Yahaya Kamate

Yahaya Kamate was born and raised in the West African country of Côte d’Ivoire and grew up speaking Malinke, the tribal language of his region. After developing an interest in dancing and drumming, Yahaya auditioned for and joined the National Ballet of Côte d’Ivoire school, where he toured across West Africa. Soon, he began to tour as a dancer internationally in France, Greece, and the Netherlands and performed with Ballet D’Afrique and Mask Dance Company before moving to the United States in 1994. Yahaya is the Associate Artistic Director of the Seventh Principle Performance Company and the founder of Kamate Traders, “trading art for smiles," and teaches at numerous dance studios and academies across the tri-state area.