Mory started his traditional education with his father, El Hadj Djelifode, leader of the griots of Kissidougou, who lived to the age of 109. Mory was one of the youngest of his thirty-eight children. He went to a French school and learned to play the balafon, the Kanté family's emblematic instrument. The jalis say that Sumaworo Kanté, the king of Sosso, used to possess a very powerful djo, the Sosso Bala – a balafon (or rather a bala as the word balafon refers to the bala player) kept in a secret ritual hut.

According to the legend he gave this balafon to his griot saying these words: ‘Bala Fasseke Kouyate.’ Mory sings that story magnificently in ‘Exil Of Sundiata’, an epic 25 minutes piece recorded in 1975 at the time when he was part of the Bamako Rail Band. ‘Every balafon is tuned with that one. That balafon exists and there still is a place for it today’, Mory explains. ‘It's one of the first enchanted instruments. But it is wrong to say that Sumaworo Kanté’s balafon was a fetish. It’s a means of communication between what people can see and listen to and what people can neither see nor listen to.

The young griot's initiation began at the age of 15. Mory was sent to Bamako, the capital of Mali, to live with his aunt, the griot Manamba Kamissoko (one of the singers from the Mali National Instrumental Ensemble) married to the twins Fouceny and Lanssana Diabate. For several years, across the Mande, the young boy undertook the initiatory journeys necessary to become a griot – a succession of difficult ordeals (that were not solely musical) to complete his education.

Back in town, Mory had time to enthusiastically explore the different styles of music pouring in from the rest of the world – chachacha and mambo from Cuba, rumba from the Congo, soul from America, pop from England, yéyé's from France… Mory Kanté adored the guitar and managed extremely well as balafonist, guitarist and singer for the Apollos, a group that performed during wedding festivities. With this reference to James Brown's celebrated Live At The Apollo recording, Mory already indicated a preference for the funky music that he would continue to draw upon for inspiration.

Mory was spotted by Tidiane Kone, the saxophonist and conductor of the the Rail Band that had been formed in 1969 in order to liven up the highly esteemed Buffet De La Gare of Bamako. Mory joined the group in 1971 as guitarist and balafonist. The singer at that time was Salif Keïta. In 1973 when the latter left to join the rival group the Ambassadors, Mory replaced him on the microphone. He tried himself out on a large variety of styles and notably excelled in the pure funk music inspired by James Brown, such as ‘Moko Jolo’ (recorded in 1974 with the Rail Band and revived in 1993 on his album Nongo Village) and in the Mande-style Afrobeat works like ‘Dugu Kamleba’ (1974), dedicated to Fela.

In Bamako, Mory discovered the kora – a large harp-lute that comes from the region of Gabu through which the Gambie River flows. He learned to master the instrument without taking any lessons. His efforts were rewarded on a day in 1974 when the Malian music and spiritual master Batrou Sekou Kouyate gave him the kora that accompanies him on all the stages he performs on throughout the world. Starting in 1975, the already famous Rail Band started to tour in all West Africa. In 1976, Mory was awarded the Voix d'Or (Golden Voice) trophy in Nigeria. The following year, he decided to complete his training as a griot by going to see the masters of the tradition in the major historical sites in Mande.

After leaving the Rail Band, Mory Kanté settled in Abidjan in 1978. It was there that he developed what was going to become the mark of originality in his music and one of the keys to his success. ‘I opted for doing research on the sounds of traditional African instruments: the balafon, the violin, the bolon and especially the kora’, Mory recounts. ‘At a time when all orchestras were equipping themselves with modern instruments (guitars, keyboards…) I thought it was a shame to leave aside all these treasures.’

With a small traditional ensemble (balafon, djembe, 5 stringed bolon), Mory Kanté (kora and vocals) provided the musical entertainment at the Climbier, which at the time was a renowned club in Abidjan. International stars, such as Barry White and Johnny Pacheco, also performed there. Mory's acoustic arrangements for international hits surprised and seduced the director of the American label Ebony Records, Gerard Chess, who decided to produce his first record, Courougnegne, in 1981. 

The artist's reputation was beginning to spread throughout Africa. It gained a new dimension in 1982 when he directed the Mande ballet (composed of seventy-five traditional and modern artists) on the stage of the French cultural centre in Abidjan. A scaled-down version of this creation was part of the legendary show that French singer Jacques Higelin presented in the Bercy stadium-concert hall in Paris in the fall of 1985.

Mory Kanté went to France in 1984. Finding a place in the sun in the city of lights was not a simple matter – especially without a residence permit… A quasi-traditional version of ‘Yéké Yéké’ was presented on his album Mory Kanté In Paris, which was a façon-façon (home-made style) recording. Two years after having practically started out again from scratch, Mory's enormous talent had won him a place in the sun. The concerts that he gave with his electric kora received unanimous praise from the critics. 

In 1985, he contributed to the musical track of the French film Black Mic Mac. He was also one of thirty African artists in Paris who took part in the Tam Tam For Ethiopia adventure organised by Manu Dibango. It was on that occasion that he met Philippe Constantin, then one of the foremost talent discoverers for the young musical scene in France. Convinced of Mory's potential, Philippe offered him a contract for an album in 1986, when he was handed over the reins of Barclay Productions.

