[FEATURE] VIPER PRESENTS: EMMANUEL JAL

Today VIPER have the honor of diving into the musical journey of Emmanuel Jal, a remarkable artist whose powerful voice and inspiring story have transcended borders and genres. Get familiar…

What five words define your sound?

Afrodance, Afrohouse, Afropop, Afrobeat, Afrotech.

Tell me something unique about your creative process

I can create instantly at any moment but the best ones are the ones that wake you at night. If I’m in a deep sleep and then it comes in the form of a dream – you need to wake up and catch it. 

Which song of yours would you like people to hear first?

‘Choose Love’.

What inspired you to make that song?

I come from a country where violence where is the front line, but I’ve never seen where Love is being given centre stage. To hear that there is an organisation called “Choose Love” really resonates with my activism and what I want to put out into the world and see from others.

What’s the most vulnerable you’ve allowed yourself to be when writing/making music?

It’s digging into my real experiences – it cuts you deep. I was a child soldier and refugee, I’ve lost many family members and seen horrible things – so to put these words into my music and perform it live, it makes me vulnerable. 

What’s the best/worst experience you’ve had on stage?

My best experience that gave me international acclaim was Live 8 introduced to the world by Peter Gabriel. It was a turning point and then after that him introducing me on stage at Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday in Hyde Park. My worst experience probably is to do with sound and sound engineers being stubborn and messing up your sound so a headliner gets the better sound. 

What is your favourite song to perform?

That’s a challenge. Shake your belly I released recently with Enzo Sifferedi, It’s a funny weird song where you get to shake your belly, head and knees. It makes me laugh and people love it too. I’ve done many funny things with it on TikTok and people love it in the clubs where we all do it together. 

Which artist/song/album made you want to make music?

It might be unfortunate to say now [laughs] but P.Diddy. But at that time he did a song about Jesus and it inspired me. Lost Boys the rappers from the US, they made me want to rap. I love the Lingala Congolese music, I can’t do it myself so I have to make something that works with my moves and beat hahaha.

What’s the meaning behind your name?

My South Sudanese name is Jal – adventurer, traveller, visitor. 

If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing instead?

Electronic engineering, I loved studying it and I still cut up and put wires together. It worries people.

What’s success to you?

As long as you have peace of mind. Being able to find your purpose and walk in it. How you can know you’re a success is the peace in mind and the joy in your heart. That’s what you have to live with every day. Without it you can live in terror. 

What moment in your life/career forced you to change direction?

Many. Wow. Many. I have had to adapt to everything in my life like water. Like a survivor. Reimagining myself out of my suffering as a child. My Music has evolved and taken many different shapes. Now it’s helped to define Afrohouse and it’s become a huge movement. My South Sudanese sound, the rapping, the chorus and response is a hit in the clubs. So now I also DJ and do Live performance. I’m. up every night in nightclubs – I never imagined this when I was fighting a war and living in poverty as a child.  

Where can people keep in touch with you?

Social media @EmmanuelJal on everything and my website: www.emmanueljal.com