Emmanuel Jal, WARchild

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Emmanuel Jal, WARchild

POSTED: Thursday, May 29, 2008, 3:48 AM

Filed Under: Music Album

"Sudan is my country. WARCHILD is my struggle"

On average, I get about a 6 or so emails a day claiming that THIS artist is "different", "here to change the game", "like nothing I've ever heard before", "eclectic", and in some people even have the nerve to use the term, "classic". After a certain amount of time, I've learned which will actually make it to my ears. When I read the story of Emmanuel Jal, it blew me away. When I heard the sounds, it took me to Africa.

Jal is a survivor of the Sudanese civil war. He escaped from being a child-warrior to being a recording artist, whose record WARchild (released May 13 on Sonic360 Records) recounts his horrific and hopeful story. The album also talks about 50 Cent, the oil/diamond/gold crisis in Africa, Hurricane Katrina, and the aid worker that saved him, Emma.

Born in the early 80's in a war-torn Sudan, Jal witnessed and experienced things most of us will never see. To quote the press release, 'He was taken from his family home in 1987 when he was six or seven years old, and sent to fight with the rebel army in Sudan's bloody civil war. By the time he was thirteen, he was a veteran of two civil wars and had seen hundreds of his fellow child soldiers reduced to taking unspeakable measures as they struggled to survive on the killing fields of Sudan.'

As genocide continues to disobey humanity and the international political community continues to do the minimum, there are many left in the same place where Jal was rescued. I got the distinct and humble pleasure of briefly talking to Jal and trying best to squeeze a soulful of questions into a 10 minute conversation. He's definitely got a story to tell.

Tell me a little bit about WARchild, and the concept/mindset you had while creating the album?

'The album is about my struggle. It comes out of pain. It is my story. I was born in the time time when my country has had war for 25 years, and I'm a survivor of that. I'm testifying about what happened in my hood."

Why is hip-hop your vehicle of choice?

'When I listen to hip-hop and how rappers talk about their communities, those things inspire me to talk about what happened in my community. I want to communicate to America what I went through. I need to talk about.'

Coming from Sudan, what is your perspective on the black-on-black crime that occurs in the USA, and in other parts of the world?

'It is sad. We (black people) are always divided trying to bring each other down and killing each other. Black men try to get their pride by putting down women. Instead of building ourselves, we are just killing ourselves. That is why I am happy to see someone like Obama. Even if he doesn't win, I hope he inspires kids and Black people. The world has been quiet of Black leaders and we need someone to step up. Also, I hope he proves to people that America can change and people can come together.'

Obviously, the whole album is personal and heavy, but can you tell me of a memory that you translated to song that really stands out?

'The song, 'Forced To Sin' is about the temptation to eat the flesh of my best friend when there was nothing else to eat. Food was hard to get and there was none. Soldiers began to eat dead bodies. All the night, I prayed for God to give me something to eat. I didn't have to eat his flesh, but the experience was something I wanted to share to make it real.'

How do those at home in Sudan feel about your music?

'They have my first and second album. I have a responsibility ' people are looking up to me, especially the people in Darfur. Singing is a stress reliever for me. I can't stop doing music. It helps me through the trauma. Music blesses me and in turn, I bless others. I am forgetting about my pride and sacrificing myself for my people, my country.'

Hear and see Emmanuel Jal

Emmanuel Jal MySpace

chloe

Posted 2008-06-28 04:46:38

hi i go to the elmgreenschool and i would like to no how to get the song emma on you tube 





love chloe

Posted by deesha dyer" @ 3:48 AM Permalink | Post a comment

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Featuring everything from event roundups to concert reviews and sex talk, City Paper's Critical Mass is a space for off-the-wall coverage of Philly's A&E scene.

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