There's a ton of stuff out there, but starting with Mali there is:
Toumani Diabate is a kora player, absolutely beautiful music. His Djelika album is a great starting point. Also one of the biggest selling CDs and most famous groups from Mali was from Amadou and Miriam's Dimanche a Bamako, they're a blind couple that make the most infectous music. They won a British World music award in 2006. These two are a great starting point and no brainers.
Toumani Diabate is a kora player, absolutely beautiful music. His Djelika album is a great starting point. Also one of the biggest selling CDs and most famous groups from Mali was from Amadou and Miriam's Dimanche a Bamako, they're a blind couple that make the most infectous music. They won a British World music award in 2006. These two are a great starting point and no brainers.