born July 15, 1929, Douala, Camer.
died May 28, 2001, Paris, France
Cameroonian-born French writer and singer-songwriter.
After studying in Paris and New York City, he settled in Paris in 1960. He worked for radio stations and then for UNESCO, researching and documenting traditional African music. Meanwhile, he also composed and recorded his own highly experimental music that often incorporated Latin American, Western, and African elements. Because of this, he is sometimes considered "the father of world music ." He also wrote two books about African music and several works of fiction.