Singer Emmanuel Kembe on show  Photo copyright Black Ottawa Scene

 

UNHCR rep Jean-Nicolas Beuze (holding baby) with members of the Sudanese community                                                         Photo copyright Black Ottawa Scene

Saturday, 30 September

If you were not at Ottawa’s Bronson Centre on Saturday evening, you certainly missed one of the most entertaining shows ever to grace Canada’s national capital. Sudanese-born singer Emmanuel Kembe, sang, danced and communed with his audience in a manner that lifted every spirit, in an event that would otherwise be somber and sobering: fund-raising to stop the famine in South Sudan. Some one hundred guests were there to listen and dance to Kembe’s music, which ranged from Caribbean-based reggae, to the more traditional Sudanese songs, infused with  idioms and subtle political messaging,  delivered in his own unique vigorous and effervescent style.  Most certainly an evening to remember!

All photos copyright Black Ottawa Scene