Amai Kuda et Les Bois are a Toronto based musical movement working in the Afro-soul genre. Their music is rooted in African continental and diasporic forms like blues, soul, funk, reggae, jazz, hip-hop, R&B, Motown, rock, and folk, and carries a spiritual, mediative element throughout.

Amai Kuda was born and raised in the Oakwood Village area of Toronto. She originally started out as a solo artist in 2010 and was joined by the percussionist and vocalist Y Josephine in 2013, creating the duo project Amai Kuda and Y Josephine. Now, the band works with many different collaborators, often including Kuda’s son, Kudakwashe Imoja Mutamba, and works under the moniker Amai Kuda et Les Bois. Kuda has been celebrated for her songwriting abilities and her striving for social justice and environmental awareness.

In 2015, the collective was selected as one of the 101 Standout Artists during the nationwide CBC Searchlight competition, won the Best Folk/Roots award, and placed second for the Best Song across all categories at the Toronto Independent Music Awards. They have opened for artists like Joel Plaskett, Kellylee Evans, and Sarah Slean, and collaborated with M1 of the legendary hip-hop duo, Dead Prez, on a call-to-cation song called “We Can Do It.” Their first full length album, Afrosoul, vol. II: MaZai was cited as being “one of the year’s most exciting discoveries” by Canadian music journalist, Nicholas Jennings, upon its release in 2021.

The group’s most recent release, EmUrgency! Came out in 2022 and included video collaboration with the rising Nigerian animation studio, Spoof Animation, with the intention to give exposure to Africa’s digital content creation scene and showcase the creativity through highlighting African spirituality and mythology.

Amai Kuda et Les Bois continue to make their mark on the Toronto music scene, performing at venues like the Jane Mallett Theatre, Harbourfront, The Rivoli, and festivals such as Luminato, Kultrun, and Small World. Kuda herself is also a passionate educator who has travelled throughout Southern Ontario, the Carribean, and Europe to perform and deliver workshops on music, decolonization, African cultural knowledge, and percussion at public schools, universities, libraries, and community spaces.