Word: bandness
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...quickly grew to 11 members, the youngest being barely 10 years old. And today it represents a pastiche of identities in a region riven by multiple conflicts. The lead singer is Ethiopian, one of the front men is staunch Muslim who prays regularly, even while the girls in the band wear jeans and don't bother to cover their heads in their music videos (they do cover their hair when moving around in public places). Not the sort of group that would find a place within traditional Somali society. The rebellious spirit extends to their lyrics, which deal frankly with...
...Singer Brian Quincy, an Ethiopian refugee who goes by Q-Rap, says the band's unique makeup and the reality of its messages is what attracted him to Waayaha Cusub. Even though he was Ethiopian and not a Muslim, all he had to do to be welcomed into the band was prove his talent. "They started treating me like a brother," he says. "We started living together and sharing ideas. That made me love them more...
...Joining Waayaha Cusub also gave Q-Rap a sense of security. Eastleigh is a tough neighborhood, and critics don't restrict themselves to words. Singer Salma Abdul Qadir had her face slashed by unknown attackers for accidentally displaying her navel in one of the band's videos. She has been forced into hiding ever since...
...some other members, the harshest detractors are their own family members. Shiine Abdullaahi Ali, one of the founders, says his religiously pious parents are unaware of his activities, and that if they were to find out, the repercussions for him and the rest of the band could be catastrophic...
...many of his bandmates, Waahaya Cusub acts like a safety net to help them cope with the unforgiving lives of refugees. For Huissen Abdi Qananuf, acting in the band's music videos was the best thing that ever happened to him, "If I were back in Somalia, I would definitely be dead or killing people. Things have changed for me now. The gangsters who would take away my shoes at the mosque don't trouble me anymore...