One of the forefathers of what we know today as World Music, composer and multi-percussionist Adam Rudolph was born in Chicago in 1955. With a vast interest in world cultures and music, he completed a degree in ethnomusicology and studied percussions under the mentorship of Don Cherry. His various voyages throughout the world have allowed him to study different percussion styles, namely congas, djembe, talking drum, and many more, a virtuosity that has made him a popular session percussionist in the music industry. In 1977, he formed the groundbreaking Mandingo Griot Society, a band that combined African and American music. In 1988, he released the first of many albums with Dr. Yusef Lateef, a collaboration still going strong today, with Towards the Unknown, released in 2010.