Chosan asks Kanye to "Tell me something" Sierra Leone's Chosan speaks from behind the scenes of his collaboration on the Diamonds from Sierra Leone video.
NY, NY, September 27, 2007 - It's been a few years since Kanye West's video Diamonds from Sierra Leone debuted on BET. 2 years to be exact.
And while the video was hailed as a pivotal moment in the African blood diamonds controversy, one artist's part in giving authenticity to the project has been snubbed.
Chosan, the Sierra Leonean hip-hop artist whose voice can be heard narrating the popular video in his native tongue, is expressing his concerns about Kanye West's motives in the only way he knows how; through a new song titled Kanye, tell me something produced by Lord Itill.
The days leading up to and after the making of the video for Kanye West's Diamonds from Sierra Leone are still fresh in the mind of Sierra Leone's Chosan.
One moment he was going through the daily hustle of New York City's hip-hop scene, and the next moment he was being called upon to rush to meet Kanye West at Sony studios in Manhattan. To lend his talents and authenticity to a recording session by the soon to be Grammy Award winning artist.
But while the prospect of contributing to a project which addressed the exploitation of his homeland and his people seemed like a good idea at first, Chosan was left feeling exploited himself.
Having given his time and talents to collaborate with another would-be socially conscious artist, Kanye West, to date Chosan, the only African to work on the video, has received absolutely no credit whatsoever from the video which has gone on to be seen by millions on television and online.
The irony of the song Diamonds from Sierra Leone and related video is that the only African who contributed to the project about the exploitation of African talent and resources, has himself been exploited.
Over the years Chosan has remained silent for fear of looking like an opportunist but he is now voicing his concerns in the song Kanye, tell me something.
The new song shows the perspective of an African artist who has spent years navigating the New York City music scene. Chosan's struggles from escaping death after being hit by a car early in his career to making a living in the foreign streets of Brooklyn, New York has given him a unique perspective on life.
From the release of his soulful debut CD The Beautiful Side of Misery, to his song Blood Diamond penned as part of the recent "Bling is Dead" campaign, Chosan's has always been focused on education.
As Chosan says in the song Kanye, tell me somethin, "This is not a beef thing".
For him it's about educating people when they go astray. Kanye, tell me somethin is produced by Lord Itill and is available as a free download.
For more information visit
www.SilverStreetz.com or www.Myspace.com/Chosan1