‘Heal Our Nation’ video from Sierra Leonean recording artist, Freddy Shabaka
Sierra Leonean recording artist Freddy Cole Shabaka has released the video for his song “Heal Our Nation” which was recorded live at the Montgomery College Performing Arts Center in Silver Spring, Maryland, USA in September 2010 during the Miss Sierra Leone USA Pageant. The video was produced by Ellie Walton and Sierra Leonean filmmaker Sunju Ahmadu. The song is dedicated to bringing together Sierra Leoneans at home and in the Diaspora as we commemorate the 50th anniversary of Sierra Leone’s independence from Britain. It is a call for healing, as our nation undergoes tribal and political divisions. The song is a lament as he sings “We have to change the whole way we’re thinking, decontaminate our minds”. However, it is also a song that is filled with optimism as he declares “I believe that things will soon change because I have faith in Salone people”.
Shabaka was recently in Freetown as part of the Miss Sierra Leone USA delegation’s homecoming visit which was called “Heal Our Nation”. He presented the “Heal Our Nation” video to SLBC and also gave an unexpected performance at the 50th anniversary official State Banquet where he sang “Heal Our Nation” to an audience that acknowledged that our country needs to hear this message. This is definitely a time when all different factions and segments of our society need to come together to focus on the future of Sierra Leone.
Shabaka’s first hits in Sierra Leone were “Dem nor wan dance” and “Goombay Jamming”. As a singer/songwriter, Shabaka believes that music can play an integral role in changing the way Sierra Leoneans see themselves and their country, and he believes that music is an ideal vehicle to send much needed messages that can help reshape our society. The goal of the video is to both acknowledge the problems our country faces and at the same time give hope for a bright future. The story that Shabaka tells with his music is both compelling and fascinating and he will be telling this story to a global audience as he goes on the road with his band. Shabaka and his band will be kicking off their live performances in September during the Montgomery County African Festival celebrations in Maryland, and at the 2011 Miss Sierra Leone USA Pageant in Silver Spring Maryland.
About Freddy Shabaka
Shabaka’s music has been described as poignant, churning, lilting and heartfelt. The Washington Post said “If West African born singer/songwriter Freddy Shabaka doesn’t win listeners over with his words, the odds are good he’ll do it with his music… Shabaka knows how to make his point effectively on several levels as a singer, songwriter and arranger”. Shabaka’s new song “Heal Our Nation” and his most recent CD “The Black Loyalist” reflect the spirit of the African continent and the African Diaspora like no other artist. His music has a Reggae and African flavor that is both authentic and compelling. Shabaka’s music is political, social, and historical with love themes that figure in the mix. His live concert reflects the diversity in his sound. The songs are thoughtful and no matter how impassioned the message or diverse the elements, the music has a sunny allure that’s hard to resist. The strength and richness of Shabaka’s vocals, the soulfulness of his voice, and the power and passion in which the songs are delivered are a treat to all who listen.
As Sierra Leone commemorates its 50th anniversary of its independence from Britain there is no other artist whose music is as relevant for the time as Shabaka’s. In “Heal Our Nation”, he sings about bringing together Sierra Leoneans at home and in the Diaspora. The song is a lament as he sings “We have to change the whole way we’re thinking, decontaminate our minds”. However, it is also a song that is filled with optimism as he declares “I believe that things will soon change cause I have faith in Salone people”.
He was born Frederick Cole in Freetown Sierra Leone where the most diverse musical sounds can be heard in nightclubs, bars and parties. Freddy formed his first band called The Black Sparrows at the age of 10 when he was growing up in Njala where his father was a professor. He and his band mates put on shows with instruments they made from cardboard, cups, pots and pans. The last Black Sparrows performance was at the Harford School in Moyamba, where they took part in the school concert. He then moved to Freetown where he attended the Sierra Leone Grammar School. He played briefly with the Grammar school marching band and started singing at local clubs like Blow Up and Laronda. When he was in form 6, he started working with local bands like The Godfathers and The Dukes, who were Ghanaian musicians that were the core of the Freetown music scene. Freddy then went to Fourah Bay College where he became the lead singer of Fusion, a nine-piece reggae/afro-funk band that he and other students put together in 1982/83. The impact of Fusion was tremendous and it was after a very successful sold out show at the Freetown city hall that made him decide to pursue music as a career.
