In Senegalese rap, a strong political voice emerges
The New York Times - In Senegal, the political mainstream appears stagnant and the musicians anything but, which explains why laid-back musicians with stage names like Fou Malade ("Crazy Sick Guy") and Thiat ("Junior") are leading a vigorous demonstration movement...
From The New York Times:
DAKAR, Senegal — A revolution led by rappers says something about a country’s politics or its music, or maybe both.
In Senegal, the political mainstream appears stagnant and the musicians anything but, which explains why laid-back musicians with stage names like Fou Malade (“Crazy Sick Guy”) and Thiat (“Junior”) are leading a vigorous demonstration movement against the country’s octogenarian president, who does not want to leave office.
The usual regional trappings of power — a $27 million monumental statue overlooking the capital, a new presidential plane, tinkering with the country’s Constitution — have not gone down well in a poor but proud West African country used to something better. They have led to a season of revolt, on the North African model, in this coastal country, a former French colony.
There were riots this summer with tear gas and tire burnings, and several large-scale demonstrations, one of them even forcing President Abdoulaye Wade to back away from constitutional changes that would almost ensure his third term in office.
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