L’épopée du Mandingue – Kouyate Sory Kandia, 1972

🇬🇳 🎤 🪘 🥁 📜 Kouyate Sory Kandia, hailing from a distinguished family of Guinean griots, is himself one of the great traditional voices of West Africa. He joined Sékou Touré even before Guinea’s independence and became the musical ambassador of the revolution. From 1972 onwards, under the official label Editions Syliphone Conakry—established in 1967 by the government—he released a series of albums dedicated to the Epic of Mandingue, of which this is the first volume. His powerful voice, blending song and incantation, is supported by his traditional trio, featuring Sidiki Diabaté on the kora (grandfather of the current namesake, who is also a kora player and hip-hop producer) and Kouyate Dyeli Sory on the balafon. Kouyate passionately conveys a centuries-old African tradition, revisiting classic pieces from the repertoire—often warrior hymns (Douga, Kedo, Dyandjon) or the romantic fable Massané Cissé, which has been interpreted by many artists over the years. I recall two other notable versions: one by the late Soriba Kouyaté on his 1999 album Kanakassi, and another by Bago on his 2016 album Afrodescendant.