K'naan

I came across a video that captured my interest, as well as the story line behind this artist.

K'naan

K'naan which means "traveler" in the Somali language.

K'naan spent his childhood in Somali, as well as lived there during the Somali Civil War in 1991. He was fortunate to be on the last commercial flight out of Somali during the war. His flight landed him in Harlem, New York with his mother and younger siblings.

Beyond having an influential art appreciation such as his aunt being one of Somalia's most famous singers and his grandfather being a poet he was destined with his craft.

In trying to learn the English language he leaned towards music, primarily Hip-Hop such as Nas. By listening to Nas and Hip-Hop he taught himself how to rap, while expressing his story.

"What we been through was a little harder than life in America's ghetto. Watching people boast about what they were going through was a little boring, a little frustrating. When you don't know there is something worse, more difficult, you tend to focus on your little pains, 'Ah, I have it so bad.' But your shouldn't complain about a headache when someone beside you has a bullet wound."

He's been getting a lot of rave for his "Wavin Flag" song which was so inspirational that it was chosen by Coca-Cola to be the anthem for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

He's collobarated with Nas and Damian Marley on the album "Distant Relatives", Wale, Will. I. Am, and was apart of the "Young artists for Haiti." Currently, he's on tour with Lenny Kravitz.