Fatoumata Diawara

Fatoumata Diawara

Fatoumata Diawara is a Malian musician and actor, born in 1982 in Côte d'Ivoire to Malian parents and later based in France. She begins her career in performance before moving into music, and her work combines Wassalou traditions from southern Mali with wider international influences.

Acting career

Diawara moves to France to pursue acting and appears in Cheikh Oumar Cissoko’s film La Genèse and Dani Kouyaté’s Sia, le rêve du python. She also performs with the street theatre company Royal Deluxe and takes a leading role in the musical Kirikou et Karaba.

Music

After taking up the guitar, Diawara starts writing her own songs. She is noted for a distinctive voice and records or performs with Oumou Sangaré, AfroCubism, Dee Dee Bridgewater on Red Earth: A Malian Journey, and the Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou. Her self-titled debut album, Fatou, is released on World Circuit, and she also releases an EP in 2011. Her label affiliations include World Circuit and Nare Productions, and she is a member of Lamomali.