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 and Mariam, has died aged 70.
The Malian Ministry of Culture “learned with concern of the passing of artist Amadou Bagayoko this Friday,” it said in a statement read on state television on Saturday.
“Amadou was a blind man who made his mark on the Malian and international scene.”
Bagayoko died in the city of Bamako, his birthplace. His stepson Youssouf Fadiga told AFP news agency the musician “had been ill for a while” but did not specify what the ailment was. He is survived by Mariam, who was also his wife, and son, Sam, also a musician.
‘The blind couple from Mali’
Dubbed “the blind couple from Mali”, Amadou and Mariam became one of Africa’s best-selling and beloved couples, playing alongside the likes of Damon Albarn of Blur and Gorillaz, and Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour – a childhood idol.
Born in 1954, Bagayoko went blind when he was 15 because of a congenital cataract. He studied music at Mali’s Institute for the Young Blind where he met his future wife, Mariam Doumbia. The couple formed their band Mali’s Blind Couple in 1980, making their mark locally and internationally.
At the start, they sang songs to raise awareness of the problems facing their peers living with blindness and disabilities before their blend of traditional African influences with elements of rock, blues and pop won them a global following.
They produced more than 10 award-winning albums, including France’s Victoire de la Musique, in 2005 for Dimanche a Bamako and again in 2013 for Folila. Dimanche a Bamako also won them one of the BBC Radio Awards for World Music in 2006.
Their 2008 album, Welcome to Mali, was nominated for Best Contemporary World Music Album at the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album.
They opened for British band Coldplay in 2009, and performed at the Nobel Peace Prize concert that same year when US President Barack Obama was awarded the prize.
Bagayogo’s last world-class performance with Doumbia was at the closing ceremony of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
French-born Spanish musician Manu Chao, who produced the album Dimanche a Bamako, offered his condolences online, alongside other international artists. “Amadou! We’ll always be together … with you wherever you go,” he said.
“I will never forget his friendship,” said Senegalese singer-songwriter Youssou N’Dour. “My thoughts are with my dear Mariam.”
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