Nahawa Doumbia is one of the main female singers from the Wassoulou region in South Mali. Her popularity is only surpassed by Oumou Sangaré, but equal to that of Sali Sidibé. Since her mother died shortly after Nahawa's birth, she grew up with her grandmother in Manankoro near Bougouni. Although her mother predicted shortly before she died that Nahawa would be a singer, her family had tried for a long time to prevent this from happening.
Finally, civil servants from the Ministry of Culture discovered her voice, and she first appeared on stage in 1980 at the biënnale of Bamako. She recorded some 3 albums in the 1980s, before the producer Ibrahima Sylla took her to Paris for recording sessions with Boncana Maiga resulting in the 1988 album Didadi. That was the starting point of an international career. On the albums Didadi, Nyama Toutou, and Mangoni, the approach was to fusion African rhythms and modern recording technology and instrumentation.

Amity Méria is one of the most popular female singers in Burkina Faso during the 1990s. Her interest in music, probably coming from her father who played guitar in his spare time, showed at school where she participated actively in musical activities. She did the same during her studies at the university of Ouagadougou (she studied arts and literature) where she was chosen to join the Orchestre de l’Université de Ouagadougou. In 1990, she recorded a first album, with which she received a second price at a local contest, and she toured throughout the country. In 1993, she recorded a second album “Dabari.” Her songs, more melodic than rhythmic, are about women's rights, prostitution, children, peace and African unity. Most songs are sung in Dioula, which makes her songs accessible for a larger public in neighbouring countries such as Mali and Côte d'Ivoire.

In 2000, she was among the Kora Awards finalists, and since then she recorded two more albums. She regularly performs in her country, and was rewarded with the Kundé d'Or for the Best Burkinabe artist in 2004 with the album “Maaya”.