West African Drum Ensemble

In his exciting and engaging performances Taylor strives to translate rhythm into a variety of contexts, both traditional and non-traditional. In the traditional form performing West African djembe rhythms with performance ensemble with Kaben Kafö and in the non-traditional realm, he has combined his djembe stylings with DJs, storytelling, voice, acoustic combos and ensembles, full bands, traditional combos and ensembles, performance art, etc. He aspires to combine theatre with rhythm, including lighting, costuming, scripting, etc.

Michael J. Taylor, is biracial and more commonly known simply as 'Taylor', has been teaching, performing, and recording West African percussion since 1994. He authored the book “Remembering Your Ancestral Fire” in 2023. After beginning studies with Grand Master Drummer and founder of the Tam Tam Mandingue Djembe Academy Mamady Keita in 1999, he achieved the degrees of TTMDA Certified Teacher (2005) and was the first in the world to achieve the degree TTMDA Senior Certified Teacher (2006); he is the Director of TTMDA-Chicago. Through TTMDA he teaches and performs with and for youth ages 5-105. The founder and driving force behind Holy Goat Percussion, he imports, sells and repairs West African djembes and dununs. Additionally, he recorded all djembe parts on the Djembeföla! App for IOS and djembe parts with his group Kaben Kafo and Mamady Keita for some of the audio instructional tracks for Mamady Keita’s book “Nankama”. With the international corporate training company Sewa Beats USA, he is a Lead Facilitator. He is proud to be, in the words of Grand Master Drummer Mamady Keita, a “messenger of tradition” in representing TTMDA. Check 'djembist' on YouTube for video examples. He began drumming through theatre and has performed and/or taught djembe on every continent except Antarctica so far. In his work as a musician with the djembe he has put this traditional West African instrument in performance art, storytelling, contemporary music (jazz, classical, pop, folk, blues, etc.)

The music of the West African djembe drum is part of the fabric of Mande culture; that area of the world that was once called the Malian Empire in West Africa c. (phone number hidden)0 CE. Djembe is always played intentionally, for a purpose. No matter if it is being played for the farmers, for initiation, for the full moon or for any other reason, dance and intention are always involved, so don’t be afraid to dance when the djembe calls to you! The djembe parts, dunun parts (low bass drums) and oral history for each rhythm must be taught and learned with traditional djembe; the music along with the specific rhythm name, where it was created, by whom and for what purpose, as well as whose version.

Whether it is as an author, storyteller, professional speaker, educator, entrepreneur, video/recording artist, corporate team building facilitator or performer, Taylor brings a unique perspective to his craft. With the combination of a unique ability to communicate, instill discipline and promote creativity, combined with a broad range of life and professional experience, he focuses on the relationship between the individual and rhythm/drumming.
This has led to an overall philosophy that seeks to bridge the gap between all things in rhythm, seeking to find where one's own personal pulse lies in relation to the collective pulse. By way of traditional West African or non-traditional styles, Taylor demonstrates the universality of rhythm in everything he does.