AURA (United Artists for African Rap)
Encyclopedia
AURA is a collective of 17 hip hop
artists (plus one griot
) coming from ten different countries in West Africa (Benin, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Niger, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal and Togo) and who are committed to use their voices and music for Africa’s development. With the support of the Non Governmental Organization PLAN International
, they are engaged in a public awareness campaign relating to Children’s rights and youth problems. With respect, they realized in 2006 the first ever hip hop musical comedy show “The extraordinary Stories of Poto-Poto Children”.
The artists’ underlying philosophy is that of Africanist optimism; they believe that Africa has the ability to overcome all her challenges and they are strongly focused on encouraging youth engagement to this end. They contend that the youth represent the leaders of tomorrow and it is only by engaging Africa’s currently largely marginalised youth population that the continent has a chance of developing.
”; “Poto-Poto” translates as ‘mud’ and is also the colloquial name for the big African market. It represents the children's home; many of whom are forced to wander the streets, sleeping in the market and eating bits of food that they find there. The Poto-Poto campaign is centred around the production of a music album: “The extraordinary stories of the Poto-Poto children” (“Les histoires extraordinaires des enfants de Poto-Poto”). In this album, each rap artist plays the role of a particular child, be it child soldier, child prostitute, victim of a forced marriage
, drug dealer etc. In the songs, the children meet to exchange their stories, to condemn or condone their friends’ ways of life and to ask questions about how such situations came about. The use of rap in this way allows often sensitive topics to be broached in a way that young people are able to understand and relate to.
The songs not only address and raise awareness of problems, but they also portray the courage and humour that these children maintained. Despite the hardships that they are subjected to on a daily basis, they maintain cheerful demeanours, coming together to draw strength from one another and to overcome their problems.
In 2007 two singles from the album were released: “Bienvenue a Poto-Poto” (“Welcome to Poto-Poto”) and “Poto-Poto Dancing”. These were instant hits, taking top spots in music charts across the region of Francophone West Africa. “Bienvenue a Poto-Poto” even made it to number 2 in the music charts on RFI (Radio France Internationale). AURA's music is available to listen to free at their recently developed website: aurahiphop.com.
In 2007 they performed at local musical festivals in Senegal (St. Louis Festival, Dakar Banlieue Rhythmes Festival) and played regional concerts in Burkina Faso and Niger. AURA also participated in a school tour in Holland that was organised by Plan Holland; the artists met local students and performed their Poto-Poto songs, drawing attention to Africa's pressing problems.
A concert tour took place in 2008 in Mali, Senegal, Mauritania, Togo, Benin, Ivory Coast and Gambia.
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
artists (plus one griot
Griot
A griot or jeli is a West African storyteller. The griot delivers history as a poet, praise singer, and wandering musician. The griot is a repository of oral tradition. As such, they are sometimes also called bards...
) coming from ten different countries in West Africa (Benin, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Niger, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal and Togo) and who are committed to use their voices and music for Africa’s development. With the support of the Non Governmental Organization PLAN International
Plan (aid organisation)
Plan is a global children’s charity which operates in 48 countries across Africa, Asia and the Americas. It is made up of 21 national organisations responsible for raising funds and awareness in their respective countries...
, they are engaged in a public awareness campaign relating to Children’s rights and youth problems. With respect, they realized in 2006 the first ever hip hop musical comedy show “The extraordinary Stories of Poto-Poto Children”.
Members
There are currently 17 members of AURA, originating from 10 different West African countries:| Benin Benin Benin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located... |
Moona Moona Moona is a West African female rapper. Known for her amazing flow, sharp and poetic lyrics as well as for her active involvement with the youth, Moona is an active member of AURA in which she represents her native Benin... (formerly from the band DCH) |
| Burkina Faso Burkina Faso Burkina Faso – also known by its short-form name Burkina – is a landlocked country in west Africa. It is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north, Niger to the east, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Côte d'Ivoire to the southwest.Its size is with an estimated... |
Smockey and Smarty (Yeleen) |
| Gambia | Egalitarian |
| Guinea Guinea Guinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country in West Africa. Formerly known as French Guinea , it is today sometimes called Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from its neighbour Guinea-Bissau. Guinea is divided into eight administrative regions and subdivided into thirty-three prefectures... |
Moussa (Degg J Force 3) |
| Ivory Coast | Priss K |
| Mali Mali Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with... |
JoDama (Tatapound) |
| Mauritania Mauritania Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest... |
Waraba |
| Niger Niger Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east... |
Pheno B and Safia (both from the band Kaidan Gaskia) |
| Senegal Senegal Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north... |
|
| Togo Togo Togo, officially the Togolese Republic , is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, on which the capital Lomé is located. Togo covers an area of approximately with a population of approximately... |
Bobby (Djantakan) |
The artists’ underlying philosophy is that of Africanist optimism; they believe that Africa has the ability to overcome all her challenges and they are strongly focused on encouraging youth engagement to this end. They contend that the youth represent the leaders of tomorrow and it is only by engaging Africa’s currently largely marginalised youth population that the continent has a chance of developing.
