Makane is one of the only two people in Kaani-Gui who hold a steady job (the other being Babacar). He is employed as a welder. He is the "visionary" of the troupe and its director. Along with his sister, Soukeyna, and Babacar, he is one of the senior members. Makane is married with two children, as well as being the father of a child with Mareme.

Babacar along with Makane and Soukeyna has been with Kaani-Gui for twelve years. He and Makane are the only two who hold steady jobs. He works for the local university, where he started as a dishwasher and then worked as a gardener, but then, after Kaani-Gui performed for the university he was offered a job as Assistant Professor in the theatre department. He came from a family that was well to do and own a large house, at which some members who have far to travel spend the night from time to time. Babacar is the father of a couple of children that he has had with different women, and is unmarried.

Soukeyna is the mother of 2 children, and along with Makane, her brother, is one of the original members of the group. She earns money by braiding hair and working in the family kiosk selling cigarettes and sundries.

Birahime plays the lead character, Jules Mangane, in the play "Funu-Jëm." He was an exceptional student who got the theatre bug and gave up a scholarship at the university to join Kaani-Gui. Orphaned as a child, he was raised by his grandmother, who periodically calls the head of ASC, the association to which Kaani-Gui belongs, to have him kicked out of the group. "This is my life," he says, passionately.

Mareme is the sister of Papis and Baye Mor. She plays the female lead, Mrs. Mangane in the play "Funu-Jëm." She and Makane have a young child.

Papis is Mareme and Baye Mor's brother. Papis plays the Mangane's son in the play. Papis had a bad stutter, when he started with the group, and the experience has changed his sense of confidence.

Baye Mor as well as his sister, Mareme, and brother, Papis, come from a poor family. Baye Mor was a tough street kid, who often got into trouble for fighting. He spent some time in jail for stabbing someone. He thought you had to be gay to be an actor, but Babacar convinced him to try it. Today he has found religion and a sense of purpose.

Thiama is from a griot family. Her mother is a griot and her brothers are drummers, (not the drummers for Kaani-Gui). She earns money helping her mother sell beads in the open-air markets.

Best is the son of a local imam, and left Koranic studies to pursue theatre and dance. His father has not spoken with him in years, since he joined Kaani-Gui.

Fatou and Awa perform as dancers and actresses. Like all the women of Kaani-Gui, they suffer from societal attitudes about performers. Awa says; "The fact that we are in this group with men and traveling around with men was not really well seen by some people at the beginning. They were inferring that we are some kind of loose women; calling us names. It was a pretty serious situation due to this misunderstanding. When we heard about people's misunderstanding and comments about us as females involved in Kaani-Gui, we told them that they are making a big mistake by thinking that we were bad women. We explained to them that we were doing this job, whcih haws nothing to do with what they think it is, because we believe in earning our living at the sweat of our brow, and it is all based on high moral grounds."

Jules has been with the group for three years and is an amazing dancer. He dances the wildest "sava", throwing his double-jointed" knees and elbows in all directions. Only twenty years old, he has the temperament of an old angel.

The Drummers Pape Bedara, Vieux Abdou and Pape Aloune are all from a griot family. As Bedara says: "This is our ancestral legacy; it is all we have." When not working with Kanni-Gui, they play in a nightclub with their older brother Fodé.

Daouda is the President of ASC, Ballakoss-Kaani-Gui. It's a neighborhood association, a football club. The troupe Kaani-Gui (Pepper) found its origins in this association. An original, although not at present active, member, Daouda is still involved.