The Yé Ké Yé Ké singer’s son said he was unable to travel to France for his usual treatment owing to coronavirus-related restrictions

The Guinean musician Mory Kanté has died aged 70. His son Balla Kanté told the AFP news agency that his death was the result of untreated chronic health problems.Youssou N’Dour paid tribute, calling Kanté “a baobab of African culture”. The president of Guinea, Alpha Condé, said that African culture was in mourning and praised Kanté’s “exceptional” career. 

“He suffered from chronic illnesses and often traveled to France for treatment, but that was no longer possible with the coronavirus,” said Balla. “We saw his condition deteriorate rapidly, but I was still surprised because he’d been through much worse times before.” Kanté died in hospital in the capital, Conakry.

Kanté found international success in 1987 with the song Yé Ké Yé Ké. It was the first African single to sell more than 1m copies, reaching No 1 across several European countries and become a key track in Britain’s late 80s club revolution – in 2018, DJ Paul Oakenfold included the Afro Acid Mix of the track on an acid house compilation. Yé Ké Yé Ké’s parent album, Akwaba Beach, became the bestselling African record of all time and won the 1988 Victoires de la Musique prize for best Francophone album.