There were no recording studios in Freetown so he left Sierra Leone to seek his musical fortune in Nigeria where he teamed up with two other Sierra Leonean musicians; Augustine Valcarcel who now plays with the Sierra Leone Refugee All Stars and Mohammed Kani who is now deceased. They met veteran African producer Akie Dee in Nigeria and then traveled to London in 1985. Unfortunately upon their arrival in London, Freddy and his friends felt abandoned by Deen as only sporadic contacts were made with the veteran producer. He then decided to take his future in his own hands, and went into one of London’s top recording studios called the Matrix Studios, where he made his first attempt at producing a record. Freddy only had 400 pounds to book studio time and was nearly kicked out of the studio by the manager when an English rock band called Siouxsie and the Banshees who had booked the studio for a recording session, heard the manager send him home. They came to his rescue and offered one of the studios for Freddy to use. This was a life saver and he never knew how famous they were until several years later when he found out that Siouxsie and the Banshees had been recording “Cities in Dust” at the matrix studios. The song went on the British charts and became a US hit for Geffen records. They told Freddy that they loved his music and allowed him to sit in some of their sessions; they also sat in some of Freddy’s sessions. This is when he recorded “Dem nor wan dance” with Valcarcel and Kani on guitars, and Francis Fuster on percussion. Fuster used to be Freddy’s karate teacher in Freetown and had played with Gerald Opino and later with Paul Simon and Hugh Masekela.
Freddy returned to Freetown where he and his brother had been running a popular nightclub on Liverpool Street called “Nightshift”. Even though Nightshift was doing very well, Freddy’s musical fire couldn’t be quenched and he left Freetown for America in 1985 where he produced his first album “Free”. This included the London recording tracks and new recordings that Freddy produced in Washington DC. His album “Free” included Crystal Waters as one of his background vocals and Vincent Nguini on guitar. Crystal became a Grammy winner with her hit single “Gypsy Woman/She‘s Homeless“, and Vincent went on to become the leader of Paul Simon‘s band. Free spawned two number one hits in Sierra Leone- “Dem nor wan Dance” and “Goombay Jamming”. The CMJ New Music Report, which can be considered the “billboard magazine” for the U.S college music scene, described the tape as “…the best self produced demo tape I have received all year…the single Dem nor wan dance deserves to be heard on dance floors, radio stations, and boom boxes nationwide…The fact that he remains unsigned is as amazing as the churning, lilting, heartfelt music that Freddy creates on Free”. In 1989, “Dem nor wan dance” and “Goombay Jamming” were all over the radio, bars, parties, poda-podas and taxis in Sierra Leone. Freddy had finally been able to release his first set of recordings that caught the country like wildfire. In those days, he was one of the first young artists of his generation to release a record which made a big impact on the Sierra Leone music scene, helping to pave the way for the blossoming music industry that now exists in the country.
When the war broke out in Sierra Leone, Freddy’s music also changed, with a focus on spreading a conscious message rather than just partying. Freddy’s influence has been roots reggae artists like Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Jimmy Cliff, Burning Spear et al. These influences started to become more pronounced as Freddy became Shabaka, and a new musical style emerged. Since then his music has not taken hold in Sierra Leone but has received rave reviews elsewhere. He released an album called “A Chapter of Roots” and recently released another album called “The Black Loyalist” both of which have received a great deal of airplay on U.S college radio stations. Shabaka’s music articulates the deep socio-political emotions of his generation and has become mellower as he delivers his message to a global audience. The artist that gave Sierra Leone, “Dem nor wan dance” is the same artist that is giving Sierra Leone, “Heal Our Nation.”
www.shabakasounds.blogspot.com
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