Habib Koité

About Habib Koité

Bamako guitarist who built one of Mali's most internationally legible bands in Bamada and was the country's first Putumayo-distributed star. His acoustic guitar approach, drawing on the multiple traditions Mali contains rather than any single one, made him a regular fixture at Festival au Désert and on European concert circuits through the 2000s. The album Ma Ya (1998) and the live touring through the 2010s built his audience well beyond Mali's diaspora.