Amadou Kienou is the 7th son of a family of praise singers from the Dafing origin, originating from a tribe which formed a part of the ancient Mandingue Empire. This tribe extends to Burkina Faso, Guinea and Mali.

Amadou, born in Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso, was initiated into music mostly by his father the late Baba Kienou who distinguished himself in the sixties as a traditional praise singer and musician.

At a young age, Amadou showed particular interest and great skill in the Djembe, and due to his deep and varied Mandingue repertoire and mastery of traditional instruments is now referred to as “the Drum Master of Burkina Faso.”

Amadou has toured extensively and collaborated with many of the world’s top artists in his musical genre including Miriam Makeba, Manu Dibango, Angélique Kidjo, Kassav, Youssou N’dour, and Salif Keita. His recorded albums include AYA FO (1999), SYA (2004) and TAABALI (2006). In 2011 Amadou was awarded Best African Artist of the year at the renowned International FESPACO festival and won in two categories of the Kilimandjaro Music Awards in 2017.


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Small World Music brings lunchtime artists to Union Summer - Presented by TD every Wednesday from May 31st - August 3rd. Union Summer features free daily programming on the TD Stage, handpicked from local artists and cultural organizations. Follow @torontounion @td_canada #tdunionsummer.