Somali rappers defying bullets

Despite constant death threats and violent attacks the group believes it is time to end the civil war

Nairobi. Somalia’s capital Mogadishu is not a place that any hip hop artiste would like to head to, let alone hold a concert as it could amount to a death sentence.

But that was not what the Waayaha Cusub a hip-hop group famous for its lyrics attacking Somali warlords were thinking.

The group has embarked on a major tour aimed at promoting peace and rallying youth to resist extremism.

Formed nearly 10 years ago, the group is composed of Somali musicians who moved to Kenya to escape the conflict ridden country.

Amongst them is singer Falis Abdi, one of the most famous voices of modern Somali music and wife of fellow Waayaha Cusub singer Shiine Akhyaar Ali.

Waayaha Cusub’s mixture of hip-hop, Afrobeat and R&B has struck a chord with the youth in East Africa.

Al Shabaab’s withdrawal from Mogadishu was followed by suicide attacks and ambushes. Today, guns have largely fallen silent but the city still remains on edge.

The Somali capital of Mogadishu is set to host its biggest music festival in over two decades

The Mogadishu Music Festival is aiming to rally would-be fighters to peacefully resist extremism

The stealth event is put together by Waayaha Cusub, a group of Kenya-based Somali rappers

The collective is famous for its powerful lyrics attacking militant extremists

Armed with powerful songs and bold lyrics, a daring group of hip-hop musicians has defied death threats and violent attacks from militant extremists to spread its message of peace in war-torn Mogadishu.

Waayaha Cusub, a popular collective of Somali refugee musicians based in Kenya, travelled to the coastal city to stage the Mogadishu Music Festival, expected to be the country’s biggest music event since the eruption of a vicious civil war in 1991.

“Through this tour and our music we are trying to give the Somali people a message to stop the killing,  because, there is no need for all these people dying for nothing,” says Shiine Akhyaar Ali, lead singer.

Waayaha Cusub, whose name translates as “new era,” was formed in 2004, featuring the talents of exiled rappers and singers who moved to neighbouring Kenya to escape the horrors of Somalia’s conflict. From their makeshift studio in Nairobi, they first tasted success with songs touching on themes such as love, poverty and human rights. Yet as the crisis in their homeland deepened, Waayaha Cusub’s lyrics soon broke into more dangerous territory.

As it expanded its reach in the East African country, the al Qaeda-linked insurgent group started implementing cruel punishments for behaviour it deemed un-Islamic: women were stoned to death for adultery, amputations and beheadings became common, while in some areas Al-Shabaab banned listening to the radio.

Popular musicians were also a target; Waayaha Cusub, which had caused a stir by having women dance on stage and in its videos, received several threats and was ordered to stop making music.

“They sent us a lot of threatening messages and also phone calls,” Ali told CNN’s Inside Africa.

“They were saying, ‘you are doing propaganda for anti-Islam or anti-jihad, so we will finish you,’” he adds.

In late 2007, militants broke into Ali’s Nairobi house and shot him several times. The rapper, who managed to escape, took five bullets and suffered internal organ injuries, as well as an arm wound. Since then, several more incidents have followed, with radical militants threatening members of the band and in some cases assaulting them.

Yet all these attacks have failed to deter Waayaha Cusub. Its members have continued risking their lives, remaining on the front line to promote their message for peace.

“If we stop, I think these people will win, they will reach their aim,” says Ali. “So if we continue, we are the winners because we need to tell our people that terrorism is not good, that killing people is not good, that suicide bombing is not good. So we will continue.”

Following months of ironing out planning details and security arrangements, Waayaha Cusub is now set to put on an array of free concerts and other related artistic activities in Mogadishu, with the support of local and international officials.

Joining them, fellow Somali musicians and performers from the United States, Afghanistan, Kenya and other countries will unite their voices in a crescendo of “stealth events” that will pop up around Mogadishu over the next few days. Organisers say these events are designed to rally would-be fighters to peacefully resist extremism.

Music workshops and open mic events with at-risk youth and former militia will kick-start the proceedings, followed by a solidarity show featuring international musicians such as Afghani-American folk singer Ariana Delawari, Filipino reggae fusion artist Jahm-Eye and Sudanese soul singer Alsarah.

The event will culminate in the main Somali Reconciliation Concert, headlined by Waayaha Cusub and featuring cameo appearances by other Somali and international performers.

“It’s always been Waayaha Cusub’s way to respond to violence in the community by pulling youth away from the fray and into a venue where they give them an open mic to share their feelings, and then blow their minds with Somali hip-hop about ending the war,” says Daniel J Gerstle, the festival’s lead producer and founder of Humanitarian Bazaar, a group organising music events promoting peace.

(Inside Africa)