Youssou N’Dour @ Usher Hall, Edinburgh, 13 Aug

Playing as part of the Edinburgh International Festival, Youssou N'Dour and his band unite a sold-out Usher Hall crowd for a colourful night of West African music – and lots of dancing

Live Review by Max Sefton | 16 Aug 2024

The theme for this year’s Edinburgh International Festival is Rituals that Unite Us and as a devoted exporter of Senegal’s Mbalax sound, that’s something that Youssou N'Dour knows all about. From the cafes of Dakar to the biggest stages in the world, he’s been the country’s foremost exporter of his country’s danceable mix of soulful vocals and ecstatic polyrhythmic drumming for more than four decades.

He knows plenty about the need for reconciliation and the value of shared experiences in today’s world too, having put together concerts calling for Nelson Mandela’s freedom and helped to introduce African music to western audiences through his collaborations with the likes of Peter Gabriel, Paul Simon and Bruce Springsteen. He’s also served as his country’s Minister for Culture and Tourism. His pace has slowed a little in recent times – he’s only done a handful of international shows since COVID – but even today, the likes of Burna Boy call him for a guest spot.

However, after decades as an entrepreneur and Senegalese culture minister, alongside his career as a vastly successful performer, the question is, now in his mid-60s, has Youssou N'Dour still got it? There’s certainly plenty of people who want to find out. Tonight's EIF performance at The Usher Hall is sold out.

The first signs are a little inauspicious: at 8pm, when the show is scheduled to start, hundreds of fans are still queuing outside the venue. Thankfully some well-drilled security staff help to get everyone inside just in time. The second is a better omen, the stalls have been removed. The floor is ready for dancing.

Introduced to the stage by his brightly dressed MC as the “King of African Pop”, N'Dour may be the most soberly dressed of his vast and colourful ensemble, but even at 64 he's still a great dancer, a soulful singer and the obvious Commander-in-Chief of his big and versatile band.

Photo of a member of Youssou N'Dour's band, dancing across the stage while the band perform.
Image: Youssou N'Dour at Usher Hall, Edinburgh, 13 Aug by Andrew Perry for Edinburgh International Festival

At a hand gesture from the singer, musicians and dancers take a step forward to deliver their showpiece. Across the evening it’s a fluctuating collective of between three and 15 people on stage, including multiple percussionists, two backing vocalists and a man in traditional robes whose job it is to dance wildly with the odd front flip thrown in. It’s clear they are all vastly talented musicians: if you’ve ever wondered what a virtuoso solo on a traditional talking-drum which can mimic the tone and cadence of a human voice sounds like, then tonight is your chance to find out. 

What has solidified N'Dour’s legendary status is not just his commitment to taking Mbalax to the world but also his willingness to refashion sounds from around the world and bring them into it. Tonight, there’s elements from Cuban salsa, Jimi Hendrix’s fired up electric blues and filmic trip-hop on 7 Seconds, the wonderful Neneh Cherry duet from his 1994 album The Guide (Wommat), that sees N'Dour sing verses in English, French and the West African language Wolof.

Two hours fly by, with the singer and his band exhorting the crowd to dance and clap and issuing a powerful plea for unity on New Africa. As the night draws to a close, the audience are practically panting from the workout but N'Dour still looks pristine as he waves and exits stage left. The ritual is complete. He’s still got it.