Barmmy Boy performs alongside Yam Yam at the Big Chill Festival 2007
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My Last Day in My friend Jon dropped me at the railway station, it was my very first time to board a train, so I was very much careful. with a lot of bags on my hand I enter the train my destination was London but the train stop half way and we were ask to join another train, the reason was because of the floods, I arrive in London the same day and Murray pick me up at the train station, we boarded the double-decker bus to go home, We arrive home and I was warmly welcome by Katrina (Murray’s wife). I spent a day in London and the next day we Head for the Big chill Festival in Eastnore (Hereford Shire), which is like a four hours drive from London. We arrive at night and we logged in a big hotel called The Abbey. The picture below shows the inside of my room. we stay there for two days, we were suppose to have stayed at the festival site in a caravan, but because of the floods, there is a shortage of caravans. So far so good, i have got a cabin which is a bit similar to caravans.
Things are getting on nicely except for the mud in some working areas.
The good news is, i will be performancing live on stage with a guy called Yam-Yam in front of over ten thousand (10,000) people. I hope to learn new things (show preparation, stage management etc) as my main aim is to broaden my knowledge about media skills and entertainment On the 19th of July 2007 in the morning hours I was at St Mary’s College, it was the day when certificates were handed over to all the BTEC students who successfully completed the media course. I was presented a gift (Digital audio recorder) and a certificate for my valuable contribution in a media project in the school. Late in the afternoon, I went for a session at Dave’s studio (Dave is a very good musician and producer), he mentor me on using REASON ( a good music software) we recorded one demo song. At night, I hook-up with one of my best friends in On the 20th July 2007 we went down town to shoot some video, we spent most time shooting the Video, we later went in mobile phone shop to unlock some phones which Simon got me to take Back to Freetown as Gifts, whiles waiting for the phones, I had a shout from a woman saying “Hey, is that you on TV? When I turn to the big screen TV at the middle of town it was BCC TV Look North lunch time news, and I was featured, I said yes to the woman and she went off with a big smile. On the 21st July, I had session with Dave again and I did one complete song with two hours mix and Mastered. 0n the 22nd July in the morning, I had pack my things, Because, I will be going to Article appears in The Hull Daily Mail - 21/07/07 The Hull Daily Mail’s website has been inundated with messages of praise from teenagers for a rapping star from Sierra Leone. Earlier this week, the Mail ran a story about 19-year-old Lansana Mansaray, known as Barmmy Boy, who has been visiting schools in the city. As well as teaching youngsters how to rap, he has also been sharing his experiences of growing up in the war-torn country. Over two months, he will work with children from St Mary’s College in west Hull, Winifred Holtby in Bransholme and Wilberforce College in east Hull. Among the issues Barmmy Boy raps about are growing up in the country’s capital Freetown, HIV/Aids and the aftermath of the civil war that ravaged the country for a decade. When the story appeared on the Mail’s website on Wednesday, it initially attracted criticism from one reader calling himself Barmmy Man, claiming rappers encourage young people to join gangs and use guns. That drew a huge response from teenagers who defended Barmmy Boy and praised his work to educate Hull youngsters about life in Sierra Leone. A web user called Gerry, from St Mary’s College in north Hull, was among more than 40 youngsters who posted a comment on www.thisishull.co.uk He said: “I think you lot are talking about him in the wrong way. He isn’t into the shooting and that lot, I know because I have met him. “His rapping is about peace and stuff like HIV, which is a bad disease in his country. He is not like a kind of gangster rapper, he is great.” Jordan, from east Hull, said: “He’s ace and shouldn’t be taken as if he’s a gangster shooting people, because his raps are about peace.” The rapper was brought to the UK by Hull organisation Cafe Society and funded by the British Council and Government arts scheme Creative Partnerships. Cafe Society organiser Jon Robson said: “Barmmy Boy is an excellent ambassador for Sierra Leone and has made a lasting impression on the young people he has met in Hull.” Barmmy Boy said: “It’s been great working with young people here.” The past days have been very much about media training using editing software with Jon (cafesociety.org). The training has been fruitful, I believe, it is one main reason why I am in Hull. On my return to Freetown on August 10th 2007, alot of young less fortunate people will be able to learn from me some skills that will give them new skills, as empowerment is what the youths need in Sierra Leone after a decade long civil war that has rendered the country in the drains.
