By Sheriff Bojang Jnr, Dakar
In a long queue of dozens of fellow graduates, 19-year-old Seynabou Ndoye – aka DJ Zeyna – is having one of the most memorable and emotional moments of her life. After months of hard work and defying the odds, Seynabou Ndoye is graduating from Senegal’s only hip hop school, Hip Hop Akademy. With this intensive DJ-ing course under her belt, she’s on her way to become the country’s first professional female DJ.
Hip Hop Akademy, located in the outskirts of Dakar, was set up by a group of local artists and sponsored by the US Embassy in Senegal and the NGO Trust Africa. Its aim is to scout and develop young talents.
Senegal has a popular and growing local hip hop and rap scene. However there are very few women in the industry. The few female rappers that do exist are often labeled as liabilities by their families and communities in this Muslim-dominated country.
According to Amadou Fall Ba, an executive at the Akademy, DJ Zeyna’s tutors are amazed by her performance and commitment to learn and excel. ‘It’s up to her to now inspire other women into hip hop. If she excels outside the Akademy in the same way as she did here, others will know that the barriers are no longer there,’ says Ba.
Hip hop blood
DJ Zeyna’s love affair with hip hop started when she was a child. As she proudly holds her graduation certificate, she says “When I was young, the first music I listened to was hip hop and I fell in love with it immediately. I was particularly touched by the lyrics and how these hip hop stars were able to make every line rhyme.”
She was aware that her surrounding community did not share her passion and even looked down on it, but she decided to follow her heart.
Parental support
When DJ Zeyna enrolled at Hip Hop Akademy last year, her friends and neighbors didn’t understand why she decided to become a “loose woman”. “As far as they are concerned, people like me who are involved in hip hop are not to be respected,” she says with a smile. “They think such people lack values and have no dignity. I am strange to them.”
She received much strength from her parents who gave their support. “I was very pleased when my parents came to see me here at the Akademy. It represented a new level of love because it made me realize how much they trust me. This is all that matters to me: the blessing of my parents. Now others can say whatever they want about me.”
DJ Zeyna’s mother, Awa, is confident that her daughter will succeed in her career. “We asked her what she wanted to do with her life because she was not serious about school. And this is what she came up with. We trust and stand by her. I know with God’s guidance she will make us proud.”
Winning hearts
While the stigma surrounding DJ Zeyna and her choice of career continues, many of her friends and neighbors who were initially disappointed in her are now starting to accept her for who she is. “I’m not sure if some finally think I have made a good choice. But they have learned to live with the DJ part of me without any prejudice. I guess I am once again the same girl they knew before I got into hip hop.”Aissatou is one of the friends who changed their minds about DJ Zeyna’s ambitions. “At first a lot of us didn’t get it. It was all very strange but now we know there’s a great career ahead of her. She’s the real deal,” she says with a broad smile.
And for many other friends, DJ Zeyna is already a star with a bright future. On graduation day, dozens of well-wishers were there to cheer her on when she collected her certificate.
As she prepares to take on Dakar’s many splendid nightclubs, DJ Zeyna vows to encourage other young women to follow in her path.
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