Ivory Coast's brightest star on the international scene, singer and bandleader Alpha Blondy (born Seydou Kone) put African reggae on the map. Born Seydou Kone in Dimbokro in 1953, Alpha grew up on the Koran and Dioula ethnic tradition, but he also loved '60s rock and soul and started his first group, Atomic Vibrations, while still in high school. Alpha went to New York to study at Columbia in 1976, and got swept up in the international reggae scene. Burned by a producer in his first recording project, Alpha returned home and had a nervous breakdown, after which his parents put him in a psychiatric hospital for two years, an experience that failed to quell his musical ambitions. Working with Ghanaian friends, he produced a demo that lead to Jah Glory, his unprecedented triple gold debut in 1983. A Muslim and a Rastafarian, Alpha delivers bold political and spiritual messages in Dioula, French and English. His records Cocody Rock and Apartheid is Nazism, recorded with members of Bob Marley's band, established him as a West African youth hero and an international star. Today, Alpha lives in France while back home, younger reggae singers create a buzz, notably Jah Solo Gunt and Serges Kassy.

Contributed by: Banning Eyre