“Shout to the people the reality, and they dance it!” A case study on the synergies and challenges between music, youth empowerment, sustainable development and social change in the Gambia Elias Rådelius Music, bachelors level 2016 Luleå University of Technology Department of Arts, Communication and Education “Shout to the people the reality, and they dance it!” A case study on the synergies and challenges between music, youth empowerment, sustainable development and social change in the Gambia Elias Rådelius Bachelor thesis in Music and Education, 15 credits Supervisor: Cecilia Ferm-Almqvist Department of Arts, Communication and Education Luleå University of Technology Spring semester 2016 Abstract This case study examines the role of music and music-making for the youth in Brikama, the Gambia in terms of freedom of expression, sustainable development and social change. The study is situated within a project where young musicians with different backgrounds wrote and recorded their own songs during workshops with established musicians. The data was collected via interviews with the participants and instructors, observations and song analysis. The study uses Small’s (1998) theory of musicking to analyze the meaning of the musical events in the social context. Furthermore, it uses theories on the relationship between music and sustainability to analyze the role of music for the youth on an individual-, group- and societal level, but also on an organizational level. The study finds that on all four levels music and music-making holds many of the characteristics required for sustainable development and that it can foster resilience through creativity. However, it also shows that this requires the creation of inclusive spaces with an awareness of the cultural narrative and forces (such as limiting traditional values and gender issues) that might limit the capabilities of individuals, and the society, to reap these benefits. The study also shows how music, with its artistic characteristics, can offer pockets of freedom of expression to a certain but limited extent. Finally, the study shows how music can and should be incorporated more extensively by organizations working for sustainable development and social change, both as a tool to achieve other sustainability agendas, but also for the inherent characteristics of resilience and creativity that is found in music-making itself. Keywords: music, sustainability, development, communication for development, social change, music education, youth, freedom of expression, artistic expression, The Gambia. Sammanfattning Denna fallstudie undersöker musik och musikskapandets roll för ungdomar i Brikama, Gambia, och dess relation till yttrandefrihet, hållbar utveckling och social förändring. Studien är genomförd inom ramen för ett projekt där unga musiker med olika bakgrund komponerade och spelade in sina egna låtar under workshops tillsammans med etablerade musiker. Materialet samlades in genom intervjuer med deltagarna och instruktörer, observationer och textanalys av låtarna. Studien använder sig av Smalls (1998) koncept musicking för att analysera den musikaliska situationens mening i sin sociala kontext. Dessutom används teorier om relationen mellan musik och hållbarhet för att analysera musikens roll för ungdomarna på en individuell-, grupp- och samhällsnivå, men även på en organisationsnivå. Studien visar på alla fyra nivåer att musik och musikskapande innehar många av de karaktärsdrag som krävs för hållbar utveckling och att det kan främja resiliens genom kreativitet. Dock visar studien att inkluderande sammanhang behöver skapas med medvetenhet om den kulturella kontexten. Detta för att kunna navigera de krafter (såsom negativa traditionella värderingar kring genus) som kan begränsa individers deltagande och i slutändan samhällets möjlighet att ta del av fördelarna. Studien visar också hur musik, med sina konstärliga karaktärsdrag, kan erbjuda ett visst utrymme för yttrandefrihet. Slutligen visar studien hur musik kan och bör inkorporeras till större grad av organisationer som arbetar för hållbar utveckling och social förändring, både som ett verktyg för att uppnå hållbarhetsagendor, men även för de inneboende karaktärsdragen resiliens och kreativitet som finns att hitta i själva musikskapandet. Nyckelord: musik, hållbarhet, utveckling, kommunikation, social förändring, musikundervisning, ungdomar, yttrandefrihet, konstnärlig frihet, Gambia. Acknowledgements The road to writing this BA thesis has been long in terms of years (since I started my first year at the School of Music in Piteå in 2005) but short in terms of how fast time has flown. During my studies I fought long and hard hours in the practice room and the rehearsal spaces to become a better musician, but it was not until I first visited the Gambia in 2008 that I really experienced what music meant. I think that maybe, just maybe I realized that I had been relating to it wrong all these years. It might sound a bit extreme, but I believe that it was those three weeks that made me want to do something else, something that did not relate to music. At least so I thought. I ended acquiring a BSc in International Health, writing a thesis on music, youth and HIV/AIDS in Kenya. During my MA studies in Communication for Development, I always found myself looking to music as that tool for social change. And now, finally, after 11 years, I’m wrapping up a journey that has taken me back to the School of Music and back to the Gambia but with other perspectives and knowledge to understand and experience it all. I owe gratitude to my supervisor Cecilia Ferm-Almqvist for encouragement and feedback during the process. Also, this thesis would not have been possible without the help from everyone at Sofanyama Kunda, both in the Gambia, Sweden and Norway. But, I want to express special thanks to Aida Jobarteh who has been there to encourage and offer support as well as proofread the final manuscript. I must also express my gratitude to everyone in the village of Kembujeh who hosted my family and me and made us feel like part of the village. And a special thanks to Kumuna Jobarteh for being an excellent research assistant and friend during my time in the Gambia. Throughout the journey I have had my best friend and wife, Sanna by my side, offering endless encouragement, guidance and love. Thank you for believing in me even when I could not do so myself! Finally, I don’t think this thesis would have been possible without the constant interruptions and distractions made by my two children, Milian and Billie-Lo. Thank you for taking my focus off the screen and onto the two most important things in my life – you! Elias Rådelius Stockholm August 28th, 2016 Table of Contents Abstract Sammanfattning Acknowledgements 1. Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Research aim ............................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Research questions ...................................................................................................................... 2 1.3 Setting and methodology .............................................................................................................. 2 2. Background & Literature Review .................................................................................................... 3 2.1 The contrasting roles of musicians in West Africa ........................................................................ 3 2.2 Musicians as social change agents in West Africa ....................................................................... 3 2.3 Addressing poverty and inequality through music education ....................................................... 4 2.4 Freedom of artistic expression ..................................................................................................... 5 3. Project and Research Design .......................................................................................................... 7 3.1 Background .................................................................................................................................. 7 3.2 Project Design: Young Stars of Sofanyama Kunda ...................................................................... 7 3.2.1 Training for Studio Engineers ................................................................................................ 7 3.2.2 Workshops in songwriting for young musicians .................................................................... 8 3.2.3 Synergies of the training and the workshops ........................................................................ 8 3.3 Methodological discussion ........................................................................................................... 8 3.3.1 Navigating the Roles of Researcher and Project Manager ................................................... 9 3.4 Data Collection ............................................................................................................................. 9 3.4 Data Analysis ............................................................................................................................. 10 4. Theoretical Framework .................................................................................................................. 12 4.1 Musicking ..................................................................................................................................