Search: Ahmed Ag Kaedy
Ahmed Ag Kaedy
Many nomadic Tuareg artists channel and preserve the vibrancy of life that was once the everyday in Mali. Ahmed Ag Kaedy initially set out to do the same, but instead his haunting eight-track LP...
Mali Blues
Presented by Le Guess Who? & Springhaver Lutz Gregor’s documentary Mali Blues takes a vivid look at the West-African nation’s rich and diverse musical fabric, following folk star Fato...
أحمد [Ahmed]
أحمد [Ahmed] plays music of heavy rhythm, repetition and syncopation, producing a stamping, swinging, relentlessly propulsive music where profundity and physicality root back to ecstatic feeling. They...
Ahmed Fakroun feat. Altin Gün
Libya’s Ahmed Fakroun is a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and pioneer in modern Arabic music. As a rhymist (based on a form of Algerian folk music dating back to the 1920s), he is one of the...
Film: The Invaders
‘The Invaders’ talks about a generation of civil rights activists who originated from Memphis in 1967, consisting of students, Vietnam veterans, musicians and intellectuals who were inspir...
ZULI & Omar El Sadek present λ
The work of multi-talented sound artist Ahmed El Ghazoly (also known as ZULI) has spilled over Cairo's borders onto the rest of the world, garnering support from the likes of Aphex Twin and Autechre....
Scene Report: Kafr El Dawar, Egypt
This report follows the work of Yunis, an artist, and musician from Kafr El Dawar, Egypt. Here, Yunis discusses his work as a mediator between traditional, popular music and contemporary productions....
Read: Istanbul’s Creative Scene Unites in Times of Crisis
Interview: Ozan Tekin x IDGK “İstanbul’u Dinliyorum Gözlerim Kapalı” is the title of a poem by Turkish poet Orhan Veli Kanık. It beautifully describes a city best experienced with all senses wide open. A sentiment that our 2025 COSMOS Embassy IDGK shares so much, that they’ve borrowed their name acronym from...
COSMOS Embassy: Karachi, Pakistan
Honiunhoni, meaning "Impossible Possibilities," is an independent music production collective and record label founded in 2022 by musician and anthropologist Daniyal Ahmed. Rooted in the ethos of ethn...
COSMOS Embassy Film: Karachi, Pakistan
Honiunhoni, meaning "Impossible Possibilities," is an independent music production collective and record label founded in 2022 by musician and anthropologist Daniyal Ahmed. Rooted in the ethos of ethn...
COSMOS Embassy Films + Q&A
Each year, COSMOS – Le Guess Who?’s global music community – partners up with eight new Embassies to showcase their music scene. For this, we commission local filmmakers to portray t...
COSMOS Embassy Films + Q&A
Each year, COSMOS – Le Guess Who?’s global music community – partners up with eight new Embassies to showcase their music scene. For this, we commission local filmmakers to portray t...
COSMOS Embassy Films + Q&A
Each year, COSMOS – Le Guess Who?’s global music community – partners up with eight new Embassies to showcase their music scene. For this, we commission local filmmakers to portray t...
Listen to a unique collaboration between Ahmed Ag Kaedy and Marjo Smolander on new single 'Tenere'
Tuareg guitarist Ahmed Ag Kaedy has released a new single called 'Tenere' in collaboration with Finnish musician Marjo Smolander. Marjo plays the Finnish traditional instrument Kantele and together with Kaedy's enchanting guitar playing, the sounds blend together as one. Even if you can't understand the words they're both singin...
Full curated programs + various special projects announced for Le Guess Who? 2019
Following our initial line-up announcement in May, we're now pleased to reveal the full curated programs by Fatoumata Diawara and Iris van Herpen & Salvador Breed for the festival, as well as new additions for Moon Duo, Patrick Higgins, and The Bug curations. We're also announcing Príncipe Discos and Spazio Disponibil...
Read The Vinyl Factory's story about how Dur-Dur Band defined Somali funk
Somalia's legendary Dur-Dur Band played a major role in the 1980s nightlife of the capital Mogadishu. After reissues by Awesome Tapes From Africa and Analog Africa, Dur-Dur Band's mix of vibrant funk and traditional Somalian rhythms earned renewed recognition globally. The Vinyl Factory's longread tells the story about how the Somalian C...
Read: Pan African Music interviews Ethiopian funk legend Ayalew Mesfin
Ethio-groove legend Ayalew Mesfin rebelled vigorously against Ethiopia’s dictatorial oppression of the 70s, which led to several months in jail and a prohibition to play music for 13 years. Last year, his compilation album Hasabe (My Worries) was released after his music had gone unheard for 40 years, and now, we celebrate Mesfin wi...
