Death is Terrible: Oumou Sangaré and "Saa Magni"

Oumou Sangaré performs today's random tune. A Grammy award winning Malian singer dubbed "The Songbird of Wassoulou," Sangaré is inspired by the music and traditional dances of her Wassoulou region. Her musical career began at an early age when she sang in the streets to help her mother earn money. At five years old she won a singing contest in Bamako and then performed before thousands at a local arena. Later, at 16, she toured Europe and the Caribbean with the percussion group Djoliba and her reception on that tour convinced her to start her own group. Her first album in 1990 was very successful and she caught the attention of Malian legend Ali Farka Touré, who helped her sign with a major record label. An advocate for women's rights who opposes child marriage and polygamy, her songs often have themes of love and freedom of choice in marriage. She has also used her fame and revenue to become a businesswoman who owns hotels, has launched her own car model with a Chinese firm, and agricultural ventures. She is a UN Goodwill Ambassador for the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, and she has collaborated with musicians such as Béla Fleck and Herbie Hancock. This song, Saa Magni, can be found on her 1993 album Ko Sira (released as Bi Furu in Mali), and on the 2003 greatest hits compilation Oumou. The song is an ode to the premature death of a friend.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oumou_Sangar%C3%A9