For a musician used to receiving personal insults from the president and anonymous death threats with the release of every new single, Emmerson Bockarie laughs a lot.
The Sierra Leonean popstar, a thorn in the side of successive governments over his 15-year career, chuckles as he recalls the countless times politicians have sought to dampen his appeal, and the countless times they have failed.
“Politicians make mentions of my music on TV and radio. That means they hear the songs and are getting the message,” he notes with delight, settling down for an interview with AFP at his Freetown studio.
Better known simply as “Emmerson”, the Afrobeat singer is the bete noire of Sierra Leone’s music scene, one of few successful artists who refuse to play political rallies or back a party in a nation where rappers and singers are co-opted for their youth appeal.
With a new president due to be elected on Tuesday, Bockarie says he expects fresh inspiration for his soft yet scathing lyrics — whoever wins — as the ruling All Peoples’ Congress (APC) faces off against the main opposition Sierra Leone Peoples’ Party (SLPP).
The two parties have ruled the country alternately since independence in 1961.
“I stand with the people; I am with the country,” he enthuses. “It makes no sense for me to belong to a political party.”
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