Amical Blues is 

Dramane Toure
Ahmed Ag Akedi
Belco Guindo

They are a band from Mali. 

Picture


​​Mali is a country that was once one of sub-Saharan Africa's most promising democracies, but has experienced a wave of political, social and economic turmoil over the last several years.  

Northern Mali, known for its significant contributions to the music and art of West Africa is captured has been impacted significantly during this period.  On one hand, parts of Northern Mali that include Timbuktu declared autonom from the Malian state in 2012 under the banner of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad and began to fight against Mali's central government for independence.  During this same time, Mali's President and later its Prime Minister were removed by the military. 

​Mali also faces conflict in its North due to the presence of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.  AQIM is responsible for terrorist attacks across Mali, including attacks on hotels and businesses in the country's capital of Bamako.  They have destroyed priceless historical artifacts, religious sites, and writings and banned music, a key means by which history and culture is spread in Mali.  Timbuktu's famous Festival au Désert musical festival has been cancelled since 2012 because of this conflict.

At Vanderbilt, the band met with students about the music and politics in Mali and life as musicians in a country where they are under attack.