Kone was raised in Ivory Coast, where he learned drumming and drum-making from the age of four. As an adult he moved to New York City, then Orlando, Florida — working at Walt Disney World and touring with Jimmy Buffett — before landing in New Orleans in 2008. He is a respected educator and an expert on the cultural connections between New Orleans and West Africa, especially in music and dance.
A maker of djembes, dunduns, congas, balafons, bolons, shekeres, and xylophones as well as a player, Kone fronts Ivorie Spectacle, a drum-and-dance ensemble whose performances pair driving, evocative rhythms with swirling, high-energy dancers. The group is a regular Jazz Fest crowd-pleaser, appearing on lineups from 2010 through 2026, and has played the French Quarter Festival multiple times, including its 2023 and 2026 editions.
Catch them at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in 2026 — and look for the balafon, the gourd-resonated wooden xylophone at the center of their sound.
