[1] Born in the culturally rich town of Kita, west of the Malian capital, Bamako, Djelimady grew up surrounded with traditional music played by members of his family, griots, musicians and historians by birth.
He started playing guitar in a large, government-sponsored neighborhood band, Orchestre Misira.
All his adult life, Djelimady has worked to transform his ancestral traditions into dance pop.
In recent years, Djelimady has performed in an acoustic trio called Bajourou, accompanied by another masterful griot guitarist, Bouba Sacko, and by singer Lafia Diabate, a veteran of the Rail Band.
Tounkara plays a prominent role in the book In Griot Time by American musician and author Banning Eyre.