Mamadou Kouyaté is a Malian bass ngoni player and griot from the Mande culture of southern Mali. The eldest son of ngoni master Bassekou Kouyaté, he also holds down the groove in his father's band Ngoni Ba. As a member of the griot super-group Trio Da Kali - founded in 2013 under the Aga Khan Music Programme - he keeps the storytelling tradition of the Mande jeli alive, a heritage rooted in the Mali empire of the 13th century.
Trio Da Kali performs on March 16, 2026 at SPOT De Oosterpoort in Groningen, Netherlands.
Trio Da Kali releases their first full solo album Bagola on February 28, 2025 via One World Records.
The Dutch music magazine Written in Music rates Bagola with 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Trio Da Kali plays a series of concerts in the United Kingdom in October 2025, including in Manchester, Cardiff and Bristol.
Trio Da Kali and Kronos Quartet release the award-winning collaborative album Ladilikan via World Circuit Records.
