Washington, DC — Emmanuel Jal has an aura of quiet resolve and patience, qualities that make it easy to forget the years of struggle reflected in his music, in his book, “War Child,” and in the recent documentary of the same name. In fact, in his presence it is Emmanuel Jal’s eyes that seem to tell the story of his journey and his determination to see change.
Born in the early 1980s in southern Sudan, Jal is a product of the civil strife and violence that has plagued Sudan, pitting north against south in a battle for power, land and resources. In a country divided by tensions dating back to colonialism and British rule, the youth have been the biggest casualty.
Children have been easy prey in Africa’s deadliest conflicts – in Sudan, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone and Liberia. They are easily trained, easily brainwashed, and have the basic skills required to operate an AK-47, the weapon of choice in many conflicts.
And it is from the point at which Jal, born into the Sudanese conflict, becomes a child soldier that his heart-wrenching story of survival becomes particularly acute. Like many other boys of his age, he was forced to fight in the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), witnessing as a child the kind of violence from which men twice his age would not easily recover.
At the age of 13, he was rescued by a British aid worker named Emma McCune and taken to Kenya. His rescue would prove to be a turning point, setting him on the path to activism and awareness.
Emmanuel Jal is currently on a speaking tour promoting the release of his book, a memoir of his story and struggles as a child soldier which first gives an in-depth look at his life and the horrors he witnessed, then goes on to recount his journey out of Sudan, into Kenya, and into the international spotlight. While he was on tour, I sat down with him to discuss his career and his hopes for Sudan.
Jal says he became exposed to hip hop while he was in Kenya as a teenager. He began listening to American hip hop and was moved by the honesty of the words. Initially, he found it hard to believe that what he was hearing was real – the stories of struggle, often told by young African Americans trying to survive the battle zone that is the American inner city, resonated with the young Emmanuel who, fresh out of war, had his own story to tell.
From the beginning, his goal was to share with the world the plight of his people. While in Kenya he released his first album, “Gua”. On the CD, Emmanuel Jal the child soldier became Emmanuel Jal the activist. The title track was an instant hit in Kenya. He followed up with the CD collaboration “Ceasefire” in 2005 with northern Sudanese musician Abdel Gadir Salim. The symbolism of the two artists coming together generated a message of peace in Sudan.
Now based in England, Jal has been busy recently. The documentary “War Child,” a powerful and emotional look at his life, is getting good reviews as it makes the rounds at film festivals, and he hopes to do a premiere either in southern Sudan or Kenya. In May 2008, Jal released his third CD, also entitled “War Child”. In the CD he continues to speak out on Sudan and includes tracks that speak to conditions in the African American inner city. In “Ninth Ward” he speaks to the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina, and in “50 Cent” to the exploitation of artists and violence.
Given the importance of American hip hop in shaping his career, I asked Jal about his take on the state of the genre. He pointed to what he felt was a lack of balance in current American hip hop and criticized the focus on violence and sex, saying that positive songs “don’t get a voice”. His influences in the American hip hop community include Talib Kweli, Nas, 2Pac and anything old school.
Jal says he also likes listening to the music of Somali rapper K’Naan. Asked how older Sudanese felt about his music, he said they were resistant initially but he now has numerous fans.
Though he raps in English, his music reflects his roots. While one may argue that his work on “Ceasefire,” mostly performed in the Dinka and Nuer languages, was the best showcase of his skills as an emcee, the “War Child” CD best reflects Jal’s growth as an artist and an activist. Not only that, but since the vast majority of his audience speaks English, the CD gets his message out to a more diverse audience.
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He is working on another album and is looking into doing collaborations with other hip hop artists. He is also working hard on projects to help southern Sudan, including building a school – to be named Emma, after the aid worker who rescued him – and running a charity, Gua Africa, to help send children to school. To raise awareness of his projects, while he travels he is eating only one meal a day.
Emmanuel Jal has grown not only into a voice for his people, into Sudan’s leading hip hop artist. Continuing his fight to help his people, Jal feels that as an African it is important to invest in his community, to meet “our responsibility to help Africa.”
