​​Over the course of a career spanning five decades, singer, songwriter, and composer Omar Pene has created a body of work underpinned by a political consciousness that particularly centres class struggle and the experience of Senegalese youth. With his charismatic voice, complex rhythms, and compelling stage performances, Pene is one of the most well-known artists in Senegal, a voice of the masses, reflecting their lives and experiences in his lyrics. 

In the 1970s Pene founded the band Super Diamono, also known as Super Diamono de Dakar and later renamed Omar Pene & Super Diamono. The band played a crucial role in modernizing the mbalax genre, which derives originally from the sabar, a wolof music very popular from Senegal and Gambia. Blending it with jazz, rock, soul funk, pop, and Afro-Cuban rhythms, and adding his very daring sociopolitical touch to the genre, Pene transformed mbalax and heightened its popularity among the urban youth.

Throughout his career, Pene has released numerous albums and spawned many hits such as ‘Gainde’ (1992), ‘Yama yar’ (1993), ‘Bode Doley’ (1997), and ‘Woma’ (2009). His collaboration with Youssou Ndour, Euleuk Sibir (1996)—a musical call for a political vision and liberation—is considered a cult album. On his recent album Climat (2022) is a collaboration with guitarist Hervé Samb, an acoustic project that encompasses Afrobeat, pop, and soul, combining their typically fast rhythm runs with tender, bright melodies. With his soft, intense voice, Pene sings about life, joy, and human interaction. His music remains as funky and elegant as ever.