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With a growing affinity for jazz, Andre moved to Los Angeles in 1995 to fulfill his vision. The music he had in mind would enjoy the melodic and harmonic freedoms of jazz yet preserve the complex African rhythms he had mastered. That goal is manifest in the band Dumazz. The name combines the Cameroonian word for the baobab tree, a symbol of wisdom and traditionally a meeting place for village elders, and the word jazz. Dumazz saxophonist Bobby English explains, "When you put the two together you have a very wise, very spiritual group rooted in jazz music.

Dumazz rehearsed for a year to perfect its musical balance. Andre says, "I wanted to create a bridge from African music to jazz. I would not change the African rhythms. I would tell the musicians, "Just be yourself. Don't worry about playing the African thing. That which you do best will be the best of you." Their debut album on Narada, MOTHER RHYTHM, is a festive package of energetic, jazz-driven instrumental and vocal compositions.

In 1988, Andre moved to Paris and toured internationally with Pierre Akendengue before inevitably taking a job as keyboardist for Manu Dibango, whose fame had now spread to Europe. Having reached an artistic plateau in Paris, Andre scanned the horizon for new adventures. He found them in a jazz epiphany while on tour in Germany. He recalls, "I was sleeping lightly while the bus rolled along, and a Miles Davis tape was playing. In my sleep, I could hear this delicate trumpet. It was so close to my spirit, on a subconscious level, and I woke up, startled. I looked around and nothing was out of place, but I felt something had happened to me.