Gyedu-Blay Ambolley announces new album '11th Street, Sekondi', shares first single 'Black Woman'
Ghanaian saxophonist, singer and guitarist Gyedu-Blay Ambolley returns with a brand new album, entitled '11th Street, Sekondi', and now shares the first single 'Black Woman'. On the album, named after the area of West Ghana where he grew up, Ambolley looks back at the area and musical styles that shaped his life. '11th Street, Sekond...
Read: The Quietus' introduction to Idris Ackamoor's spiritual jazz
Idris Ackamoor is saxophonist, multi-instrumentalist, tap dancer, actor and artistic director of the Pyramids. As part of their 'The Strange World of...' series, The Quietus has published a long read featuring 10 tracks as "points of entry into his formidable body of work." In the article, Ackamoor himself talks about the late...
Video: watch Madlib meet his hero, Ethiopian legend Ayaléw Mesfin
As part of Madlib’s Medicine Show, Noisey recorded a video in which the producer, rapper and DJ - known for his work with Talib Kweli, J Dilla and MF Doom - meets one of his heroes he’s spent his career sampling and sourcing inspiration from: legendary Ethiopian funk artist Ayalew Mesfin. Mesfin’s music rebelled vigorou...
Read Bandcamp's feature about Minyo Crusaders' Japanese folk music for the post-modern age
The 10-piece Japanese ensemble Minyo Crusaders breathes new life into traditional Japanese folk songs. The word 'Minyo' refers to these songs, that have mostly disappeared from everyday consciousness in 21st century Japan. On their new album 'Echoes of Japan', they merge the traditional minyo with Latin, African and Caribbean rhythms and...
Ahmed Fakroun: rediscovered pioneer in modern Arabic music, live with Dutch-Turkish act Altin Gün
Ahmed Fakroun is a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, raï singer (based on a form of Algerian folk music from the 20's) and pioneer in modern Arabic music. As a kid, Fakroun already developed a f...
COSMOS Embassy Announcement: Honiunhoni (Karachi, Pakistan)
COSMOS x Honiunhoni announce their 2024 Embassy in Karachi, Pakistan Honiunhoni is an independent production company and record label founded by musician and anthropologist Daniyal Ahmed. Rooted in the ethos of ethnographic research, Honiunhoni celebrates Pakistan's cultural richness and diversity by curating and highlighting the...
LGW x SPEAK present: Egyptian ensemble Mazaher introduced by Ahmed Mostafa
Le Guess Who? is proud to welcome both artists and visitors of many different nationalities to Utrecht each year. In collaboration with SPEAK, we started a new video series in which Utrechters with foreign roots introduce an artist on the Le Guess Who? 2021 line-up from their country. SPEAK connects locals, newcomers and migra...
Watch: Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra & Arion de Munck present 'Hadra Immersive' at LGW24
A transcendental opening ceremony took place at the start of Le Guess Who? 2024, thanks to a special collaboration between the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra and visual artist Arion de Munck, who presented the world premiere of Hadra Immersive at the festival. The Hadra is an ancient northern Moroccan ceremony that leads participan...
Listen: COSMOS on Refuge Worldwide with IDGK and Scene Noise
For the May episodes of COSMOS' monthly show on Refuge Worldwide, we're checking the pulse of Istanbul’s creative scene in the midst of crisis, and reconnect with the bustling underground in the MENA region. Our sonic guides this time are IDGK, an Istanbul-based collective and production company, and our long-time partners fr...
Le Guess Who? Reveals Embassy Partners for COSMOS 2025
COSMOS is Le Guess Who?’s hybrid platform that highlights independent music scenes from around the world. Here we invite vibrant music communities from every corner of the map to become COSMOS Embassies, and to share their stories–both online and offline–through mixtapes, film, live radio, conversations and performances....
Listen or read: a personal introduction to Egypt’s Mazaher, bearers of the Zar tradition, by Nadah El Shazly
This November, Le Guess Who? will feature a rare performance (their first European show in over 15 years) of Egypt’s Mazaher: a small group of mostly women musicians and singers who play Zar music: chanting songs and playing hypnotic polyrhythms used in a ceremonial event to cleanse the spirits and to clear away illness and discomfo...
Watch a video portrait of Egyptian Zar ensemble Mazaher
Mazaher are a small group of mostly women musicians and singers who play Zãr music: chanting songs and playing hypnotic polyrhythms traditionally used as a purification and exorcism ritual to help pacify and cleanse the human spirit. Zar practitioners have been stigmatized because of this exorcist tradition and the aim of...
Lombok Festival 2018 announces complete program
In a couple of weeks, our satellite event Lombok Festival will return as part of Le Guess Who?, highlighting this vibrantly diverse neighborhood of Utrecht. The event is organized...
Listen: Pan African Music premieres the recordings of Les Filles de Illighadad at Le Guess Who? 2016
In collaboration with Vrije Geluiden, we recorded one of the performances of Niger's Les Filles de Illighadad at Le Guess Who? 2016. Pan African Music now premieres these recordings, ahead of the rele...
