PAM presents : Samba Peuzzi, Dakar boy

This new episode of the Off the Map series, co-produced with Kourtrajmé Dakar, takes you to meet rapper Samba Peuzzi. Flea markets, dancefloors, soccer pitches… Take a guided tour of the Senegalese capital, with the illustrious Senegal Boy, to discover its high points on the road to success.

The influence of mbalakh and the use of the traditional tama, coupled with the influences of American rap, make Senegalese hip hop a one of a kind scene. Samba Peuzzi Tine still isn’t thirty, but he’s been reigning over the game in Senegal for half a dozen years. And beyond. His rap career began in the far-flung suburbs of Dakar, where the MC honed his tailor-made flow, sharpened his musical curiosity and perfected his lifestyle, armed with a keen sense of fashion.

Written by Manou Moussa Ndiaye, co-directed by Oumar Bayo Fallet and Khadim Ndiaye, Samba Peuzzi, Dakar Boy is the final episode in our Off the Map series. For this final chapter, PAM takes you to the heart of Dakar, between the legendary Colobane flea market and the dancefloors of Dakar’s clubs, where the rapper’s fan base continues to grow. “You know, we all have a certain image of Samba Peuzzi here in Senegal,” confides Khadim Ndiaye, co-director of the documentary. “Music videos artificially star rappers. That’s their role, and Samba plays it perfectly. But knowing his lyrics, we know he’s also something else. Because Samba’s hometown is often cited in his lyrics. Because despite his success, this artist remains very close to the inhabitants of his neighborhood. Bringing to light this attachment, this intimacy and this humanity were real driving forces during the shoot.”

Kourtrajmé Dakar provided the support for filming and writing. Founded three years ago by filmmakers Toumani Sangaré and Ladj Ly, among others, this film school trains around forty students each year. Open to all, and with no diploma requirements, this house of learning gives a chance to those who haven’t had access to higher education, to express their voice. The Kourtrajmé school network was born out of the Parisian collective of the same name, founded in the mid-nineties by Kim Chapiron, Romain Gavras and Toumani Sangaré.

It was within the school that the three authors of our documentary on Samba Peuzzi were trained: “Kourtrajmé has woven a network of free, committed and militant schools,” comments Emma Sangaré, co-director of Kourtrajmé Dakar. “Each school is rooted in its local area. Here in Dakar, beyond the acquisition of skills, our mission also consists in finding projects, structuring and supporting the professional integration activities of our students. We are committed to this diptych between training and access to the audiovisual production market. In this respect, the boys’ documentary, supported by both Pan African Music and Kourtrajmé, is an ideal collaboration. What’s more, our team and Samba Peuzzi are from the same generation, so this short film is a look at youth, a richness that you can feel in the rendering!“

“He’s authentic and real,” adds Oumar Bayo Fallet, the film’s other co-director, speaking about the protagonist. “People who know Samba really know how attached he is to his neighborhood, to his personal environment. And that was part of the original plot of the documentary, the scenario that Samba would take us to his favorite places in Dakar.“

In the documentary we get a tour of Colobane flea market, later transformed into a soccer pitch, a high point for socializing on Sundays in the neighborhood: “When we talk about Samba, we’re talking about fashion! Colobane is also the place where it all began for him, much more so than in the chic places of the capital,” comments Oumar Bayo Fallet. “Colobane is the place for connoisseurs, for those who want to dress differently,” explains Khadim Ndiaye. “For the soccer field, it was really Samba’s desire to be able to showcase this iconic location, which incidentally brought back childhood memories for the whole film crew.”

“He dresses in Colobane, his songs are direct parables to life in the working-class neighborhoods of Dakar where he still spends a lot of time… Samba Peuzzi is an artist who lets himself be influenced by his environment,” sums up Manou Moussa, who wrote the film. “Samba still spends a lot of time with the people he grew up with. It’s this intimate, natural thread that we’ve endeavored to draw throughout Samba Peuzzi, Dakar Boy.”

Between success and loyalty to his neighborhood, American rap, Mbalakh outbursts and samples of traditional instruments, Samba Peuzzi moves forward and unfolds his universe, in a singular fusion of genres and influences. And daring: “That’s what being an artist means to me,” explains Khadim, “it means maintaining and assuming your vision despite the critics, being faithful to your origins, while looking to the future.”