In Mali, people say that the sound of the Kora "carries one's thoughts far away". This feeling lies at the heart of jeliya, the music of the jeli (griots). The griots are a hereditary group of artisan specialists who represent a tradition reaching back to the empire of Mali in the 13th century. Jeliya is also associated with the art of bards: singing the praises and telling the history of aristocratic families. It is the product of a creative exchange