Sudan Archives shares new track 'Water'
Violinist and vocalist Sudan Archives writes, plays, and produces her own music. Drawing inspiration from Sudanese fiddlers, she is self-taught on the violin, and her unique songs also fold in el...
Revealing the first curators & initial line-up
The first curators are announced for the 11th edition of Le Guess Who? 2017, each hosting a range of inspirations and befriended artists, and also performing themselves. Perfume Genius invites a.o. Bu...
Dutch-Turkish psych rock band Altin Gün release their first single
Anatolian psych folk revivalists Altın Gün are, most simply put, a power pact between members of Jacco Gardner and Jungle By Night, who wound up crossing paths with musicians Erdinç Ecevit...
Les Amazones d’Afrique: making a big noise for women in a world run by men
Les Amazones d'Afrique are a gathering of some of the most powerful female voices of West-Africa. These performers use their music as a weapon to address the disempowerment of women across Africa and...
King Khan & Michael Eaton present The Black Power Tarot at Le Guess Who? 2017
If you're a regular Le Guess Who? attendant, then surely you know musician/producer/writer/artist Arish Ahmad Khan, known by the stage name of King Khan. The artist also played the festival back in 20...
Watch/read: Mazaher live at LGW21, premiered by Pan African Music
Chanting songs and playing hypnotic polyrhythms, Egyptian ensemble Mazaher gave a rare performance at Le Guess Who? 2021. It was their first European show in over 15 years. Mazaher is an Egyptian ensemble, a small group of mostly women musicians and singers who play Zãr music: a combination of chanted songs and hypnotic polyrhythm...
Watch the concert film of Estrella Morente & Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra live at Le Guess Who? 2022
During Le Guess Who? 2022, flamenco icon Estrella Morente and Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra came together for a magic showcase of warmth and joy. You can now watch the full concert film of the stunning performance at Utrecht's Jacobikerk, presented in collaboration with Ud Festival. The daughter of world-famous Enrique Morente,...
Watch: Cheikha Rabia & Esraa Warda - Live at Le Guess Who?
Renowned rai singer Cheikha Rabia & Esraa Warda, a prolific dancer expert in traditional North African dance forms, performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of the Hidden Musics project. Relive the mesmerizing performance at TivoliVredenburg's Pandora via our concert film below: AboutCheikha Rabia and Esraa Warda both hail from...
ZULI shares 'Komy' EP
The work of multi-talented sound artist Ahmed El Ghazoly (also known as ZULI) has spilled over Cairo's borders onto the rest of the world, garnering support from the likes of Aphex Twin and Autechre. The Egyptian producer now returns with his newest EP, Komy. The EP features Haykal, Dakn, Cocktail Party Effect, and Maoupa Mazzocche...
"These artists have their own voice - a real one": COSMOS goes Behind the Scenes in Cairo, Egypt
COSMOS: Behind the Scenes in Cairo, Egypt We speak to former LGW artist Yunis and B-62's Khaled Bargona about their highly creative film produced for the latest COSMOS edition. Here, we learn more about Cairo’s post-revolution music scene; how the artists that are featured in the film are creating a space for themselves in Cairo&rs...
Watch: Faiz Ali Faiz live at Le Guess Who? 2023
Pakistani singer Faiz Ali Faiz gave a spectacular performance as one of the closing acts of Le Guess Who? 2023. You can now relive this glorious moment with our concert film, as well as the full audio of the show. "Another kind of passion was found in the lovely old Vredenburg hall with the transcendent qawwali of Faiz Ali Faiz a...
Listen: ZULI & Omar El Sadek present λ at Le Guess Who? 2023
The work of multi-talented sound artist ZULI has spilled over Cairo's borders onto the rest of the world, garnering support from the likes of Aphex Twin and Autechre. Recently, the artist released his new album Lambda; leading up to the release, the musician and producer, who is determined to uplift other Middle Eastern creative voices, p...
Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra & Arion de Munck present 'Hadra Immersive' at LGW24
During the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2024, Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra & multidisciplinary artist Arion de Munck (Ombak-Lab) present Hadra Immersive, an experience in which Water, Harmony and Light play a central role. The climax of Hadra is not just a musical peak; it is a moment of collective transcendence, in which those pr...
Watch: Aftab Sr. sings love poetry at home in Lahore, Pakistan
As part of Arooj Aftab's curation at Le Guess Who? 2024, the artist invited her father, Aftab Sr., to perform together with her at the festival. As Aftab Sr. was denied his visa to travel to Utrecht, Le Guess Who? in collaboration with Pakistani label Honiunhoni and filmmaker Daniyal Yousaf, captured a performance of love poetry sung at h...
