By Ibrahim S. Bangura
Amara Denis Turay also known as Kao Denero, the Ambassador of Entertainment has recently engaged students of the University of Sierra Leone on Hip-hop culture and its benefits to students and the society.
The event, which was attended by many students and the University authorities, was held at the Mary Kingsley Auditorium Fourah Bay College (FBC), Mount Aureol.
Kao Denero is an experienced and renown in hip-hop artist in Africa, with so many albums and awards. The University of Sierra Leone, being aware of the importance of arts, decided to invite Kao Denero to use his vast experience to further awareness among the students on the importance of Creative Arts, in the form of Hip-hop music.
The idea had been initiated by some staff of the College who are also part of Magical Podium, a non-governmental organization for students with talents in Music and Poetry at FBC.
The idea started just after Koa Denero released his ‘Heros’ Album, a hip-hop album which consist of 15 tracks. After Mr. Paul A. Conteh, one of the staff at FBC, had analyzed the album, he thought it fit that it would be a good and perfect opportunity to integrate Pop culture into Academia. “It was my suggestion that the History and African Studies Department partner with Magical Podium to bring Mr. Kao Denero to FBC for a wide conversation of his album, ‘Heroes’. I indded saw it that it would attract History students and the broader Hip-hop lovers. Indeed it happened,” Conteh said.
Kao Denero lectured the students about the importance of love and the need to embrace it.
He furthered that among other musical genres, hip-hop inspires people from different communities.
“It is a stylized and highly rhythmic musical genre that sometimes accompanies rapping in rhyming speech that is often chanted, and it is generally accepted by contemporary society and highly patronized in social orbits. Hip-hop is the world’s most popular genre and art form, simultaneously influencing politics, social issues, culture and society as a whole,” he said.
Kao encouraged the students to embrace their studies so that they would help transform Sierra Leone.
He emphasized the need to incorporate arts education into the University curriculum.
Students thanked and appreciated the University’s authorities and Kao Denero for giving them a new platform to learn about Hip-hop as a unique musical genre.
According to Alhajie Kamara, a second-year student at the History Department, Kao Denero’s engagement with them was not only entertaining, but also educative.
“During the event, I learned about the importance of Arts, including its ability to broaden our knowledge, improve our critcal thinking skills among other things,” Kamara added.
Aminata Dumbuya, a first-year student at the African Studies Department, said that the event changed her perspective on music and musicians.
“Having listened to Kao Denero’s lectures about music, my entire perspective changed. I used to think about musicans as people of less important. I even want to be a msuician now. We thank you Kao Denero and we thank you University of Sierra Leone,” Dumbuya explained.