Clandestino: Sahra Halgan

When the Somali civil war broke out, Sahra Halgan was a teenager with dreams of being a singer. She soon found herself working as a singing nurse for the rebels fighting for Somaliland’s liberation. She also started Hiddo Dhowr, Somaliland’s first music venue, which would become a meeting place and cultural center after the fall of the dictatorship.

In 1992, she arrived in Lyon, France as a political refugee, working in a café and performing with the Sahra Halgan Trio, a group she started together with other refugees.

Today, she is back in Somaliland. For many in the region, her unique voice with its powerful vibrato is synonymous with the freedom struggle. But instead of resting on her laurels, Sahra Halgan wants to use her music to spread the word about Somaliland—a self-proclaimed state not recognized internationally.

On her latest album Waa Dardaaran, her group is completed by Maël Saletes on guitar, Aymerik Krol on drums and Graham Mushnik on keyboard. Together they create a global Somaliland music with seriously funky drums and hypnotic guitar. With both traditional songs and original compositions, Sahra Halgan aims to set both dance floor and inner worlds in motion.