Toumani Diabaté, a Tribute Between Heaven and Strings

Toumani Diabaté, Bel Ami of the World – A Tribute Between Heaven and Strings

On July 19, 2024, the world lost a giant. A living bridge between the ancient Mandingue traditions and stages across the globe. Toumani Diabaté, undisputed master of the kora, passed away, leaving behind a musical legacy that transcends borders, generations, and cultures. But as Lamomali reminds us, the story doesn’t end there.

With Bel Ami, a track from the album Totem (to be released on April 25, 2025), -M- (Matthieu Chedid) and Fatoumata Diawara weave a vibrant tribute to one who was more than a musician: a brother, a bond, a light.

“I connect your story
Far from being over
To your virtuosic arpeggios on infinite strings”

From the very first words, the musical poem rises like a prayer. Toumani’s kora never simply resonated; it sang. It told stories. It healed. This song does not end with his passing. It endures, in every note, every vibration reminding us that Toumani’s music touched the sacred.

Bel Ami is a heartfelt cry. That of -M-, the “white griot,” soul brother on and off stage. That of Fatoumata Diawara, sister of roots, voice of an awakening continent. Together, they celebrate a guiding figure, a man whose art was always an act of transmission. An offering.

“My beautiful friend, my beautiful friend, that’s how
That’s how life goes”

The chorus, both tender and resigned, sounds like a musical embrace. An endless farewell. A promise of continuity.

Because Lamomali is a family, just as Toumani always intended. A family of heart, music, and culture. And within this family, his presence will remain eternal.

The album Totem, already imbued with spirituality and fusion, promises to be a living sanctuary in memory of the one who is not just mourned, but sung, again and again.

Toumani Diabaté has departed. But his music knows no silence.