Introduction

In the introduction to Carlos Moore's book Fela: This Bitch of a Life, Margaret Bushy recalls that “on the day of [Fela Kuti’s] funeral, the streets of Lagos were brought to a standstill, with more than a million people defying the Nigerian government ban on public gatherings that had been imposed by the military dictator General Sani Abacha.” This statement epitomizes the contentious relationship that the popular Nigerian artist had vis-à-vis the political establishment that always viewed his art as subversive and, therefore, a threat to the Nigerian government. More importantly, the feud between Fela Kuti and the Nigerian government mirrors the disdain as well as the fear that African governments hold toward politically engaged artistic productions. In fact, for the longest time, popular music has functioned as a trenchant political site of social activism in Africa primarily because it is the most widely appreciated art form on the continent. From Fela Kuti to Franco Luambo via Miriam Makeba and, more recently, the Y en a marre movement, popular music on the continent has remained a major site for challenging the sociopolitical status quo. As Allen notes, “In many ways, and on different registers, artists are engaging their political circumstances through music”. This essay argues that African musicians have always used their art to challenge or influence the political status quo or specific cultural values. Following in the steps of previous generations, contemporary Francophone West African youth activists are fostering sociopolitical change through art, especially popular rap music, which in recent years has gained wide popularity and visibility among young people. In this regard, this chapter takes a retrospective analysis of the “politicization” of African popular music as a weapon of protest by young artists in Senegal. It examines how the Y en a marre movement has succeeded in occupying the political space in Senegal, especially through the intersection of rap music and sociopolitical activism. Finally, it accords attention to concepts of “musical diatribe” and “musical open letter” as well as the counternarratives emanating from the power structure to discredit and stall these radical artistic movements by youth.

Insurgent Music: Following in the Footsteps of the Previous Generations

Y en a marre was founded in 2011 to protest recurring electrical power outages in Senegal.