Afrofunk Shakedown

I walk on the mission street in San Francisco and I see both love and loss. I see the new couples completely lost in each other with no distance or space between them and it’s beautiful. I see the homeless guys flagging cars in to the parking spaces for a couple of buck to buy a drink at the corner store.

I see the lonely girl, just arrived from Wisconsin with a big heart but San Francisco has been unkind to her. Expensive to live here, difficult sometimes to make friends. Barely enough to survive and sometimes standing in the food line at Glide church because shes’ too hungry.

I see, hear and feel all the dreams and all the plans that people make for their lives. I hear the quarrels of dysfunctional families and people looking for simple love and appreciation. Girls at clubs on high heals clinging to each other as guys cluelessly try to untangle them. Drunk people swaying on Valencia street trying to hail a cab home to their empty rooms and solitude. Drinking is indeed the only escape from the pangs of loneliness.

I see people live beyond their means, completely on credit and the sadness that follows knowing it will take a year to a pay off your bills.

It’s bittersweet. We really all want the same thing: “To love and be loved”

-Sila

This is the 4th year of the Afrofunk Festival. Our goal as always is to make a difference in the live of Kids all over the world but especially in Africa whose lives have been devastated by war, famine and disease. This year the festival spans over 8 cities, with one goal, to raise funds and awareness of Kids in House of Hope in Uganda.

Between songs I’ve called on people to reach into their hearts no matter where they are in their lives and bring a little sunshine to kids who are where they are not by choice. When disaster strikes it’s the kids that are the hardest hit.

Putting on this festival has always been expensive, with cost that range from renting venues, paying bands, advertising and promotions. I wish we could raise millions of dollars for these children program but if we can do $5000 I will still be happy.

I’ve always believed that to give even when you don’t have much to give is a blessing and good karma. All the blessings I have in my life, I feel are a result of the kindness I show to those in need. I give more when I am have less.

So please join us July 24-26 at the Independent, San San Francisco for the grand finale to the festival. The festival feature one of the most multi-cultural lineup in the west coast. Our mission to rock the house and make a difference. Get your tickets today and if you feel inspire donate to the cause via Facebook.

One love,
Sila

I am very excited to announce that we will be playing at the Stern Grove on Sunday, June 22 with Seun Kuti. It’s been a huge dream of mine to play at Stern Grove and was very excited to get the news that we are playing. Afrofunk music sounds the best outdoors for those that know us. My most memorable show was our first show at the Fillmore Jazz Festival in 2006. I really loved the way the music sounded bouncing on the buildings and seeing countless faces, some clinging on trees. Stern Grove is surrounded by trees and I can’t wait to hear how the music moves and feels around them.

I’d like to encourage our fans to come early and set up an AFROFUNK camp near the stage so we can see familiar faces. We go on at 2:00 PM sharp, but my prediction is that day will get crowded very early and I won’t be surprised if they stop letting people in by noon

So I will declare Sunday, June 22 AFRICAN DAY at Stern Grove. And I promise one of our most passionate, grittiest performance ever. Let’s pray for good weather.

Much love,
Sila

Myanmar cyclone ‘major, major disaster’…Over ‘100,000 feared dead.

The gift of waking up in the morning and seeing the sun, or the blessing of our loved ones should encourage us to show kindness to others
who suffer. There are millions of refugees in Sudan, Chad, Iraq, Kenya and other parts of the world who are leaving a reality we cannot understand.
I am always reminded that we are here in this world to care for one another and do everything we can minimize the suffering of others.

What will you do with the time you have?

Since Monday, Save the Children has distributed two metric tons of food, plastic sheeting, water purification tablets, kitchen equipment, rehydration salts and other non-food items to over 50,000 children and families whose homes have been destroyed.

