Renowned Tuareg guitarist Mdou Moctar has launched a GoFundMe to help him and his band stay in the United States following a coup d’état in their home country of Niger during which the government was overthrown by military officers.
“At present, the band is stuck in the United States indefinitely,” one of the band’s managers, Dan Oestreich, wrote on the page of the GoFundMe campaign. “The costs associated with finding emergency housing and living expenses for the band while they are stuck here in the U.S. are considerable as well as undefined, as there is no timeframe for when peace may return to the region. As the band’s touring activity regularly supports their families at home in Niger, this extended stay in the U.S. will, unfortunately, divert that income away from their dependents.”
Moctar, whose full name is Mahamadou Souleymane, broke in the U.S. with the release of 2021’s Afrique Victime, which combined his West African tishoumaren (“desert blues”) roots with psychedelic rock. He has been touring the U.S. along with Nigerian bandmates Ahmoudou Madassane and Souleymane Ibrahim.
Moctar told Rolling Stone in 2021 that the group is part of “a tradition of revolutionary music in the Tuareg people: It’s always been a way to encourage our warriors, and a way to educate younger people about what it’s like to fight for your rights,” he said. “And then, of course, it’s been a way to bring pleasure and happiness amongst all Tuareg people, including women and children.”
The GoFundMe exceeded its initial $50,000 goal in less than 8 hours, raising $52,530 at the time of publication, with all of the proceeds going toward “housing, food, healthcare, travel, and any other necessities.”
“We are so appreciative of our fans and community and their unending support and are so appreciative of whatever you are able to do to help us in this unprecedented and scary time,” the band wrote in a statement posted to Instagram.
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