A magical, strikingly original staccato-and-smooth vocal blend of traditional West African, folk and electronica by the Guinea-born, now Margate-based, singer and multi-instrumentalist in a song about his teenage years of life-changing relocation, from his forthcoming debut album Love From The Sea on 26 September via Eat Your Own Ears Recordings. The track is a collaboration with, and produced by Mike Lindsay of Tunng and LUMP. As Nioke explains: “In the city I lived in an army camp and we were surrounded by guns. My parents moved me from Conakry to Boké in the countryside to keep me out of trouble and at that point my life changed. My focus turned from teenage rebellion to music and the path of my life slowly began to reveal itself.”
Nioke has also collaborated with other musicians, including Barry Can't Swim and Hot Chip's Joe Goddard.
Inspired by artists such as Oumou Sangaré, Bob Marley, and Sory Kandia Kouyaté, Nioke sings in multiple languages, including French, English, Fulani, Coniagui, and Susu, accompanying his voice with a range of traditional instruments such as the gongoma, bolon, and cassi.
Raised in the city of Conakry in Guinea, Nioke is a member of the Coniagui tribe, one of the smallest ethnic groups in Guinea. As a child, Nioke was saddened to realise he could not find music from fellow Coniagui artists and vowed to change things. His confidence grew when he began performing at 11 years old and was buoyed by the support he received from older, established musicians who told him, “you were sent to sing.”
Nioke decided to follow his musical path and went into “exile”, leaving his home to join Nimba Sacré, a group of travelling musicians who performed traditional Guinean music across West Africa, often singing in exchange for basic necessities.
After meeting his future British wife on a beach, the pair married in 2017 and moved to Margate, UK, where he found himself in the middle of the coastal town’s vibrant cultural scene. It was while working at the Margate venue The Sun Deck that Nioke was awakened to the new path his career would take.
To explore and enjoy more by Falle Nioke, see some previous songs here, as well as the other embedded links below.
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