Falato

Massa Dembele is a singer-songwriter, griot, percussionist, and master of the Kamele N'Goni, a traditional West African harp. Falatô is his third studio album. He grew up in Nouna, the provincial capital of western Burkina Faso, which he left nine years ago to share his music with an international audience. His journey first took him to Ghana, where he recorded his debut album for the Canadian label Izniz. Today, he lives between Hamburg and Constance. "Falatô" is his first album with an expanded lineup. Drums, bass, guitar, vibrant synthesizer solos, punchy horns, and above all, Massa Dembele's voice and Kamele N'Goni: recorded in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, with local musicians, the album blends Afrobeat and jazz, West African soul, desert blues, and griot music. The album evokes both Fela Kuti and Ali Farka Touré, while bearing a deeply personal signature: Massa Dembele's raw and powerful voice, along with the hypnotic cascades of his N'Goni, give it an instantly recognizable identity.