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Still from Emmeron's "Good Do"

Following Government Suppression, Sierra Leone's 'People's Popstar' Is Finally Allowed to Perform

Emmerson's music has influenced past elections in Sierra Leone. Here's why his performance at the National Stadium is a win for artistic freedom.

Early December 2017, a flyer was circulating on Whatsapp in Freetown announcing one of the most exciting concerts of the year. Sierra Leonean superstar Emmerson Bockarie, stage name Emmerson, was going to perform live alongside two other popular artists. The concert was to be held at the National Stadium, Freetown's foremost and largest concert venue where the likes of Timaya and Wizkid have performed in the past.

One week later, with no further explanation, the concert was cancelled.

Rumours went wild. The then ruling party, All People's Congress (APC), was seen by many as the culprit. Elections were just around the corner and Emmerson, with government-critiquing lyrics, was not to perform to an audience that could reach 36,000 people. It was a recurring story; Emmerson has not been able to perform at the National Stadium since 2012, all during the APC reign.

Now, a month after the change of government, Emmerson held his concert, called Finally, on the April 28.

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Janka Nabay. Photo by Sydney Schleiff & Oliver Citrin.

The Legacy of Janka Nabay, Sierra Leonean Music's 'Bubu King'

Two Sierra Leonean artists share their opinion on Janka Nabay and his influence on their artistic development.

On April 2nd, 2018, Ahmed Janka Nabay passed away in his homeland, Sierra Leone. He was known nationally and internationally as the Bubu King for his modernisation and popularisation of bubu, a music style indigenous to the Temne tribe of Sierra Leone. Janka Nabay broke through in Sierra Leone in the 1990s, and after he moved to the United States in 2002, where he played and produced alongside a group of musicians as Janka Nabay and the Bubu Gang.

Janka infused bubu music, traditionally played on bamboo flutes and metallic or wooden drums, with funk, and used a combination of Western and electronic instruments to replicate the hypnotic melodies. After Janka left Sierra Leone, his status transcended from Sierra Leonean music hero to being called "cool" by Westerners, touring the world and bringing bubu to an even bigger audience.

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