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Omar Pene Born: Unknown
Super Diamono, originally led by singer/songwriters Ismael Lo and Omar Pene, pioneered new directions in the mbalax style, incorporating reggae and jazz while defiantly rejecting the praise singing popularized in electric music by Youssou N’Dour, Mali’s King Sunny Ade, and many others. While Diamano pushed traditional style in new directions, they never forgot their roots, intertwining the deft mbalax-style sabar playing of Aziz Seck with the melancholy organ and whining horns of arrangers Adama and Lamine Faye. Diamono’s devotion to curbing unemployment, providing education and curing the hardships that plague youth in Senegal are ever-present on their releases, including Jigeenu Ndakaru (Women of Dakar). In the mid-80s, Lo left Diamono to pursue a solo career and was replaced by singer Mamadou Maigra, one of numerous personnel changes that refreshed the group’s image and sound, but also limited its ability to reach a broad audience. While Diamono enjoyed great fame and a devoted following in Senegal (it’s rumored that rivalries between Diamono and N’Dour fans would sometimes lead to violence on Dakar’s streets), they never received the international attention of compatriots N’Dour and Baaba Maal. A few years later, in 1991, Pene revamped Diamono entirely, recruiting a slew of Senegalese session musicians. Super Diamono, as the Senegalese knew it in the 80s, was no more. In its place, the singer began a solo career and, while Diamono’s namesake disappeared, it’s musical legacy lives on in Pene’s music. Pene recorded several albums throughout the 90s and early 00s, including a collaborative effort with N’Dour, in which each covered the others’ songs. Together with Baaba Maal, N’Dour and Ismael Lo, Pene earned himself a spot among Senegal’s greats.Contributed by: Miller Nuttle
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