In music, due to the clash of ambitions, it is rare to see a group evolve over time while preserving the same interests. Ousmane Ndong alias Thioukel and Salla Dièye alias Si Salisto, who have been singing together for 26 years, have managed to build a musical empire around loyalty. The duo who, since 1998, have continued to compose love songs, finally transitioned into marriage on October 10, 2020. Thioukel and Si Salisto, a “happy” couple who grew up in music.
In life, change is inevitable. Sometimes, some people are afraid to face it. On the other hand, the singers Si Salisto and Thioukel resisted all kinds of mutations and temptations, continuing to bathe in joy: that of singing to please their audience. These two artists from the Kolda region, in the heart of Fouladou, have been working as a duo since 1998.
Today, they continue on their merry way and their progression towards the top. These sons of Casamance have a mixture of unique voices. That of Salla Dièye aka Si Salisto, coupled with the vocal and vibrant timbre of Ousmane Ndong, gives magical sounds that leave no one indifferent. Both occur often in Casamance. In Dakar, the group Si Salisto & Thioukel gives live concerts almost every evening in chic places, especially restaurants. A few months ago, Si Salisto and Thioukel, with their talent, managed to dazzle the stage of a hotel located in the town of Ziguinchor. Person with reduced mobility, Si Salisto is a complete artist. There is presence and precision in his voice. Once on stage, she gives her all to transport her audience into her world. Recently, the group Si Salisto & Thioukel released yet another single entitled “Touki”, a journey in French. In this song which tells a true love story, we first hear the sublime voice of Salla Dièye, author and singer. The woman, overcome by nostalgia, asks her husband who has traveled for years when he will return. Implicitly, towards the end of the hit “Touki”, Thioukel takes over feeling the same nostalgia. As a great gentleman, he lets the one who makes his heart beat know that he will be back soon. A return to his life which will inevitably give another dimension to their love story.
Like “Touki”, the duo who sings about love, friendship, health (malaria), agriculture by raising awareness among young people for a return to the land, etc., has already released several beautiful songs on the market . Proud of their journey, Thioukel believes that their group will never give up. On the contrary, he said, the work continues to improve further and raise their flag higher. A career that opens the doors to love “We have existed since 1998. But, before that, everyone was trying to forge their own path. When we met, we started with Rap before launching ourselves into Afro-beat through Reggae and Mballax. We will continue to perform because we have an audience who supports us and trusts us,” he confides to “Sole”, with a conquering voice.
By hanging around and composing love songs, feelings end up taking over. In this specific case, we can say that music leads to everything. Because the two founders of the orchestra group Si Salisto & Thioukel decided to found a home. And on October 10, 2020, shortly before the world fell into the dark period of Covid-19, Ousmane Ndong and Salla Dièye, who started singing together in 1998, decided to get married. Another story begins. Another chapter of their lives opens. September 21, 2021 coincides with the birth of their boy. This little one is now three years old. Despite this family commitment, the couple-duo still holds strong. Time passes. But the passion and ambitions remain intact. Salla Dièye gave her first concert at the age of 17. In her early days, she was into Rap and Soul. As for Ousmane Ndong, who took the nickname Thioukel in 1995, he founded his first hip hop group, Black Vision Hopeful (Bvp) at the age of 16. As lead vocal and composer, the young artist ended up announcing the dissolution of Bvp.
In 1998, he decided, with Si Salisto, to create their own label. Over time, their talent will be recognized nationally. Several times finalists in national competitions, notably in 2005, in Dakar, during the International Rotary Musical Challenge competition bringing together more than a hundred groups of African artists, Si Salisto and Thioukel have a clear philosophy: perform even more and invest more in order to build a complete legacy, a guarantee of a bright future for the benefit of their offspring.
Gaustin DIATTA
