Muntu Valdo and Kadialy Kouyate are to play at London's Vortex Jazz Club on 9 February. 

Muntu Valdo’s music is rooted in the blues, mixing African traditions with modernity and technical mastery. His solo sets juxtapose his raw, passionate voice and emotive melodies with an ingenious use of loops, samples and effects.

He has played with some of the great names of African music including Ali Farka Touré and Manu Dibango, toured with Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Congolese superstars Staff Benda Bilili, and collaborated with the likes of alt-folk singer Alasdair Roberts and Damon Albarn’s Africa Express.

Muntu’s debut album Gods & Devils was described by NME as 'a rapturous record that shudders with joy and passion'.

Kadialy Kouyate performs original music inspired by the West African griot repertoire. Born into the great line of Kouyate griots in Southern Senegal, Kadialy first made a name for himself in the UK with both his solo performances and success with steel pan player Fimber Bravo.

Kadialy’s new ensemble features an outstanding group of London-based musicians. With their upcoming album Teriya and successful performances at the Southbank Centre, the Shambala Festival and the London African Music Festival, Kadialy Kouyate is a star to watch.

Senegalese kora virtuoso/singer Kadialy Kouyate showcases his fleet-fingered skills on this mesmerizing instrument, complementing it with his hauntingly, darkly beautiful voice, to create a Toumani Diabate-meets-Youssou N’Dour sound - Time Out.

The crowd were treated to Muntu Valdo's guitar magic. Sauntering on stage with a springy step, softly picking at his guitar and blowing in his harmonica, he resembled a youthful, latter-day Bob Dylan. But his music is from a different stream. Using a box of tricks to double-track his guitar and voice live, he added layers of sound to create full-textured, soft songs about peace, love and Cameroonian witchcraft that charmed the audience - Financial Times.