Singer Noura Mint Seymali works within the West African Griot tradition, whereby artists are born into a centuries-old lineage of singers. Although she is a regular singer on the wedding circuit, she is also a member of a four-piece band that fuses this traditional singing style with global pop.

Her new album Arbina (a name for God) is described as “a call out to the divine”, using her status as a griot to offer advice to her audience. Composed by Seymali, it features her on vocals and the ardine, a traditional women’s harp, and her husband Jeiche Ould Chighaly on guitar. “I like to send positive messages and use my position to sing about meaningful ideals” Seymali explains to Clive Bell in his feature in The Wire 391. “The contemporary role of the griot is to pass along ideas and messages just as those before us did.”

Noura Mint Seymali’s Arbina is her second full-length and follows her debut Tzenni (2014). It's released on 16 September via Glitterbeat Records. Subscribers to The Wire can read Clive's article over at Exact Editions.