Somalia is currently in the news because many people outside of Minnesota are angry that the people of the 5th Congressional district of Minnesota elected a US citizen of Somali descent to Congress, where she has served since 2019. Rep. Ilhan Omar has been a citizen in 2000 at age 17, meaning she has been a citizen longer than the First Lady of the United States and her frequent critic and fellow African Elon Musk.
At the time of this writing, the Department of Homeland Security has been scouring her apartment for evidence of unspecified criminal activity, weeks before an election she is nonetheless very likely to win.
None of that is about music, but since some of the political attacks on her are SOLELY about her country of origin, it is in the spirit of the singing planet to share a couple of musical highlights from Somalia.
I will admit of not knowing much about the music of the region and that I know mostly tragic stories of poverty and violence. But those stories do not fully define a place, and certainly they do not define its people.
What I have found so far include the anthem Wavin' Flag by K'NANN and a Tiny Desk concert by the same performer. I have also found an excertp of LA MIA GEOGRAFIA by Saba Anglana. I love the title ("My Geography") and can almost understand the Italian lyrics. Further research into both of these artists is warranted!
The States of Somalia map is from World Atlas.
No comments:
Post a Comment