Loula Bint Siddaty Ould Abba was born in 1958 into a griot family specialized in the iggawin tradition. Taking the stage name Dimi Mint Abba, Mauritania’s best known vocalist accompanies herself on the ardin, a string instrument that is similar to the West African kora. Her public career began in 1976 and, a year later, she won the Um Qalthoum competition in Tunis. In the Nineties, she began recording albums that have become references for traditional singing from this Saharan nation.