A part of Dalston African Week!
This truly remarkable Senegalese blues outfit draws elements from the rich Fula tradition interwoven with Rumba, Mbalax, Afro-Latin and deep blues.
Abdoulaye SAMB is a guitarist, singer, composer, born in Senegal. He began music by the beaches of his country, fabricating his own instrument from scratch, with fishing lines as strings. The result had a sound evocating those of traditionnal west african instruments such as Ngoni. He taught himself until members of the griot Cissokho family noticed him, and offered him a guitar and their teachings. He went travelling around west Africa to learn different traditions and cultures. He then played with many artists and groups such as Assane Mboup, Abdou Diop, Salam Diallo, Daby Balde, Abou Thiouballo, Baaba Maal.
He then started making his own music and founded his own band Minnjiaraby in 2001, that led him to play festivals across France, Spain, Germany and UK. Minnjiaraby (meaning the Love of cultural mixing in Wolof) plays an original music blending Mbalax, Senegalese Blues and Afro acoustic, deeply rooted in Fula and Mandinka cultures. The music has grown from Abdoulaye’s travels, collaborations and encounters in Africa and Europe.