Tartit, a Malian band formed in 1992 in a refugee camp in Mauritania, consists of five women and four men who are Tamasheq-speaking Tuareg from the Tombouctou Region. The group's debut concert took place at the MASA Trade Fair for African Arts in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, in 1995. Tartit released their first album, Amazagh, in 1997, and gained wider recognition with their second album, Ichichila, recorded in 2000. They continued to tour extensively, performing at notable festivals such as WOMAD in Seattle and the Festival in the Desert. In 2006, they released their third album, Abacabok. Tartit have collaborated with various artists, including Ali Farka Touré, Afel Bocoum, Tinariwen, Robert Plant, Oumou Sangaré, Lo'Jo, Baba Salah, and Susan McKeown. In 2013, due to the Northern Mali conflict, Tartit fled the Timbuktu area, complicating their performance schedule.
