The Most Booked Artists on Festival TV This Year-End: Guinea and Mali Open the Rankings

Conakry · Bamako — The principle is simple: Festival TV counted the concerts announced for November and December 2026 in the calendars of the artists in its catalogue. Only the dates of artists whose calendar is up to date on the platform count — the rule of the game applies to everyone. The verdict: two countries open the ball, and one leader crushes everything.

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🇲🇱 MALI — Fatoumata Diawara, 18 dates

Her Massa Tour crosses Europe without catching its breath: 13 dates in November, 5 in December. The Roundhouse in London on November 18, the Olympia in Paris on the 25th, Paradiso in Amsterdam on the 27th — in total, 28 dates sit on her Festival TV calendar, the fullest of the two countries.

Second, Malakey lines up 10 dates: Visa For Music in Rabat on November 20, a major tour of Burkina Faso — Ouagadougou, Bobo-Dioulasso, Boromo, Kaya — and Canada on December 4. Third, Vieux Farka Touré (4 dates): Anchorage on November 13, London on the 25th, Stockholm on the 27th and Antwerp on December 4.

The Malian diaspora is watching: Djely Tapa, a Malian griot based in Montreal, is the only one of the synced Malian artists with a complete EPK on her profile — and her next date is already set: February 26, 2027, in Montreal.

Mali has 29 artists in the Festival TV catalogue, 10 with an up-to-date calendar. The other 19 — Iba One, Ami Yèrèwolo, Songhoy Blues, Habib Koité… — remain at zero, for lack of a calendar.

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🇬🇳 GUINEA — Lil Saako, 7 dates

The XXL Energy Tour never stops: Kindia on November 18, Conakry on the 21st and 25th (at the German Embassy), Milan on December 5, Athens on the 11th, Dubréka on the 13th and Côte d'Ivoire on the 25th. Seven dates in the window — and an eighth already announced, on January 1 in Boké.

Saïfond Baldé follows with 4 dates: The Gambia on November 21, Siguiri on the 26th, England on December 5 and Conakry's Palm Camayenne for New Year's Eve on the 31st. Djelykaba Bintou completes the podium with 2 dates that count double: the Zénith in Paris on November 7 and "Audace" at Stade GLC de Nongo, in Conakry, on December 5.

Guinea has 65 artists in the catalogue; only 12 have an up-to-date calendar. Notable fact: Balla Bangoura is the only one of the 12 with a complete EPK on his profile.

🇸🇳 SENEGAL — Ngaaka Blindé, 3 dates

Senegal enters the ranking — and it took a closer look to see it: before the big wave of calendar synchronizations, only 4 dates counted in the window; the wave brought out 14. The country has 45 artists in the catalogue, 13 with an up-to-date calendar.

On top, Ngaaka Blindé: Fatick on November 28 (Stade Massène Sène), then Canada — Montreal on December 19 (Théâtre Plaza) and Quebec City on the 20th. Behind him, a perfect tie at 2 dates: Amadeus, with his Digg Doole Show (Saint-Louis on December 18, Thiès on the 25th), and Pape Diouf (the Grand Théâtre National in Dakar on December 12, Florence on the 24th).

The Senegalese diaspora also marks the table: Mariaa Siga, based in Cannes, showcasing at Visa For Music (Rabat, November 19); Anas Juulo, based in Montreal, at the OFF Mundial Montréal on November 20.

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🇧🇯 BENIN — Lionel Loueke, 2 dates

Benin enters the ranking: 9 artists in the catalogue, 4 up-to-date calendars, 5 dates counted in the window. On top, guitarist Lionel Loueke and his Confluence project: Hamburg on December 18 (NICA Jazz Club), Vienna on the 21st (Porgy & Bess). His calendar holds 6 periods in total — the fullest in the country.

Three artists follow with 1 date each: Axel Merryl in New York (Symphony Space) on November 29, and two Beninese showcasing at Visa For Music in Rabat — OPA on November 18 and DJ Emos Djekomon on the 20th.