Click here to donate

Peace and love,
Sila

On Saturday, February 2nd, bring your dancing shoes to the Independent in San Francisco as Sila and the Afrofunk Experience performs a benefit for Carolina for Kibera, Kenya. Nominated for Best World Music at the San Francisco Weekly Music Awards, Sila and the Afrofunk Experience mixes the legendary sounds of Fela Kuti with some tricks gleaned from James Brown and P-Funk. Sila (who sings in Swahili and English) and company create a dancefloor-ready throb guaranteed to move you.

The band not only offers an evening of funk, but a chance to dance for a cause. The band leader, Sila Mutungi, has decided to use this opportunity to raise funds for his homeland of Kenya, which has recently erupted into post-election violence that has claimed the lives of hundreds and the homes of thousands. Proceeds will benefit non-profit Carolina for Kibera, which serves 25,000 people living in Kibera, the largest slum in Nairobi. Kibera has been devastated by the recent violence. The organization’s program serves the community through a health clinic, a summer youth sports program staffed by volunteers and other programs.

“The political figures need to call for peace and harmony and directly reach out to their supporters to stop the violence. Only Kenyans can resolve this strife by speaking out as a nation against ethnic violence,” Sila says

“I am currently working together with Michael Wanguhu, a Kenyan film maker (Hip-Hop Colony), to shoot a music video of a newly written song encouraging peace among Kenyan people and calling on the political leaders to put aside their pride and greed for the sake of the country. I just don’t want Kenya to become another Rwanda,” Sila adds.

Joining Sila and the Afrofunk Experience will be the Afrobeat sounds of Dj Jeremiah and the Afrobeat Nation (from Liberia), Radio Active and the tropical beats of Dj Felina.

ABOUT CAROLINA FOR KIBERA
Established in 2001, Carolina for Kibera (CFK) is an international, nongovernmental organization based in the Kibera slum of Nairobi, Kenya. In the United States, CFK is a 501(c)(3) charitable corporation and major affiliated entity and program of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill based at the Center for Global Initiatives.

Named a TIME Magazine and Gates Foundation “Hero of Global Health,” Carolina For Kibera (CFK) fights abject poverty and helps prevent violence through community-based development in the Kibera slum of Nairobi, Kenya and beyond. CFK envisions a world where the poor have a voice in their futures and opportunities for healthy growth. We are rooted in the conviction that solutions to problems involving poverty are possible only if those affected by it drive development. Concerned outsiders can help by mobilizing communities, advising, networking, and providing resources. Ultimately, however, the community possesses the knowledge and motivation that are necessary to solve its own problems.

Run by Kenyans and advised by American and Kenyan volunteers, CFK’s primary mission is to promote youth leadership and ethnic and gender cooperation in Kibera through sports, young women’s empowerment, and community development. Additionally, CFK works to improve basic healthcare, sanitation, and education in Kibera. Serving as a model for holistic, community-based urban development world-wide, CFK has helped grassroots organizations develop youth-based programs in six other nations and dozens of communities in Kenya.

What: Sila and the Afrofunk Experience: A Beneit for Carolina Kibera, Kenya
Where: The Independent, 628 Divisadero Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
Why: Raise funds for Carolina Kibera, Kenya
When: Saturday, February 2nd, 9PM
Who: Sila and the Afrofunk Experience, Dj Jeremiah and the Afrobeat Nation, and Dj Felina
Tickets: $16-$35. Available at ticketweb.com. 21+
Contact: Jeremiah Kpoh, Email: Jeremiah@maishaproductions.com,
Phone: 415-377-4879
More Information: http://afrofunk.net, Carolina for Kibera

Up to 500,000 people in Kenya will need humanitarian assistance in the weeks ahead if the country’s political crisis intensifies, the UN has warned.

The UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs said 255,000 had been forced from their homes and that malnutrition was now a growing risk.

Earlier, the main opposition party said it would resume its nationwide campaign of mass demonstrations next week.

Kenyan police said they would not allow the three days of protests to go ahead.

Some 600 people have been killed in the ethnic and political unrest sparked by the announcement of Mwai Kibaki’s re-election as president on 27 December.

The defeated presidential candidate of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), Raila Odinga, has accused Mr Kibaki of rigging the poll and that his government has no interest in dialogue or mediation.

