AMADOU Bagayoko, the renowned guitarist and singer of the blind Malian marriage duo Amadou & Mariam, has died at 70.
The Grammy-nominated musician died after a long battle with illness, his son-in-law confirmed on Friday, in his birth town of Bamako.
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The band’s manager, Yannick Tardy, said Amadou had been taken into hospital feeling drained on Friday, and died later that day.
The pair became one of Africa’s best-selling groups, selling millions of albums around the world and celebrated for their joyful sound.
Amadou, born in 1954, went blind when he was 15 because of a congenital cataract.
But loss of sight never held him back, and he went on to study music at Mali’s Institute for the Young Blind.
It was here that he met Mariam Doumbia, also blind, who later became his wife and partner in musical stardom.
The pair produced music and toured for decades before finally finding fame after moving to Paris with their 2004 album Dimanche a Bamako – meaning “Sunday in Bamako”.
And their 2008 album Welcome to Mali saw them nominated for the best contemporary world music album at the Grammys.
Their music blended local west African sounds with modern, electric rock and pop.
In interviews, they said that growing up on the likes of Pink Floyd and James Brown influenced their unique sound.
In 2009, the pair opened for Blur and Coldplay, and performed at the Nobel Peace Prize concert – when President Barack Obama received the award.
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Amadou said last year: “Barack Obama came to meet us. We talked a bit. Barack Obama told us that he liked our music. Malian music, too. We were very, very happy.”
They have also entertained adoring crowds at the world’s biggest music festivals, including Glastonbury.
Musicians across the world have shared their love for Amadou after the news of his death.
Manu Chao, who produced Dimanche a Bamako, said: “Amadou! We’ll always be together … with you wherever you go.”
And Senegalese singer-songwriter Youssou N’Dour said: “I will never forget his friendship. My thoughts are with my dear Mariam.”
Mali’s Minister of Culture Mamou Daff also paid tribute to the star on TV.
The much-loved band twice won France’s Grammys equivalent, Victoire de la Musique, in 2005 and 2013.
Amadou also brought home one of the BBC Radio Awards for World Music in 2006.
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