The album 10 Cola Nuts, co-produced by the American pianist Davis Sancious, was hailed by the critics and nominated for the French Victoires De La Musique, in 1986. The touring rhythm accelerated: Europe, North Africa, Mali, Senegal, the USA… Mory Kanté was able to find an ideal balance in crossover music and the Western public was ready to welcome these sounds, which opened up new horizons for it. 

‘Yéké Yéké’ was re-recorded in a shorter version (faster, electric and more conducive to dancing) for the album Akwaba Beach in 1987. The song's dazzling success took everyone by surprise. The sales soared to more than a million singles and half a million albums and its listing on the hit parades around the world multiplied. When ‘Yéké Yéké’ reached the top spot on the Pan-European charts in Billboard magazine (USA) in 1988, the griot from Kissidougou had succeeded in giving African music the place it rightfully deserves

On 14 July 1990, French Bastille Day, Mory Kanté, former illegal alien, represented France alongside Khaled on a huge stage in the heart of Central Park in front of tens of thousands of New Yorkers. And a few months later, on the occasion of the Gala De La Francophonie, he had the joy of treading on the stage of the legendary Apollo Theater in Harlem. The album Touma (The Moment), which was released that year and was produced by Nick Patrick, achieved gold status in France. 

The following year, for the inaugural ceremony for the Grande Arche de la Défence in Paris, Mory Kanté was asked to present his Symphony of Guinea, to be interpreted by 130 griot musicians, both male and female traditional singers. This event foreshadows the project that Mory, than 41 years old, dreamed about in secret – the creation in Africa of an important musical city for the promotion of the Mande culture. He had already given it a name – Nongo Village.

To start out, Mory built his studio on land that he had acquired in the vicinity of Conakry. It was there that he recorded the basic part of his new album for Barclay, Nongo Village, which was to be released at the end of 1993. The next year, he toured both in Europe and in Canada. He was also awarded the Griot d'Or in Paris, and the Prix Kilimandjaro by Africa n°1 (the ‘number one’ Franco-African radio station in France). But Mory Kanté is mostly preoccupied by the realisation of his project, which was extremely ambitious within the context of the Guinean economy.

Mory regained his artistic independence and his autonomy as a producer in order to assure the realisation of his album Tatebola, released in 1996. The title song was chosen by Canal France International as the signature tune for the Mundial 98. The musical tours continued across the world, notably with WOMAD, while the City project started to take form in Conakry, in a neighbourhood that the population was soon to baptise ‘Mory Kanté a’. 

‘I want to help to industrialise African music and culture through this project’, explains the singer. ‘It will include a major music school where traditional instruments will be taught, and where training programs will be offered in related fields; there will be a show business agency, three recording studios, and an audiovisual studio where artistic and cultural programs can be created. The tourist sector will offer a hotel, equipped with a club and a theatre. In addition, accommodation will be available for the crews that will come to work in the recording studios.’

In 2000, Leonardo Di Caprio called upon Mory Kanté for the musical track of his film, The Beach, which includes a remix of ‘Yéké Yéké’. In December, he was invited to the Vatican to participate in the festivities of the Pope's jubilee. Following this interesting experience for a Muslim, in early 2001 Mory Kanté undertook the recording of his new album, Tamala (Le Voyageur), which includes a duet on the song ‘Nin Kadi’ with the popular and exceptionally talented English R&B singer Shola Ama. The album placed number one for October and November 2001 in the World Music Charts of Europe.

On World Food Day, 16 October 2001, Mory Kanté was appointed F.A.O. (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) Ambassador to help in the mission to fight hunger to reduce poverty worldwide.

In 2002 Mory Kanté hit the road to promote his new album Tamala (Le Voyageur). His tour included forty-eight shows, many of them recorded for broadcast, in fifteen European countries. He was consistently well received by the public who danced throughout the shows. He also performed in South Africa (Robin Island and twice in Johannesburg) and Morocco (Rabat and Casablanca). Some of the highlights of the tour were his headlining of the Fete De La Musique in Nice, France, his performance of ‘Nin Kadi’ in concert with Shola Ama, his concert in Geneva for the UN Gala and his participation in the F.A.O. Telefood concert in Johannesburg.

Another highlight for Mory Kanté in 2002 was his participation as narrator for a special television show to bring awareness to F.A.O. work to fight hunger and poverty throughout the world. The show was broadcast in 188 countries on World Food Day 2002.

In the same year, Mory Kanté was invited by the Dunya Foundation to create an all new acoustic show. The show was a first for Mory Kanté and the acclaim he received was such that he continued to tour the acoustic show in 2003.

September, 2004 saw the release of Mory Kanté’s acoustic album, released on Riverboat Records/World Music Network. A stunning album of depth and poise that is contemporary and modern, while also being firmly grounded in his traditional griot roots, Sabou (TUGCD1034) is the eagerly anticipated return of the griot from Guinea.