Amadou & Mariam

The Mali duo's success story continues: this March, they come to Amsterdam's Melkweg to present their new album Folila, which boasts a large number of interesting collaborations.

Afroblues

Amadou & Mariam's unique brand of pop music has come to be known as Afroblues. The genre mixes the traditional Mali sound with bluesy guitars and rhythms as well as various instruments from all over the world such as Syrian violins, Cuban trumpets and Indian tablas.

Rise to global fame

The duo, both blind since their childhood, met at Mali's Institute for the Young Blind and began making music together in the early 80s. Their rise to global fame began at the end of the last decade - in 2009 they played the main stage at Glastonbury, and in 2010 they were the official opening act for the World Cup in South Africa.

Folila

Amadou & Mariam's new album Folila is set to be released this March. It features collaborations with artists as diverse as Santigold, TV on the Radio, Amp Fiddler and Theophilus London.