Iconic Malian musician Amadou Bagayoko of Amadou & Mariam dies at 70

Grammy-nominated Malian musician Amadou Bagayoko, who won global fame by moulding traditional West African sounds with Western rock and pop influences as one half of the blind duo Amadou & Mariam, has died aged 70, the Malian government said.

The ministry of culture “learned with concern of the passing of artist Amadou Bagayoko this Friday,” it said in a statement read on state television. “Amadou was a blind man who made his mark on the Malian and international scene.”

Bagayoko was born in Bamako in 1954 and played music from an early age. 

He met his wife and musical partner Mariam Doumbia at the Institute for Young Blind People in Bamako in the 1970s, according to Radio France Internationale.

Their 2004 album “Dimanche a Bamako” (Sunday in Bamako) put them on the international map and the 2008 release “Welcome To Mali” was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album.

They opened for British band Coldplay in 2009, performed at the Nobel Peace Prize concert that same year, when U.S. President Barack Obama was awarded the prize, and played to crowds at some of the world’s biggest music festivals, including Glastonbury in the UK.

They also composed the official song for the 2006 soccer World Cup.

International artists offered their condolences online.

“Amadou! We’ll always be together ... with you wherever you go,” said French-born Spanish musician Manu Chao, who produced “Dimanche a Bamako”.

“I will never forget his friendship,” said Senegalese singer-songwriter Youssou N’Dour. “My thoughts are with my dear Mariam.”

Source: Reuters
--Agencies