Oumou Sangaré – 9:00 PM

Since the release of her debut album Moussoulou in 1989, there’s been no slowing down for the Malian singer Oumou Sangaré. Notable way-marks on her rich and fruitful journey include some of the most definitive recordings in the history of contemporary African music, all released on the World Circuit label: Ko Sira in 1993, Worotan in 1996, and Seya in 2009, the latter nominated for a Grammy in the Best World Music Album category.

Timbuktu, the first release on her own Oumsang label, is the latest act in this unparalleled musical epic. The album consecrates this artist who rose up from the poor neighborhoods of Bamako to become a global superstar and universally admired feminist icon. With the powerful aura of a Grace Jones, black transgressive icon par excellence, Sangaré has long since broken through the barriers that separate continents and musical styles. She was once invited by Alicia Keys to sing a duet on TV, and today is often held up as an example by artists as notable as Aya Nakamura (who dedicated the song ‘Oumou Sangaré’ to her in 2017), or Beyoncé (who sampled one of Sangaré’s most famous creations, ‘Diaraby Néné’, for her song ‘Mood 4 Eva’).

“Music is within me,” Sangaré declares. “Without it, I’m nothing, and nothing can take it away from me! I’ve put my life into this record, my whole life–this life in which I’ve known hunger, the humiliation of poverty and fear, and from which today, I draw glory.”

Oumou Sangaré Website
(Ticket Includes 5% City of Santa Cruz Admission Tax)