Mariama Jalloh (born 1986 in

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

), is a singer–songwriter who lives in Paris, France.

Life

Mariama Jalloh was born in

Freetown Freetown () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, e ...

, Sierra Leone. At the age of one she moved with her family to Germany,

Bergisch Gladbach Bergisch Gladbach () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in the Cologne/Bonn Region of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and capital of the Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis (district). Geography Bergisch Gladbach is east of the Rhine and abo ...

, the home of her mother. At sixteen, she began to write her own songs accompanied with her acoustic guitar. Two years later, she gained her first stage experience by performing in a musical.

Music career

Her first important career steps were centered on the projects of

Adé Bantu Adegoke Odukoya, better known as Adé Bantu (born 14 July 1971 in Wembley, London), is a Nigerian-German musician, producer and social activist who is the front man of the 13 piece band BANTU and the creator of the monthly concert series and mu ...

Brothers Keepers Brothers Keepers is a German-based transnational anti-racism project, bringing together hip hop, reggae and soul musicians, headed primarily by Afro-Germans. Their debut single, "Adriano-Letzte Warnung", was written in response to the murder o ...

, Afrobeat Academy and Afropean Express. Starting in 2008, she worked with the rapper

Curse A curse (also called an imprecation, malediction, execration, malison, anathema, or commination) is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to one or more persons, a place, or an object. In particular, ...

, thereby taking part in the project "Diversidad European Urban Experience". A year later she supported Max Herre on his tour for the album "Ein Geschenkter Tag". In the same year she embarked on her solo career, releasing her first EP, ''Listen To Mariama''. Mariama was chosen from over 300 bands as one of the nine talents who were supported by the

Volkswagen Volkswagen (VW; )English: , . is a German automotive industry, automobile manufacturer based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Established in 1937 by German Labour Front, The German Labour Front, it was revitalized into the global brand it ...

Sound Foundation in 2009. In 2010 she signed with the French label Cinq7 /

Wagram Music Wagram Music is a French independent record company based in Paris, with offices in Berlin and Los Angeles. History The company was founded by Stephan Bourdoiseau and has been active since January 2003. In 2013, Stephan became the majority ...

and started working on her first album, ''The Easy Way Out''. The debut was finally recorded at

RAK Studios RAK Studios is a recording studio complex, with residential facilities, used by Rak Records, and located near Regent's Park in central London, England. It was founded in 1976 by English record producer Mickie Most. History The RAK complex res ...

, London, where she worked with the production team

Bacon Bacon is a type of Curing (food preservation), salt-cured pork made from various cuts of meat, cuts, typically the pork belly, belly or less fatty parts of the back. It is eaten as a side dish (particularly in breakfasts), used as a central in ...

Quarmby Quarmby is a district of Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. It is situated 2 miles west of Huddersfield town centre between Oakes, Paddock and Longwood. The holders of the manor in the reign of Edward the Confessor 1042–66 were Gamel ...

, which had already produced

Ziggy Marley David Nesta "Ziggy" Marley (born 17 October 1968) is a Jamaican reggae musician. He is the son of Bob Marley and Rita Marley. He led the family band Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers until 2002, with whom he released eight studio albums. After ...

and

Finley Quaye Finley Quaye (born 25 March 1974, Edinburgh, Scotland) is a Scottish musician. He won the 1997 Mobo Award for best reggae act, and the 1998 BRIT Award for Best Male Solo Artist. His debut album, '' Maverick a Strike,'' a fusion of many styles ...

, among other artists.

' NRW Kultursekreteriat Wuppertal, article 06/2014

Discography

EP

* ''Still Waiting/Fall in Love'' (2008) * ''Listen to Mariama'' (2009) * ''No Way'' (2013) * ''Moments Like These'' (2015)

LP

* ''Easy Way Out'' (2012) * ''Love, Sweat and Tears'' (2019)

External links

Official homepage
* https://www.facebook.com/mariama.spacebook * https://soundcloud.com/mariama-music * http://mariama-music.tumblr.com/

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jalloh, Mariama Living people German women singers German soul singers German women singer-songwriters German singer-songwriters English-language singers from Germany German people of Sierra Leonean descent 1986 births People from Freetown