The Malian singer Fatoumata Diawara has always been about the future. The image of her toting an electric guitar – which she has said is a first for a female Malian singer – tells you as much, as does her new video, Nsera, a dazzling parade of Afro-futurist images with “Fatou” in assorted stunning costumes. Her two previous albums have remained broadly in Mali’s wassoulou traditions while introducing western elements, a process taken further on London Ko, which is co-produced with Damon Albarn – the two have remained friends since she appeared on his 2012 Africa Express tour.
It’s a sprawling, chequered affair, with six of its 14 tracks co-written with Albarn (she on guitar, he on synths), while the rest co-opt a stellar cast of collaborators. There’s much to admire: Diawara’s agile, forceful vocals; her championship of the feminist cause (Sete is her second song on the subject of FGM); a gallop with the brilliant Cuban pianist Roberto Fonseca on Blues; a slinky tribute to brotherhood with Ghanaian rapper M.anifest; and the funky party piece Tolon, with Nigerian star Yemi Alade. These are largely African-style songs preaching morality, consideration and responsibility, though in Diawara’s hands, exuberance rules.