Political negotiation is not an event, it is a process that can take a very long time, or a short time - all depends on the cooperation of the leaders- Kofi Annan Former UN Secretary General

The former UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, who is leading a panel of African mediators attempting to resolve the crisis, has meanwhile appealed to all sides for restraint.

Mr Annan called on “all Kenyan leaders, government as well as the opposition in the country to avoid any measures or steps that would further compromise, the search for an amicable solution to the country’s crisis” in a statement issued on Friday.

Talks conducted by the chairman of the African Union, Ghanaian President John Kufuor, broke down on Thursday.

Malnutrition fears

At a news conference in Geneva, a spokeswoman for the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that 255,000 people had been forced from their homes by recent political upheaval in Kenya.

It’s anticipated that malnutrition will rapidly worsen if insecurity and lack of access to food and assistance persists
- Elisabeth Byrs UN OCHA spokeswoman

“OCHA estimates that nearly half a million people will need assistance in the coming weeks and months,” Elisabeth Byrs said.

“It’s anticipated that malnutrition will rapidly worsen if insecurity and lack of access to food and assistance persists,” along with the destruction of farms and family livelihoods, she added.

The UN children’s agency, Unicef, also said it was concerned about malnutrition, which already affected one in three children under the age of five before the crisis.

With hundreds of thousands of displaced people with no jobs or income, the situation for many children could become critical, it warned.

Food prices are also rising in the poorer suburbs of Nairobi, where many people have lost their jobs in the wake of the recent violence and goods are scarce.

The UN World Food Programme (WFP) has begun distributing food to 33,000 people around Nairobi, but it remains concerned that the situation will remain extremely volatile as long as the political crisis continues.

The OCHA said $7m had been granted by the UN’s Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to help agencies fund their operations in Kenya and an emergency appeal for more would be launched next week in New York.

Meanwhile in Geneva, Unicef published accounts gathered by its staff in Kenya from children and young people who witnessed the violence.

Many described how the children were forced to watch their parents being attacked or killed, their homes burning, and their friends from different ethnic groups becoming enemies.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/africa/7184492.stm

Published: 2008/01/12 01:38:34 GMT

© BBC MMVIII

Chronicle photo by Michael Macor

Original article appears here

Garissa, Kenya — One in an Occasional Series

Over the buzz of hospital ceiling fans, Habiba Mohammed heard the slightest murmur emerge from her daughter’s wasted chest: The baby was hungry. She pulled down the top of her dress and offered her emaciated child a breast that had not had milk for months.

Her daughter, Hadiwa, is a casualty of a sustained, four-year drought that is threatening the lives of 17 million people across East Africa. Her ankles are no thicker than an adult’s thumb; wrinkled skin hangs loosely around her thighs and angular pelvic bones. She is 9 months old and weighs 8 pounds, just over a pound more than her birth weight. Tuberculosis, malaria and pneumonia are eating away at her tiny body.

She could recover, say doctors at Garissa Provincial Hospital, but it will take at least two months of intensive feeding. Mohammed, 19, says she cannot wait that long.

“There are things I need to attend to at home,” she said, her eyes fixed on the tiled hospital floor.

After the drought destroyed the pastures and killed off the family’s livestock, her husband was forced to go to Garissa to look for work as a day laborer. Now their house of sticks and straw, in the dry bush several miles south of Garissa, remains unattended. If she does not return home soon, someone might steal their sleeping mats and cooking utensils — and maybe even the house itself, Mohammed said.

It’s a cruel dilemma that doctors at the Garissa hospital see repeatedly.

Their families living in abject poverty, children on the brink of starvation who are brought to the Garissa hospital rarely complete their treatment because of social and economic pressures on their mothers, said Dr. Khadija Abdalla, the chief pediatrician at the hospital.

“Often they have to return to their other children, whom they’ve left in the bush. Sometimes they come with other children, which puts these new children at risk of contracting disease. Husbands also pressurize them to return,” said Abdalla. “It’s very frustrating, especially when you know that they’re going to have to come back.”

