Cheikh Lô was born in 1955, to Senegalese parents in Bobo Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, not far from the border with Mali, where he grew up speaking Bambara (language of Mali), Wolof (language of Senegal) and French.
Cheikh Lo alizaliwa mwaka 1955 katika kitongoji cha Bobo Dioulasso nchini Burkina Faso karibu na mpaka wa Mali, alikuwa anaongea kibambara lugha ya nchini Mali, Wolof lugha ya Senegal na kifaransa.