Manu Dibango

About Manu Dibango

Manu Dibango was Cameroon's, and perhaps Africa's, best-known jazz saxophonist. Also a pianist and vibraphonist, his versatile amalgam of funk, jazz, and various African traditions enabled him to collaborate with an impressive range of musicians during his lengthy career, from Fela Kuti to Sly & Robbie and Herbie Hancock. He was already well into his prolific run when he scored a bona fide international hit with 1972's "Soul Makossa," a song that resonated in popular music for decades and inspired songs by Kool & the Gang, Michael Jackson, and Rihanna. A globe-trotting musician, Dibango lived and worked across the world. His influential career continued into the early 2010s as he wrote, recorded, toured, and challenged himself creatively nearly up until his death in 2020.