At least 500,000 Kenyan children face the threat of starvation as the worst drought to hit East Africa in decades enters its fourth year, aid agencies say, and cases of severe malnutrition are on the rise. The drought and subsequent famine stretch across swaths of Kenya, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, Djibouti and Sudan, countries that are simply not prepared to deal with the looming humanitarian crisis, say international aid officials.

The Garissa hospital is the only medical facility that provides therapeutic feeding to children in Kenya’s drought-ravaged North Eastern province of 400,000 people. Twenty children diagnosed with severe malnutrition are currently receiving treatment, 10 times the usual number, said Abdalla. Since December, seven children admitted to the hospital have died.

The real number of children suffering and dying without being seen by doctors is probably much higher, she said.

As it is, the hospital is barely able to cope with the number of patients it has. The pediatric ward, meant to treat a maximum of 50 children, had 56 patients Monday. As the effects of the famine intensify, those numbers, too, are likely to increase dramatically, say medical workers. The nurses — just two per shift — can do little more than weigh the children and deliver medicine. This means mothers must stay with their sick children day and night. But many of these mothers — some of whom have just reached adolescence themselves — don’t make the best caregivers, Abdalla said.

“Most mothers are illiterate. You can’t instruct them,” she said. “Sometimes the children get four or five (therapeutic) feeds a day instead of the nine that are required.”

Many mothers don’t have the money to pay for their children’s treatment, like Ladhah Abdulla, 20, the mother of Malyun Osman, a skeletal 2-year-old girl weighing 12.7 pounds.

Her husband left for South Africa two years ago when Abdulla was still pregnant with Malyun. The husband said he would look for work there and send money home, but so far, no money and no word have come from him. Abdulla, who also has a 5-year-old son, Faisul, moved in with her parents, impoverished herders who themselves barely have the means to get by.

So far, the hospital has waived the costs of Malyun’s treatment — the equivalent of 70 cents per day. But Abdulla does not know how long this benevolence will last. Doctors say Malyun, who spends her days playing with breadcrumbs in a beat-up aluminum bowl on her cot by a window covered with anti-mosquito netting, will need six months to recover.

“I’m not sure how long I will stay here,” Abdulla said. “I can’t afford to pay for the bed.”

Four cots away, Batula Guhat faced a similar situation. Two weeks ago, after a 100-mile walk through the bush that took almost two months, Guhat, 53, brought her bird-like granddaughter, Fatuma Hillow, 2, to the hospital. Fatuma weighs less than 10 pounds; her hands are so small that doctors have to inject her anti-tuberculosis medications into her feet. Fatuma’s chest protrudes abnormally; last week, her heart stopped temporarily.

After 10 days at the hospital, doctors realized that she needed to go to the capital, Nairobi, to see a cardiologist the Garissa hospital doesn’t have.

“The problem is, if you give them an alternative to go to Nairobi, they opt not to because they can’t afford it,” Abdalla said before she gave Guhat the news.

Guhat considered her options. The hospital would pay for the transportation to Nairobi, but there will be expensive tests and even more expensive treatment, possibly surgery.

“I can’t afford to go,” Guhat said.

A minute later, Abdalla learned that her other patient, little Hadiwa, also will not receive the full treatment she needs.

“She will gain one more kilo,” (2.2 pounds), “and then we’ll leave,” said Hadiwa’s mother as she avoided the doctor’s eyes. Seven other mothers, who were listening in the hospital room, where the temperature was above 100 degrees, kept fanning their emaciated children with the loose ends of their colorful scarves. Abdalla lifted her eyebrows and pursed her lips. She knew she could not stop Mohammed from leaving any more than she could make it rain and break the devastating drought.

So all she said, as her gaze rested on a banana peel on a wooden stool near Hadiwa’s cot, was: “You’ve made this place a mess. It’s unsanitary. You have to keep it clean.”

