Songwriter, producer, president of the African Music Academy
A long time associate of British band Level 42, Wally Badarou has co-written, performed and co-produced with the band from the beginning. He was a member of the Compass Point All Stars; the in-house recording team working with Grace Jones, Joe Cocker and Mick Jagger, and has also recorded with Robert Palmer, Marianne Faithfull, Talking Heads, Foreigner, Power Station, Manu Dibango, Miriam Makeba and many others.
He has produced albums by Fela Kuti, Salif Keita, Wasis Diop, Trilok Gurtu, Carlinhos Brown; written for films such as “Countryman” and “Kiss of the Spider Woman”, directed and written for Jean-Paul Goude’s French Bicentennial parade in 1989, and helped organise the Kora All Africa Music Awards in 1997.
His solo instrumental work includes “Words Of A Mountain” and “Echoes”, the latter featuring “Chief Inspector”, “Mambo” (sampled for Massive Attack’s “Daydreaming”, Blue Lines debut album), and “Hi-Life”.
Wally served as a member of SACEM’s board from 2012 to 2024, and has supported many organisations in France and abroad, as a strong advocate of authors rights around the world. He is also the president and a founding member of the African Music Academy.
