Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars started playing music together in West Afr… Read Full Bio ↴Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars started playing music together in West African refugee camps while their homeland was being racked by years of bloody warfare. Since then, audiences around the world have embraced the band and their utterly extraordinary story. On their forthcoming album, Rise & Shine, the All Stars’ sound, as well as their biography, evolves further; the music finds them “establishing an identity based as much on skill, imagination and charisma as on their undeniably touching story” (The Los Angeles Times). Cumbancha will release the album on March 23, 2010.
For the follow up to their acclaimed debut, Living Like a Refugee, the band began recording in their hometown of Freetown, Sierra Leone then traveled to New Orleans, Louisiana to work with the highly accomplished producer Steve Berlin (Los Lobos, Angélique Kidjo, Rickie Lee Jones, Michelle Shocked, Alec Ounsworth, Jackie Greene) at Piety Street Recording. The All Stars immediately felt at home in New Orleans, not only because the hot climate and spicy food reminded them of Africa, but also because the residents of the Crescent City have firsthand experience with the bitterness of exile and the redemptive power of music. The local musicians who contributed to the record—including favorites Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews, Bonerama and Washboard Chaz—lend it an infectious spirit of celebration and optimism in the face of struggle.
Rise & Shine reflects how far the band has come in the past few years, after multiple international tours and recording experience with the likes of Aerosmith and Mavis Staples. With an expert producer at the helm, Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars have realized a unique and seamlessly coherent sound: a fusion of traditional West African music and roots reggae, inflected with New Orleans styles. The album’s 13 tracks embrace the wide array of musical influences the All Stars have encountered on their rise to international fame.
The band members are broadly diverse in age and character, although they possess a strong bond forged through common experiences and values: They all know war and have struggled to survive in one of the world’s poorest countries, and they share an unwavering belief in the transformative power of music. The current lineup of the band was cemented when Reuben M. Koroma, the sage songwriter and guiding light of the group, returned home from the refugee camps, joined by Black Nature, an orphaned teenaged rapper; Mohammed Bangura, who suffered amputation at the hands of rebels; and Francis John Langba. Back in Sierra Leone, they reunited with family, friends and former band mates Ashade Pearce, Jah Son Bull and Makengo Kamara—many of whom they believed not to have survived the violence.
The band’s journey—which culminated in the All Stars’ first recording in a studio—was documented in the multi-award winning documentary Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars, by Zach Niles and Banker White. The resulting album, Living Like A Refugee, garnered the band international acclaim and high profile fans such as Keith Richards, Sir Paul McCartney, Aerosmith, Angelina Jolie and Ice Cube.
Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars deliver electrifying and uplifting live performances and will tour the U.S. in Spring 2010. They have already appeared at some of the most prestigious music festivals worldwide including Bonnaroo, Montreal Jazz, Fuji Rock in Japan, Central Park SummerStage and Celebrate Brooklyn.
For the follow up to their acclaimed debut, Living Like a Refugee, the band began recording in their hometown of Freetown, Sierra Leone then traveled to New Orleans, Louisiana to work with the highly accomplished producer Steve Berlin (Los Lobos, Angélique Kidjo, Rickie Lee Jones, Michelle Shocked, Alec Ounsworth, Jackie Greene) at Piety Street Recording. The All Stars immediately felt at home in New Orleans, not only because the hot climate and spicy food reminded them of Africa, but also because the residents of the Crescent City have firsthand experience with the bitterness of exile and the redemptive power of music. The local musicians who contributed to the record—including favorites Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews, Bonerama and Washboard Chaz—lend it an infectious spirit of celebration and optimism in the face of struggle.
Rise & Shine reflects how far the band has come in the past few years, after multiple international tours and recording experience with the likes of Aerosmith and Mavis Staples. With an expert producer at the helm, Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars have realized a unique and seamlessly coherent sound: a fusion of traditional West African music and roots reggae, inflected with New Orleans styles. The album’s 13 tracks embrace the wide array of musical influences the All Stars have encountered on their rise to international fame.
