Jimi Mbaye

Who is Jimi Mbaye?

Mamadou "Jimi" Mbaye is a Senegalese guitarist best known for his work with Youssou N'dour. Mbaye has developed a unique Senegalese guitar style in which he makes his Fender Stratocaster sound like local instruments such as the kora or xalam.

Mbaye is very different from other guitarists because of his unique style of playing guitar. Youssou Ndour used to say "no one, no one plays guitar like Jimi Mbaye. His playing style is unique". Mbaye succeeded to transpose the African traditional sounds of khalam and kora onto his electric Fender Stratocaster. Jimi has also proven to be good singer, very melodic, a true harmonicist. Carlos Santana and Mbaye met during a tour in Los Angeles where Carlos acknowledged that: "Jimi is a very special and incredible guitarist".

Mbaye has released three solo albums, "Dakar Heart", "Yaye Digalma" and "Khare Dounya". The latter was recorded in Jimi's new studio Studio Dogo, in which he produces other artists.

At ten years old Mbaye built his first guitar out of fishing line and gasoline cans. At twenty he'd scraped up enough money to buy a second hand Fender Stratocaster.