Patrick Ruffino was born in Cotonou, the capital of Benin, in the 1970s. He trained on his preferred instrument, the bass, before moving to France in the late 1980s. In 1997, he joined the group Fâ, which made a name for itself with the album Défi in 1999. Five years later, Patrick Ruffino launched his solo career, traveling extensively between France, Mali and Burkina Faso. He released his first album under his own name, E Wa Ka Jo, on which he played bass, guitar, percussion and vocals. He is accompanied by artists such as Ousmane Daneidjo, Payaissidé Winsé and Ahouefa Ruffino. This album, sung in Mina, Yoruba, Dendi, Fon and Pidgin, was recorded between Bamako, Cotonou and Paris, and features numerous arrangements (cello, balafon, flute, harmonica, piano, brass). In 2008, he was a finalist for the RFI Musiques du Monde discovery prize. His successor came ten years later: Agoo. Inspired as much by voodoo culture as jazz fusion and Afrobeat, the singer collaborates again with Ahouefa Ruffino on "Adjé Da To", and with Sagbohan Danialou on "Ja Va Lou". The following year, Patrick Ruffino presented the track "Come Back" , and in 2020, he released a remix of his duet with Sagbohan Danialou. At the same time, he continues to work as a producer, artistic director and arranger at the Dahomey Prod studio.
