CONGO RAP PRODIGY SHINES AMIDST WAR

Dogo Browny, a remarkable 13-year-old rap prodigy from Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), is making waves in the vibrant music scene of his war-torn city.

Recently, local event organizer and dancer Bush Sebar offered Browny (@dogo_browny243 on IG) the opportunity to showcase his freestyle skills in the studio, perhaps marking a turn in the life of a young artist navigating the chaos brought on by the three-decade-long, Western-backed conflict over minerals. In January, Rwanda- and Uganda-backed M23 rebels seized Goma, k*lling at least 3,000 people and displacing over 700,000, as reported by the UN.

Fans of Browny celebrate his authenticity in a rap landscape increasingly dominated by commercial interests. The teen pours emotion and personal stories of orphaned children into his tracks. His lyrics confront harsh realities like child soldiers, gender-based violence, displacement, massacres, the exploitation of natural resources and political assassinations.

He is honing his exceptional talent at the Invisible Kids Academy, a non-profit in Goma that helps orphaned children express themselves through art, dance, and music, providing security amidst the violence.

For 30 years, Western powers have funded proxies, armed and trained by Rwanda and Uganda, to control the DRC's estimated $24 trillion in mineral wealth. The violence had k*lled around 6 million people by 2010 and possibly many more since. The ongoing conflict has displaced over 7 million individuals, leaving more than 25 million facing food insecurity, according to the UN. The recent surge in violence has resulted in the displacement of over 700,000 people just since January.

Video credit: @invisible_kids_academy243 (IG) @bush_sebar_congo (IG)

Sources

https://reliefweb.int/report/democratic-republic-congo/drc-faces-persistent-food-insecurity-crisis-affecting-over-25-million-people

https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/children-eastern-democratic-republic-congo-increasingly-exposed-sexual-violence

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckgy0d3pgv0o

https://www.icrc.org/en/document/sexual-violence-survivors-democratic-republic-congo

https://reliefweb.int/report/democratic-republic-congo/children-young-nine-face-mass-sexual-violence-and-mutilation-drc-save-children

caritas.org/2010/02/six-million-dead-in-congos-war