The raw material is there, waiting: Gangbé Brass Band, Orchestre Poly-Rythmo and Zeynab are touring — but no calendar is displayed on their profiles. Notable fact: between Benin and Togo, the only two real EPKs are Beninese — those of Bénin International Musical (BIM) and Biôwa.

🇹🇬 TOGO — a ranking to be built

In Togo, the picture is honest: 7 artists in the catalogue, a single synced calendar. Kiko carries the flag alone, with 1 date — his showcase at Visa For Music in Rabat on November 21 (Théâtre Mohammed V).

Yet the country's fullest profiles are there: Santrinos Raphaël and Toofan — but zero dates displayed. The Togolese ranking is yet to be built, and that is a call to action.

One name could change everything: Sethlo, whose official poster announces December 18, 2026 at La Machine du Moulin Rouge in Paris. The day his profile is created and his date enters the calendar, he takes the lead in Togo.

🇨🇦 CANADA — Francis Mercier, 18 dates

Canada enters in turn, with the largest perimeter of the campaign: 660 artists in the catalogue. Only 115 have a synced calendar — but they line up 249 dates in the window, more than all the other countries combined.

On top, Francis Mercier and his world tour: three nights in London (KOKO), Miami, New York, Sydney, Melbourne, five dates in India, Bali for New Year's Eve. A DJ of Haitian origin linked to Montreal, he is listed as "Canada · Montreal" in our catalogue — he takes the Canadian lead as our profiles classify him, in full transparency: none of his 18 dates is in Canada.

The most Canadian tour is right behind: The Bloodshots (Manitoba) and their Screamin' Across Canada Tour — 17 dates, 17 cities, from Lethbridge to Montreal, all in Canada. Third, Ariel Posen (Winnipeg): Massey Hall in Toronto on November 25, then 13 European dates with Cory Wong's Fretboard Odyssey — and the country's fullest calendar, 32 periods.

The raw material is immense: 545 Canadian profiles with no calendar, and a single real EPK out of 660 — also-ran's, in Winnipeg. Here more than anywhere else, the ranking is just waiting to move.

© Festival TV

🌍 SUPER RANKING — all countries combined

• 1. Fatoumata Diawara (Mali) — 18 dates
• 2. Francis Mercier (Canada) — 18 dates
• 3. The Bloodshots (Canada) — 17 dates
• 4. Ariel Posen (Canada) — 14 dates
• 5. Field Guide (Canada) — 11 dates
• 6. Boy Golden (Canada) — 10 dates
• 7. Malakey (Mali) — 10 dates
• 8. Sydney Blu (Canada) — 8 dates
• 9. Lil Saako (Guinea) — 7 dates
• 10. Cara Luft (Canada) — 6 dates

A perfect tie at the top: Diawara and Mercier each count 18 dates and 18 stage days — the house rule (dates, then stage days, then alphabetical order) keeps the Malian in first place. Canada places seven artists in the top 10, Mali two, Guinea one. Next come Nadia Burnstick (6 dates), Saïfond Baldé and Vieux Farka Touré (4 dates), Ngaaka Blindé (3), then Djelykaba Bintou, Amadeus, Pape Diouf and Lionel Loueke (2 dates) — and dozens of artists at 1 date. The full table lives, live, at festivaltv.tv/en/classements — and everything can still move: artists only need to update their calendars.

Your fans have the right to know

Why this ranking? Because an artist who does not publish their dates leaves their audience in the dark. In Guinea as in Mali, no website displays artists' calendars; many have only Facebook, with no professional website. Festival TV is putting an end to the invisible calendar: a professional profile, a public calendar, direct booking — visible to fans and to the festivals that recruit alike.

And this ranking is alive: it moves with every date added, live on festivaltv.tv. A standard edition every month, and every weekend, the Festival TV Page shows the changes. First place can be taken… and lost.

Artists: this ranking belongs to you. Claim your profile or create your free profile on Festival TV, then update your dates: as soon as a date is added, the ranking moves — live.

And the ranking keeps expanding: 🇨🇲 Cameroon and 🇨🇮 Côte d'Ivoire are coming. Their inventories are on the way — their rankings will follow, in this same feature.