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Baaba Maal (, born 13 June 1953) is a singer and born in Podor, on the Senegal River. In addition to acoustic guitar, he also plays percussion. He has released several albums, both for independent and major labels. In July 2003, he was made a UNDP Youth Emissary.
Maal sings primarily in Pulaar language and promotes the traditions of the Pulaar-speaking people, who live on either side of the Senegal River in the ancient Senegalese kingdom of Futa Tooro.
In 1998, Maal recorded "Bess, You Is My Woman Now" for the Red Hot Organization's compilation album , a tribute to George Gershwin that raised money for various charities devoted to increasing HIV/AIDS awareness and fighting the disease. In 2002, Maal again worked with the Red Hot Organization, recording "No Agreement" alongside Res, Tony Allen, Ray Lema, Positive Black Soul and Archie Shepp; as well as "Trouble Sleep Yanga Wake Am" alongside Taj Mahal and featuring Kaouding Cissoko and Antibalas, for the tribute album to Fela Kuti, .
On 7 July 2007, Maal performed at the Live Earth concert, Johannesburg.
Maal's album On the Road, a live acoustic album recorded straight from the mixing boards of his shows over a 10-year period, was released in 2008. A new studio album, Television, was released in 2009.
He appears on two tracks "Hunger" and "Still" on the Black Hawk Down film soundtrack and performed on the title track of the 2008 video game Far Cry 2, in addition to helping to create the whole soundtrack for that game. He played at Bonnaroo and the Sierra Nevada World Music Festival in 2010.
On 4 May 2013, Maal performed at the 2013 edition of the Harare International Festival of the Arts in Zimbabwe.
In 2014, he contributed to the BBC Music's remake of The Beach Boys song "God Only Knows".
Maal's 11th studio album, The Traveller, recorded with Johan Hugo from the Very Best and Winston Marshall (Mumford & Sons), was released via Palm and Marathon Artists The lead singles, "Fulani Rock" and "Gilli Men", received critical acclaim. in January 2016, and was accompanied by a UK tour and headlining Senegal's Festival Blues Du Fleuve. Maal accompanied Mumford & Sons on their Gentlemen of the Road tour around South Africa in 2015. He also released a song and accompanying live performance music video with Mumford & Sons called "There Will Be Time".
In 1998 Maal was honoured by the Dutch-based Prince Claus Fund, which rewards people who have a progressive and contemporary approach to the themes of culture and development.
Maal voiced the Wakandan soundtrack of Black Panther for Ludwig Göransson, helping introduce Göransson to many of the African musicians who contributed to the score. Maal's vocals can be heard on tracks "Wakanda" and "A King's Sunset." The two musicians rejoined each other to collaborate on the score for the sequel , including Maal doing a brief cameo in the as a funeral singer. To celebrate the launch of the film's trailer, Maal and Massamba Diop staged a performance at San Diego ComicCon. His vocals can be heard on the sole track, "Nyana Wam."
In an interview with The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2020, Maal discussed the ritual quality of traditional instruments, and how he chooses instruments to convey his songs' messages: "The spirit of the kora and the ngoni are different from the talking drum and the balafon, or the sabar and the djembe. The kora and ngoni are closer to human beings, because they are made from things that had life. The talking drum, the balafon, and the sabar are made from wood, and when you listen to them your mind goes out into the forest. When you make music and write songs, you have to know about the messages. From the messages, you know what the instruments are and how to put them together underneath the lyrics."
On March 28, 2016, Maal launched Nann-K, a charity focusing on global sustainable development. Maal performed at the launch, which took place on International Women’s Day to honor the role of women in business development in Africa. NANN-K's mission is to assist people from Senegal and other African countries in pursuing agricultural careers, including farming, animal husbandry, and fishing. According to their website, "All these are time-old rural pursuits but they have never been organized or brought into the 21st century, let alone combined with the latest digital thinking."
On December 11, 2019, Maal promised to fight the desertification in the Sahel by planting trees. He said he hoped every person in Senegal could say they planted a tree. "The music legend fighting to stop desertification in the Sahel2 BBC News. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
In April 2023, Maal was named a UNCCD (United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification) Goodwill Ambassador after a stint serving as UNCCD Land Ambassador alongside fellow Malian musician Inna Modja.
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