Emmanuel Jal: A Modern-Day Nomad’s Approach to Peacebuilding Through Music

Emmanuel Jal, a selfdescribed modernday nomad, was born circa 1980 in wartorn Sudan. After witnessing horrific violence and being forced to serve as a child soldier for approximately five years, he was rescued by an aid worker and smuggled into Kenya, after which he enrolled in school, discovered hip hop music, and later became a Canadian resident. Today, Jal is an internationally renowned peace activist, singer, and actor. In this essay, we explore Jal’s songs and the ways they promote peacebuilding through music. Through interviews conducted in Vancouver on July 15, 2012, and in Nairobi on April 14, 2014, we unpack the stories and meaning behind three of his favorite peace songs: “Forced to Sin,” “Emma,” and “We Want Peace.”1 They reveal the redeeming power of music to heal a man who underwent horrific violence as a child, and to advocate for peace and forgiveness in South Sudan and the world.