ACCES highlights: Baaba Maal

ACCES 2017 keynote speaker Baaba Maal epitomises what the conference aims to encapsulate: the need for African countries to connect with each other, to share knowledge, exchange information, appreciate each other’s work and recognise the benefits of active global networks.

The 63-year-old musician, who was born in the northern Senegalese town of Podor, believes that music is an important tool to get messages out to people, and is a living testament to that philosophy.

Baaba Maal has released 11 studio albums as part of an illustrious career spanning three decades. Since his first album release in the late 1980s, the versatile musicians has forged an eclectic style blending Afro-pop, dance, worldbeat, traditional Senegalese music, folk and desert blues.

The singer and guitarist was nominated in the Best World Music Category for Firin’ In Fouta at the 1996 Grammy Awards and has worked with such names as Mansour Seck, Mumford & Sons, Andy Shephard and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Chris Blackwell.

“We are honoured to have Baaba Maal as the keynote speaker for ACCES 2017,” Music In Africa Foundation director Eddie Hatitye said.

“He is an iconic African musician whose outstanding body of work has propelled African music immensely on the global map. He has so much to offer to anyone in the industry and it is such a privilege to have him share his vast knowledge and wisdom in what will probably be the most important talk of the event.”

About ACCES

The Music In Africa Conference for Collaborations, Exchange and Showcases (ACCES) is an annual music conference that hosts industry players from across the African continent. ACCES 2017 will be held in Dakar, Senegal, on 17 and 18 November and will see music professionals converge on the Senegalese capital to exchange ideas, discover new talent and accelerate the shaping of the music sector on the continent. The conference offers training workshops, panel discussions, presentations, networking sessions, exhibitions, showcases, concerts and visits to key music industry hubs in Dakar.

For more information, or if you would like to attend the conference, visit the ACCES 2017 official website.