Vieux Farka Touré at Artisphere - Friday, September 12 at 8pm

MMS favorite Vieux Farka Touré, billed as the "Hendrix of the Sahara" and the "Clapton of Africa", enters into the final leg of his world tour with a show at Arlington's Artisphere this Friday.

Billing him as the Africanized version of an American or English pop star, or even simply as the son of the great fingerstyle guitarist Ali Farka Touré, doesn't accurately measure the depth of the soul or talent with which Vieux represents himself and his home of Mali to the world. His latest album, Mon Pays (My Country), serves as an homage to Mali by its newest music ambassador.

Opening for Vieux at Artisphere will be local Afropop collective Elikeh. Tickets are $18 or $25, and doors open at 8. I'll leave you with a track from Mon Pays.