Smockey

Smockey is the stage name of Serge Bambara, a rapper, actor, and political activist from Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Born on October 24, 1971, in the then-Republic of Upper Volta, he relocated to France to pursue an academic education in 1991. It wasn't until 1999 that he finally landed his first record deal with EMI, releasing his debut single featuring singer Lââm later that year. After returning to Burkina Faso in 2001, he started the studio Abazon and continued honing in on his production and songwriting skills on a series of politically minded releases that included Epitaphe (2001), Zamana (2004), Code Noir (2007), and Cravate, Costard et Pourriture (2010). Throughout his entire career, his fierce advocacy for human rights and democracy in his country earned him several awards and accolades, including the 2006 Kundé Award for Artist of the Year and a Kora Award for Best Hip-Hop Artist in 2010. In 2013, he and reggae musician Sams’K Le Jah founded the grassroots political movement Le Balai Citoyen, which participated in the 2014 Burkinabé uprising that led to President Compaoré's resignation. Despite having his studio destroyed by Regiment of Presidential Security, a defiant Smockey returned with the caustic Pre'volution - Le Président, Ma Moto et Moi, released via OutHere Records in 2015.