Today marks the North American release of singer/songwriter Fatoumata Diawara’s debut album, Fatou. Diawara, who was raised in Mali and now lives in Paris, has been receiving rave reviews since the album’s release in the UK and Europe last year. The Telegraph calls her “the most beguiling talent to hit the world music scene in some time” and says “this stylish debut doesn’t put a foot wrong,” while the Times of London says “the air of wistful, understated beauty draws you in,” and Mojo calls her a “spell-weaving new voice.” The album was No. 1 on the European world music chart for six months. The New York Daily News includes Fatou at No. 2 on its list of the Top 10 Things on CD this week.
To pick up a copy of Fatou, head to iTunes and Amazon, or the Nonesuch Store, where CD orders include a download of the complete album at checkout.
Diawara will tour the US in September, starting at the Cityfolk festival in Dayton, Ohio, and making stops in New York City, Chicago, Washington, DC, Indiana, New Hampshire, and North Carolina. See below for all of the currently scheduled tour dates, and visit nonesuch.com/on-tour for additional details and ticket links.
Before the launch of the US tour, Fatoumata Diawara will be joining the Africa Express tour for a second year in a row as it makes stops across the UK, September 3–8, along with Toumani Diabaté and Tony Allen, who both make guest appearances on Fatou, Amadou & Mariam, Bassekou Koyate (of AfroCubism fame), Damon Albarn, and more. For additional details, go to africaexpress.co.uk. Diawara recently spoke with the Guardian about the tour and more at guardian.co.uk.
Fatoumata Diawara fought her parents’ opposition to her artistic career, and her culture’s attitudes toward women, to act in theater and film before beginning her musical career. She sang backup for, among others, fellow Malian and label mate Oumou Sangare before striking out on her own. Diawara sets to music lyrics touching on serious and personal subjects, using elements of jazz, pop, and funk along with her ancestral Wassoulou tradition in her songwriting and arrangements, accompanying her voice with rhythmical guitar playing and her own percussion work.
FATOUMATA DIAWARA ON TOUR IN NORTH AMERICA
| Sep 20 |
Cityfolk Festival |
Dayton, OH
|
| Sep 21&22 |
Lotus World Music & Arts Festival |
Bloomington, IN
|
| Sep 23&24 |
World Music Festival |
Chicago, IL
|
| Sep 27 |
Dana Center, Saint Anselm College |
Manchester, NH
|
| Sep 28 |
Michael Schimmel Center for the Arts, Pace University |
New York, NY
|
| Sep 29 |
Hopkins Center, Dartmouth College |
Hanover, NH
|
| Oct 5 |
Atlas Performing Arts Center |
Washington, DC
|
| Oct 6&7 |
Shakori Hills GrassRoots Festival |
Pittsboro, NC
|
