Ibrahim Sylla is the grand Maestro of modern African Music. He is an internationally acclaimed musician whose production and music direction has defined popular African music. From West African dance, to Congolese Soukous (also known as Lingala), to melodic griot-led songs, Sylla's signature as a music producer is unmistakable. He has demonstrated his familiarity with many contemporary African musical genres, and he has worked with most of Africa's musical greats.

Sylla was born in the Ivory Coast, into a prominent family; his father was an influential public figure who was well known in West Africa, and whose work took the family to Dakar in Senegal

Senegal

Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...

. Sylla developed his love for music whilst studying at a university in Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

, France. He released compilation albums of his favorite Salsa music, and from 1980 he embarked on record production work. He financed an album by Etoile De Dakar

Étoile de Dakar

Étoile de Dakar were a leading music group of Senegal in the 1970s.The group was formed in 1979 by Youssou N'Dour and members of the Star Band one of Dakar's best known nightclub house bands of the 1970s...

, featuring Youssou N'Dour

Youssou N'Dour

Youssou N'Dour is a Senegalese singer, percussionist and occasional actor. In 2004, Rolling Stone described him as, in Senegal and much of Africa, "perhaps the most famous singer alive." He helped develop a style of popular music in Senegal, known in the Serer language as mbalax, a type of music...

 and Orchestra Baobab. It was in Paris that Sylla developed working relationships with Africa's upcoming musicians, many of whom were living there.

Sylla has worked with many of Africa's contemporary musicians and he has demonstrated finesse in his production of their music. He worked with many of Zaire's (now the Democratic Republic of Congo) greats, including: Les Quatre Etoiles

Les Quatre Etoiles

Les Quatre Etoiles is the Soukous musical group consisting of the Congolese musicians, Bopol Mansiamina, Wuta Mayi, Syran Mbenza and Nyboma.Their album, Sangonini, was produced by the renowned African music producer Ibrahim Sylla. The song "Doly", from Sangoni, enjoyed worldwide popularity,...

 - the renowned DRC group consisting of Soukous greats Bopol, Wuta Mayi

Wuta Mayi

Gaspard Wuta Mayi, commonly known as Wuta Mayi, is a soukous recording artist, composer and vocalist, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo...

, Syran and Nyboma

Nyboma

Nyboma is one of the most celebrated Soukous musicians in the world. Nyboma Mwan'dido was born in Zaire ....

; Pepe Kalle

Pepe Kalle

Pepe Kalle was a soukous singer, musician and bandleader from the Democratic Republic of the Congo...

, Sam Mangwana

Sam Mangwana

Sam Mangwana, born February 21, 1945, is a Congolese musician, born to a Zimbabwean migrant father and an Angolan mother. He is the frontman of his bands Festival des maquisards and African All Stars....

, Tshala Muana, Mbilia Bel, and others. Sylla developed the Soukous concept of tingling, repeated, guitar melodies, adding orchestral harmonies, innovative key changes, and introducing tinges of Salsa music. An example of this can be experienced in his productipn of Nyboma

Nyboma

Nyboma is one of the most celebrated Soukous musicians in the world. Nyboma Mwan'dido was born in Zaire ....

's groundbreaking solo album, Anicet.

Zairean Soukous music is highly popular across Africa, South America, and amongst World Music fans in the West. Sylla's Soukous productions are still celebrated, and they continue to influence the shape and direction of African dance music.

Sylla's production excellence is also demonstrated by his productions of West African dance music, such as in Oumou Dioubate's albums, and in his direction of Malian and Senegalese griot-led songs. He has also worked with Baaba Maal

Baaba Maal

Baaba Maal is a Senegalese singer and guitarist born in Podor, on the Senegal River. In addition to acoustic guitar, he also plays percussion. He has released several albums, both for independent and major labels. In July 2003, he was made a UNDP Youth Emissary.-Biography:Born 12 November 1953...

, Ismael Lo

Ismaël Lô

Ismaël Lô is a Senegalese musician. He was born in Dogondoutchi, Niger on 30 August 1956, to a Senegalese father and a Nigerien mother. Shortly after Lo's birth the family returned to Senegal where they settled in the town of Rufisque, near the capital Dakar. He also plays the guitar and the...

, Pape Seck, Oumou Sangare

Oumou Sangaré

Oumou Sangare is a Malian Wassoulou musician, sometimes referred to as "The Songbird of Wassoulou." Wassoulou is a historic region south of the Niger River, and the music there is descended from traditional hunting songs, and is accompanied by a calabash...

, Gnonnàs Pedro

Gnonnas Pedro

Gnonnan Sossou Pierre Kouassivi, known by the stage name Gnonnas Pedro was a singer and musician from Benin. He is perhaps best known as the lead singer of Africando between 1995 and his death in 2004, but had been well known in his home country of Benin since the 1960s.Pedro produced the song Feso...

, Kouyate Sory Kandia, Bembeya Jazz

Bembeya Jazz

Bembaya Jazz National is a Guinean jazz group that gained fame in the 1960s for their infectious Afropop rhythms. They are considered one of the most significant bands in Guinean music. Many of their recordings are based on traditional folk music in the country and have been fused with jazz and...

, Fanta Damba

Fanta Damba

Fanta Damba is a Malian jalimuso known to her fans as La Grand Vedette Malienne. She began singing as a child, growing up in a family of musicians. She began recording in her early twenties with Radio Mali. In 1975, she became the first jalimuso to tour Europe solo...

, Cape Verde Show, Alpha Blondy

Alpha Blondy

Alpha Blondy is a reggae singer and international recording artist. Alpha Blondy was born Seydou Koné in Dimbokro, Côte d'Ivoire. He sings mainly in his native language of Dioula, in French and English, and sometimes in Arabic or Hebrew...

, Africando

Africando

Africando is a musical project formed in 1990 to unite New York-based salsa musicians with Senegalese vocalists. Musicians from other African countries were later included under the name Africando All Stars....

,
and Miriam Makeba

Miriam Makeba

Miriam Makeba , nicknamed Mama Africa, was a Grammy Award winning South African singer and civil rights activist....

.

A recent compilation of his work, the 5-album "20 Years History - The Very Best of Syllart Productions" (Sono/Sterns), introduces new listeners to Sylla's work.