Poto-Poto Campaign
AURA is currently engaged in a campaign designed to raise awareness about children’s rights and the problems that children are facing on a daily basis. The campaign is called “Poto-PotoPoto-Poto
Poto-Poto is the name of one of the original residential neighborhoods of the city of Brazzaville, capital of the Republic of Congo.-History:...
”; “Poto-Poto” translates as ‘mud’ and is also the colloquial name for the big African market. It represents the children's home; many of whom are forced to wander the streets, sleeping in the market and eating bits of food that they find there. The Poto-Poto campaign is centred around the production of a music album: “The extraordinary stories of the Poto-Poto children” (“Les histoires extraordinaires des enfants de Poto-Poto”). In this album, each rap artist plays the role of a particular child, be it child soldier, child prostitute, victim of a forced marriage
Forced marriage
Forced marriage is a term used to describe a marriage in which one or both of the parties is married without his or her consent or against his or her will...
, drug dealer etc. In the songs, the children meet to exchange their stories, to condemn or condone their friends’ ways of life and to ask questions about how such situations came about. The use of rap in this way allows often sensitive topics to be broached in a way that young people are able to understand and relate to.
The songs not only address and raise awareness of problems, but they also portray the courage and humour that these children maintained. Despite the hardships that they are subjected to on a daily basis, they maintain cheerful demeanours, coming together to draw strength from one another and to overcome their problems.
In 2007 two singles from the album were released: “Bienvenue a Poto-Poto” (“Welcome to Poto-Poto”) and “Poto-Poto Dancing”. These were instant hits, taking top spots in music charts across the region of Francophone West Africa. “Bienvenue a Poto-Poto” even made it to number 2 in the music charts on RFI (Radio France Internationale). AURA's music is available to listen to free at their recently developed website: aurahiphop.com.
Events
In addition to the Poto-Poto album, the artists have performed concerts across the region. They theme each concert around a particular issue concerning children’s rights. For example at the St Louis Jazz Festival in May 2007, the artists sung about the problem of the talibé in Senegal (child beggars).In 2007 they performed at local musical festivals in Senegal (St. Louis Festival, Dakar Banlieue Rhythmes Festival) and played regional concerts in Burkina Faso and Niger. AURA also participated in a school tour in Holland that was organised by Plan Holland; the artists met local students and performed their Poto-Poto songs, drawing attention to Africa's pressing problems.
A concert tour took place in 2008 in Mali, Senegal, Mauritania, Togo, Benin, Ivory Coast and Gambia.
Discography
- 2007 – AURA – The Extraordinary Stories of the Poto-Poto Children (CD)
- 2010 – AURA – Bienvenue a Poto-Poto – Afrolution (compilation)
See also
- Didier AwadiDidier AwadiDidier Awadi is a Senegalese rapper and the most visible figure of Francophone West African Hip Hop. As a founding member of Positive Black Soul with Duggy Tee, Awadi toured around the world contributing to the international popularity of Hip Hop Galsen. Awadi works as a solo artist accompanied by...
(PBS) - Myriam (ALIFALIF (Liberate Attack of the Feminist Infantry)ALIF is the pioneer female hip hop trio of Hip Hop Galsen. Emerging in the late mid-1990s, ALIF offered a feminine and feminist flavour to Hip Hop Galsen encouraging women to play their part in the movement...
) - KeytiKeytiKeyti is one of the first and most prominent hardcore hip hop artist in Senegal. With his famous group Rap’Adio, he offered a radical approach to Hip Hop Galsen violently recalling the initial purpose of Hip Hop as a means to denounce society’s flaws. Still radically critical, though less hardcore,...
(Rap’Adio) - MoonaMoonaMoona is a West African female rapper. Known for her amazing flow, sharp and poetic lyrics as well as for her active involvement with the youth, Moona is an active member of AURA in which she represents her native Benin...
- Baay SooleyBaay SooleyBaay Sooley is one of the best known hip hop dancer in Senegal. He toured worldwide as the dancer of the PBS crew and still continues his ascension as a well-recognised choreograph after having realised the choreography of the first ever hip hop musical comedy The Extraordinary Stories of the...
(PBS)