In 1988, European clubs were playing a song built on a kora, the West African harp, with a dance beat underneath. “Yéké Yéké” by Mory Kanté climbed to the top of the charts in several countries.
Mory Kanté was born in 1950 in Guinea into a family of griots, the hereditary musicians and storytellers of the Mande world. He learned the balafon and the guitar as a child and later the kora, the 21-string harp that is one of the signature instruments of Mande music. The player plucks it with the thumb and index finger of each hand while the other fingers grip the handposts.
The Rail Band
As a young man, Kanté moved to Bamako, Mali, where he joined the Rail Band, the famous orchestra based at the railway station hotel. He became its lead singer after Salif Keita left in the 1970s.
Paris and Akwaba Beach
In the 1980s, Kanté moved to Paris, which had become a centre for African musicians. He combined the kora and griot vocals with modern pop and dance production. His album Akwaba Beach, released in 1987, included “Yéké Yéké”.
The song became a hit across Europe in 1988 and is often described as the first African single to sell more than a million copies. It was later remixed many times. The German techno duo Hardfloor released a remix in 1995 that took it into rave clubs, and the track has been reworked by DJs ever since.
The griot tradition
Griots, called djeli in Mande languages, have for centuries kept the history, genealogy and songs of their communities. Kanté remained proud of this heritage, even as he brought it to pop audiences. His music combined the prestige of the griot with the energy of the dance floor.
Later work
Kanté continued to record and tour. He was appointed an ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, working on hunger issues. He returned to live in Guinea and built a cultural centre in Conakry.
He died in Conakry in May 2020, at the age of 70.
Legacy
“Yéké Yéké” opened doors for other African artists in Europe and showed that traditional instruments could work in modern dance music. Many producers have sampled or remixed it.
Play it at an African party today and the older guests will head for the floor. They remember the year the kora was in the charts.
