guide to Acoustic Africa (2013, World Music Network)
• In 1980, Queen Asabia Cropper 's brother Kenteman played bass guitar on Mory Kante's first  Original album N'diarabi, Courougnene and Bankiero recorded by  Eboni  Records Company in Cote D'ivoire.

• "Yé ké yé ké" (1988) (#1 in Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, and Israel; #2 in Germany and Switzerland; #5 in France, #10 in Austria; #12 in Sweden; #29 in the UK)
• "Tama" (1988) (#44 in Germany)
• "Yéké Yéké" (remix) (1995) (#97 in Australia,{{cite web|url=http://i.imgur.com/DaLtrDE.jpg|title=The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart – Week Ending 11 Jun 1995|publisher=Imgur.com (original document published by ARIA)|access-date=25 April 2017}} #25 in the UK)
• "Yéké Yéké" (remix) (1996) (#28 in the UK)

{{Reflist}}

{{commons category}}

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20080414183950/http://www.morykante.com/ Official website]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20051108162638/http://www.mondomix.com/en/artist.php?artist_id=761 Mory Kanté at Mondomix]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20051214221643/http://leopardmannen.no/k/kante.mory.asp?lang=gb Mory Kanté at Leopardmannen]
• {{Discogs artist|Mory Kanté}}

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Category:1950 births

Category:2020 deaths

Category:Guinean Kora players

Category:Guinean male singers

Category:Guinean Muslims

Category:21st-century Malian male singers

Category:Malian Muslims

Category:People from Faranah Region

Category:20th-century Malian male singers