Boubacar Traoré - Kar Kar (1992)

«Boubacar Traore has been dodging musical stardom for most of his life. People called him Kar Kar, “a nickname I got from playing soccer when I was young. People would yell 'Kari, Kari' – dribble, dribble – the name stuck with me.” In his youth, Boubacar Traore was known as the Malian Chuck Berry or Elvis Presley. People woke up every day to hear him singing on the radio. His most popular song at that time was “Mali Twist” which he has likened to a national anthem for the newly independent nation of Mali.

Traore put his music on hold for the better part of 20 years while he worked at other ventures he believed would better support his family. After the death of his beloved wife, Pierette, he moved to Paris for work, and re-emerged as a musician.

Traore is an artist who has affected an entire generation. His is the voice of a nation, its hopes and its fears. He is a storyteller, and his songs deal with daily living, the many facets of love, political conditions and solidarity. Sometimes they are small parables, resonant with meanings we'll never be able to understand, but clear to his friends. Perhaps the final words are best said by one of his peers, Ali Farka Toure: “If the maximum is five, I give ten to Kar Kar”.» (CalabashMusic)

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