Mbalax (or Mbalakh)'s the national popular dance music of Senegal and The Gambia. Mbalax's a fusion of popular Western music and dance such as jazz, soul, Latin, and rock blended with sabar, the traditional drumming and dance music of Senegal. The genre's name derived from the heavy use of accompanying rhythms used in sabar called mbalax. History and Influence Mbalax in its current form developed in Senegal in the 1970s. Up to that time popular music was dominated by Haitian kompa, Congolese So… (More on Mbalax)