Biography
Amadou Balaké (born Amadou Traoré, 1944 – 2014), was a popular singer from Burkina Faso, known throughout West Africa. During his career, which spanned over 50 years, Balake recorded and performed in various parts of Africa as well as in New York and Paris. His music combined different traditions from his homeland, such as Dioula (Mandé), Mossi, as well as Afro-Cuban music.
Amadou Traoré was born on March 8, 1944, in Ouahigouya, Yatenga, in present-day Burkina Faso, under French rule at the time. In 1952, as his father had died, he moved with his mother to the capital Ouagadougou, where he became interested in music. He spent six years working with his brother as a driver in Mali, before returning to Ouagadougou in 1961 to work as a taxi driver. In 1962 he began his professional career, playing in different orchestras in Bamako, Abidjan, Cancan and Conakry throughout the decade. He joined the Ouagadougou-based band Harmonie Voltaïque and scored a hit with his song "Balaké"; at that time he changed his name to Balaké. He then became a vocalist for the Super Volta orchestra and in 1970 formed the band Amadou Balaké and the 5 Consuls with whom he recorded his first album in the mid-1970s.
In 1979 Balake traveled to New York, where he recorded two albums. In 1982, his single "Taximan n'est pas gentil" won him a gold record in Ivory Coast. In 2000, he was invited to join the Senegalese salsa group Africando on their album Mandali. After the success of the record, he became the official singer of the band,
Balake died on August 27, 2014, in Ouagadougou. His last album, recorded in 2013; it was released posthumously in 2015.