As I have been working with kids in the school, I did a freestyle song with the kids on stage, it was wonderful, and I receive amazing response from the audience. After the performance, I did an interview with Hull daily mail. On the 18th July 2007 I had a whole page in the newspaper,
08:00 - 18 July 2007 - Hull Dail Mail
A Young rapper from Sierra Leone has been inspiring children across Hull to exchange stories about their lives through music. Nineteen-year-old Lansana Mansaray, known as Barmmy Boy, is in Hull as part of a project to connect schools here and in Hull’s twin townFreetown, the capital of the west African country. Over two months, he will work with children from St Mary’s College in west Hull, Winifred Holtby in Bransholme and Wilberforce College in east Hull. He said: “It’s my first time out of Freetown and it’s really different. “Everything is more organised, and the schools are all provided by the Government. “It’s strange, but I am enjoying it.” Among the issues Barmmy Boy raps about are growing up in Freetown, HIV/Aids and the aftermath of the civil war that ravaged the country for a decade. He was brought to the UK by Hull-based organisation Cafe Society and funded by the British Council and Government arts programme Creative Partnerships. Cafe Society organiser Jon Robson said: “We met Barmmy Boy when we went to Sierra Leone. “He had so much energy and creativity, we thought he’d be fantastic with children here and they could really learn from each other. We got him some funding to buy him a laptop so he could start producing music and videos in Freetown and he could learn the skills to pass on to other youngsters there.” Yesterday, Barmmy Boy took part in a performance at St Mary’s College, Cranbrook Avenue, with teenagers participating in a special week to coincide with Hull’s Wilberforce year. This year is the bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act, which followed a campaign against slavery led by Hull MP William Wilberforce. Barmmy Boy said: “It’s been great working with people here. “They have made up their own lyrics about the issues that affect them, and we’ve been editing videos to accompany them. “I want to take the skills I’ve learned here back to Sierra Leone. “Many teenagers in Freetown are disillusioned. They move out of Sierra Leone and never bring the skills they have learned back to their country. I believe there is a lot more to do in Freetown. It doesn’t help the country when the youth leave and never come back.”
Barbara Veloso, 13, of Massey Close, west Hull, who has been working with Barmmy Boy, described the experience as “amazing”. She said: “I’ve never rapped before, but I have been this week. “Some of the stories Barmmy Boy told us about through his music are surprising. “I had no idea many of the soldiers in Sierra Leone during the war were children.” Andy Rendell, 14, of Malpas Close, in north Hull, said: “I was really shy about singing and it’s been great doing it as a group. “All of us who took part have discovered hidden talents.” On the 9th July 2007 My close friends Simon Robinson and Claire Marshall took me on a day out of Hull city.
we went in a quite and old village called Staithes, it is a nice and peaceful village by the North-East coasts (The Yorkshire cost) of England. On the first day after day, we stroll around and in the evening hours we went at Whitby harbour which is also in the Yorkshire cost of England.
The Whitby harbour according to the novels about Dracula Is the place were the original story of Dracula started. It is the place were the Dracula is said to have landed in a boat after killing the whole crew in the boat, change into a dog and ran up the 199 steps.
We went in a business place were we pay to watch some scary made up things about Dracula (the tale from Withby). Dinner time, we went at Magpie Café, the famous restaurants in Withdy were most times there is along queue to go in. anyway their food is nice. There are fantastic amusement arcades where we spent some time exploring new forms of games.
On the second day, in the morning, we stop by at Robin hoods Bay. we also visited the withby Abbey in Withby. The abbey is quit a famous seven hundred year old church situated on a hill over looking withby harbour. Some tourists go there to visit, as there is also very old cemetery in the compound of the addey.
In the evening we went on a twenty five minute boat ride which was really nice. Withby, staithes and Hull, were great fishing ports, many people in made fortunes in fishing, but there was over-grazing and now there are few fish in the water.
As a result of this, the fishing industry in these places is collapsing, there very few fisher men who do small scale fishing. |
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