Born in Conakry, Guinea, Mamadou developed a passion for writing from a young age: poems, proverbs, songs and imaginary letters, which he treasured. At the age of 18, he joined the UFDG (Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea) political party and took part in demonstrations for human rights. This involvement soon forced him to flee Guinea. After a long journey through Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Libya, he arrived in Italy and then in France in late 2018. He applied for asylum in Paris and lived in extremely precarious conditions for three years before being granted refugee status in 2020.

It was during this period that he discovered the artistic and socially engaged work of organisations such as JRS, SINGA and Demain nos enfants. In particular, he took part in a theatre workshop where he soon became a facilitator and was spotted by a young director, Thomas Wood, who offered him his first role in a short film, title of the short film. In 2023, he joined the feature-length documentary I Am The Future by Rachel Cisinski.  Whilst preparing for the shoot, he met Noémie Parreaux, with whom he went on to co-write the screenplay for a short film partly inspired by his own story.