Listen: Noura Mint Seymali live at Le Guess Who? 2024
Noura Mint Seymali performed on the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2024 as part of the program curated by Arooj Aftab. You can now listen to, and relive, the full performance below. Noura Mint Seymali is a nationally adored Mauritanian musical star, born into a prominent line of Moorish griot; West African praise singers, poets a...
Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra & Arion de Munck present 'Hadra Immersive' - Live at Le Guess Who? 2024
A transcendental opening ceremony took place at the start of Le Guess Who? 2024, thanks to a special collaboration between the Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra and visual artist Arion de Munck, who presented the world premiere of Hadra Immersive at the festival. The Hadra is an ancient northern Moroccan ceremony that leads participan...
Mazaher - Live at Le Guess Who? 2021
Chanting songs and playing hypnotic polyrhythms, Egyptian ensemble Mazaher gave a rare performance at Le Guess Who? 2021. It was their first European show in over 15 years. Mazaher is an Egyptian ensemble, a small group of mostly women musicians and singers who play Zãr music: a combination of chanted songs and hypnotic polyrhythm...
Estrella Morente & Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra - Live at Le Guess Who? 2022
During Le Guess Who? 2022, flamenco icon Estrella Morente and Amsterdam Andalusian Orchestra came together for a magic showcase of warmth and joy. You can now watch the full concert film of the stunning performance at Utrecht's Jacobikerk, presented in collaboration with Ud Festival. The daughter of world-famous Enrique Morente,...
Cheikha Rabia & Esraa Warda - Live at Le Guess Who? 2022
Renowned rai singer Cheikha Rabia & Esraa Warda, a prolific dancer expert in traditional North African dance forms, performed live at Le Guess Who? 2022 as part of the Hidden Musics project. Relive the mesmerizing performance at TivoliVredenburg's Pandora via our concert film below: AboutCheikha Rabia and Esraa Warda both hail from...
Faiz Ali Faiz - Live at Le Guess Who? 2023
Pakistani singer Faiz Ali Faiz gave a spectacular performance as one of the closing acts of Le Guess Who? 2023. You can now relive this glorious moment with our concert film, as well as the full audio of the show. "Another kind of passion was found in the lovely old Vredenburg hall with the transcendent qawwali of Faiz Ali Faiz a...
ZULI & Omar El Sadek present λ - Live at Le Guess Who? 2023
The work of multi-talented sound artist ZULI has spilled over Cairo's borders onto the rest of the world, garnering support from the likes of Aphex Twin and Autechre. Recently, the artist released his new album Lambda; leading up to the release, the musician and producer, who is determined to uplift other Middle Eastern creative voices, p...
Noura Mint Seymali - Live at Le Guess Who? 2024
Noura Mint Seymali performed on the opening night of Le Guess Who? 2024 as part of the program curated by Arooj Aftab. You can now listen to, and relive, the full performance below. Noura Mint Seymali is a nationally adored Mauritanian musical star, born into a prominent line of Moorish griot; West African praise singers, poets a...
Le Guess Who? 2019 Press Archive
“With the able steer of festival curators Jenny Hval, Moon Duo, Fatoumata Diawara, and Iris Van Herpen, this year’s boundary-crossing festival Le Guess Who?? welcomed visitors from over 60 countries and proved that even in times of political divide, music and art can bring us together into a more hopeful future.” - The...
Le Guess Who? 2017 Press Archive
The Netherlands 3FM: "3voor12 is op Le Guess Who?, waar basketballen tegen aan het plafond geschroefde gitaren worden gegooid"3voor12: "Eerste 67 namen voor Le Guess Who? 2017" 3voor12: "Kelly Lee Owens, dagdromer met kennishonger" 3voor12: "Le Guess Who? str...
Le Guess Who? 2018 Press Archive
The Netherlands 3FM: Eva Koreman nieuwe presentator 3voor12 radio 3FM: Le Guess Who? 2018: Ralph-Herman snapt niet wat Colin Stetson doet3FM: Timo op Le Guess Who: van gevoelige liedjes in een kerk tot stoned rappers3voor12: Kijk terug: James Holden & The Animal Spirits op Le Guess Who? 3voor12: Festivals willen dat je een kaart...
COSMOS Embassy: Karachi, Pakistan
In partnership with Honiunhoni Honiunhoni, meaning "Impossible Possibilities," is an independent music production collective and record label founded in 2022 by musician and anthropologist Daniyal Ahmed. Rooted in the ethos of ethnographic research, Honiunhoni celebrates Pakistan's cultural richness and diversity through meticulous curat...
COSMOS Embassy Film: Karachi, Pakistan
In partnership with Honiunhoni Honiunhoni, meaning "Impossible Possibilities," is an independent music production collective and record label founded in 2022 by musician and anthropologist Daniyal Ahmed. Rooted in the ethos of ethnographic research, Honiunhoni celebrates Pakistan's cultural richness and diversity through meticulous curat...