E-mail Anna Badkhen at abadkhen@sfchronicle.com.

———————

TO MAKE A DIFFENCE TO THESE KIDS LIVES PLEASE CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO SAVE THE CHILDREN FUND WHO HAVE A PROGRAM IN EAST AFRICA.

You can also join us on Friday April 28 and Saturday April 29th for a concert I am producing at the Elbo Room to raise money for the kids.

Thank you!

-sila

It’s official, the 2nd Annual Afrofunk Music Festival will be held July 27 to 29 at The Independent in San Francisco and Moe’s Alley in Santa Cruz. Last year’s festival sold out with lines round the block. For those new to the Afrofunk Experience, we throw a three day festival to raise money for kid’s health and education programs in Darfur, Sudan, Niger and now Kenya. Like last year we will be partnering with Save the Children Fund. My hope is that we raise over 5,000+ for the kids.

We need volunteers, evangelists, moral and financial support to make this festival a success. Afrofunk is a community. Email me personally at silaband@gmail.com if you’d like to get involved in one of the most exciting and rewarding festival in the country. Afrofunk Festival is the only Afrobeat festivals in the world.

It’s gonna be gritty, it’s gonna be funky and it’s gonna make you feel damn good

New website, dance-your-ass-off artists to be announced soon at http://afrofunk.org.

Peace, love and music,
sila

It’s been a crazy, intense, stressful and rewarding year so far. Here’s the low down:
1. We’ve been in the studio since December of last year recording out debut album as Sila and the Afrofunk Experience. Unlike all the projects I worked on before this one was special. Usually bands rehearse the hell out of songs before going to the studio to record. I decided that we would approach the whole recording process as a jam session in the studio without rehearsing a single thing. This was a recipe for disasters. We decided to write most of the songs in the studio, on the spot, without rehearsing.There was a good chance that the stuff we came up with would suck and all the money that went into the studio will be flushed down the drain.

I have to say the recording of this album is one of my most beautiful moments of my life. We ended up recording over 16 songs and almost all of them originals written on the spot. We told Matt Kelley our recording engineer at Hyde Street Studions to just keep recording. What we have now is a magical, funky, electric and gritty AFROFUNK album. Working on the lyrics was at first a challenge. I wanted to write from the heart. To observe what was happening to me personnaly and what was going on around the world. The results, almost all of the songs on the album are political. I am singing about love, government corruption in Africa, US, war, hunger, justice, peace, and humanity.

It’s been an emotional rollercoaster, a personal emancipation. For the mixing and mastering I was very lucky to run into some great recording engineers, Seabrin and Johannes Luley of mysonictemple. I have to say that recording and mixing with Johannes is the best studio experience I’ve ever had. Johannes was nominated for two Grammies and his skills shine through on this album. The recording process has also been very expensive. I have begged and borrowed money from my good friends and without them, this project would not have happened. You know you have a good friend when they don’t think twice about helping you fullfil your dreams.

2. The BIG SHOW: On Friday February 24th we are headlining at the Independent for the very first time. We had opened show there for Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra, Morgan Heritage to name a few. Joiining us will be Djialy Kunda Kouyate from Senegal who are of the most electric African band and dancers I’ve ever seen. We are going to turn the Indpendent into a mini-Africa. The music is going to be heavy, absolutely gritty, funky and electrifying. Come to this show wearing light cloths and comfortable shoes. YOU WILL DANCE YOUR ASS OFF.We wil also be filming and recording the show for a live DVD feature.

We wish you…

every happiness this Holiday Season and prosperity in the New Year. Thank you for your support in 2005. We look forward to bringing you more music in the coming year.

My wish list for 2006
US out of Iraq
The wonderful people and musicians of New Orleans to rise up after Katrina
The end of Genocide in Sudan
The end of starvation for the people of Kenya and Niger
The rebuilding of lives from the victims of the Kashmir earthquake in Pakistan and India
Fair trade for African nations. All debts forgiven
Peace, love and unity

Sincerely,
Sila