Djoniba Mouflet is an internationally-acclaimed drummer, dancer, teacher, performer and choreographer as well as a musical producer, writer and composer. Born in Martinique, he spent many of his early years in Senegal, Mali, and Guinea, West Africa, where he studied with renowned dance and musical masters Boully Sankho, Doudou Ndiaye Rose, Kemoko Sano, Ahmidou Bangoura, Germaine Acogny, Tapha Cisse, Arafan and Cheick Niang. Djoniba came to know the music and dance of various regions of Africa as he studied with tribes in small villages as well as in professionally-staffed schools and companies, including Mudra Afrique, Ballet Foret Sacre, Ballet Meissa, Ballet Conakry and the National Ballet Africain of Guinea. He also studied ballet at Dance Theatre of Harlem, and is trained as well in modern dance, jazz dance, music theory and acting. He has worked with Spike Lee, Chaka Khan, Will Calhoun, Al Corley, Kid Creole and the Coconuts, Lindsay Wagner, Olatundji, and many others.
Djoniba has come a long way from his poverty-ridden childhood in Martinique, his days without food in Africa and his nights sleeping on the New York City subway. In the Spring of 1993, he founded the Djoniba Dance & Drum Centre, now the third largest black-owned dance studio in New York and the first ethnic center in the U.S. Djoniba built the Centre himself with the help of students and friends. His goal was to create an institution that bridges the gaps between ages, races, communities, economic levels and cultures. The Centre currently occupies 7,500 square feet; it houses three dance studios, a recording studio and an African import store. It is home to a professional touring troupe, Ballet d’Afrique Djoniba, a children’s program, and an adult evening program. Djoniba also runs Djoniba Productions, a music company that produces the work of Senegalese singing star Ballago Thione Seck.
Over the years, thousands of students have passed through Djoniba's high-energy classes. His unique "Joneeba" teaching style and technique has become a model for many. His students have included Julia Roberts, Brooke Shields, Roshumba, Julio Leitao, N’Bushe and Janina, as well as Iman and Montel Williams's children. Djoniba is tireless in his work as a humanitarian and cultural ambassador. These endeavors include programs for homeless children and a children’s scholarship program which has helped hundreds of children from low-income families to dance and drum for free. Over the past 13 years, he has helped hundreds of people to understand and discover Africa by taking them on his yearly trip there.