The band members are broadly diverse in age and character, although they possess a strong bond forged through common experiences and values: They all know war and have struggled to survive in one of the world’s poorest countries, and they share an unwavering belief in the transformative power of music. The current lineup of the band was cemented when Reuben M. Koroma, the sage songwriter and guiding light of the group, returned home from the refugee camps, joined by Black Nature, an orphaned teenaged rapper; Mohammed Bangura, who suffered amputation at the hands of rebels; and Francis John Langba. Back in Sierra Leone, they reunited with family, friends and former band mates Ashade Pearce, Jah Son Bull and Makengo Kamara—many of whom they believed not to have survived the violence.
The band’s journey—which culminated in the All Stars’ first recording in a studio—was documented in the multi-award winning documentary Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars, by Zach Niles and Banker White. The resulting album, Living Like A Refugee, garnered the band international acclaim and high profile fans such as Keith Richards, Sir Paul McCartney, Aerosmith, Angelina Jolie and Ice Cube.
Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars deliver electrifying and uplifting live performances and will tour the U.S. in Spring 2010. They have already appeared at some of the most prestigious music festivals worldwide including Bonnaroo, Montreal Jazz, Fuji Rock in Japan, Central Park SummerStage and Celebrate Brooklyn.
Living Like A Refugee
Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars Lyrics
Jump to: Line by Line Meaning ↴
Berhenti sejenak tuk toleh kebelakang
Apa yang terjadi, dan kini renungkan
Diriku kau sakiti, dan terus kau sakiti
Hingga terbawa di mimpi burukku
Tubuhku terikat disisi bumi yang lain
Hilang hampa, di negeri yang tak ada bertuan
Yang ada hanyalah bayangan dirimu
kau pergi, tinggalkan diriku
Setelah kau sakiti, Tak Bernyawa
Kering nafas jiwa… Cinta tlah membunuh…diriku
dan kau pergi, tinggalkan diriku
Setelah kau sakiti, Tak Bernyawa
Kering nafas jiwa… Cinta tlah membunuh…diriku
Apa yang terjadi, dan kini renungkan
Diriku kau sakiti, dan terus kau sakiti
Hingga terbawa di mimpi burukku
Tubuhku terikat disisi bumi yang lain
Hilang hampa, di negeri yang tak ada bertuan
Yang ada hanyalah bayangan dirimu
kau pergi, tinggalkan diriku
Kering nafas jiwa… Cinta tlah membunuh…diriku
dan kau pergi, tinggalkan diriku
Setelah kau sakiti, Tak Bernyawa
Kering nafas jiwa… Cinta tlah membunuh…diriku
Berhenti sejenak tuk toleh kebelakang
Pause for a moment to look back
Apa yang terjadi, dan kini renungkan
Reflect on what happened
Diriku kau sakiti, dan terus kau sakiti
You hurt me and continue to hurt me
Hingga terbawa di mimpi burukku
Until I am consumed by bad dreams
Tubuhku terikat disisi bumi yang lain
My body is bound in a different land
Hilang hampa, di negeri yang tak ada bertuan
Lost, empty in a land with no home
Yang ada hanyalah bayangan dirimu
All that's left is the shadow of you
kau pergi, tinggalkan diriku
You leave me behind
Setelah kau sakiti, Tak Bernyawa
After you hurt me, I am lifeless
Kering nafas jiwa… Cinta tlah membunuh…diriku
My soul is breathless… Love has killed me
dan kau pergi, tinggalkan diriku
And you leave me behind
Setelah kau sakiti, Tak Bernyawa
After you hurt me, I am lifeless
Kering nafas jiwa… Cinta tlah membunuh…diriku
My soul is breathless… Love has killed me
Contributed by Blake Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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@fodaysadiquebaio1686
Wow this song is still new🎉.... Sierra Leone 🇸🇱
@andreadraper6533
Please come to America& play a concert Tour. We need Your Music here most desperately 🙏🏿❤🙏🏿
@pedroberengani6865
These guys are simply beautiful. Them got soul. Its music from the heart.
@robertbalu8001
man I love this african accent, it's so warm.
@RudeboyJackson
That dude plays his guitar upside down - respect!
@Globalfaction
Big up the All Stars! Respect. Stay blessed.
@angelacamacho6456
Hermosa cancion mis hermanos de Refugee all stars. Un saludo desde las Montañas De Colombia, Blesss...
@mrdd47
This makes me so damn happy.
@JJWalsh
me too!
@conniesinclair2250
Loving life, through music... They still smile and make me smile :)