A stream of change: Dur-Dur, The band changing up the Somali music scene again

In 2008 in a council house in London, Dur Dur was reincarnated. In the home sit some of the biggest names in Somali music, a council of weathered experienced artists with an all encompassing knowledge of Somali art and culture. The goal is to create one of the first fully Somali bands since the civil war and bring back the dying culture of live music. 

But Dur-Dur has roots longer than that.  Sitting with Abdillahi Cujeeri, an original member of Dur-Dur and now bassist for its new iteration Dur-Dur International, and Liban Noah the manager of Dur-Dur International we talk about the two bands, their history and present and how they fit into Somali music. 

Some members of Dur-Dur in the 90s

In 1984 a new band hit the Somali music scene, with members coming from some of the most innovative and well known musical entities at the time  (such as Iftin, Waaberi and Soomaali Jazz). Musicians back then, Cujeeri says, were of  two types; there were the talented folks who taught themselves instruments and then there were the talented folks who had music teachers. At 12 years old Cujeeri was part of Ubaxa Kacaanka, a group of majority orphan kids under the care of the state, who sang songs in praise of the military government, and were paraded in festivals and came to greet foreign dignitaries when they arrived into the country. He was taught Music theory there.

Some members of Waaberi and Dur-Dur performing together

Abdillahi Cujeeri explains that Dur-Dur came into an already thriving and built up artistic scene, the process of 'modernising' traditional melodies had begun decades before but they planned on developing on top of that. In their repertoire were electrified mingis, kabeebay and dhaanto tunes. 

Dur-Dur differed from many of the bands in Muqdisho at the time as they was private. Bands like Heegan, Waaberi, Xusuus, Onkod etc. were affiliated with different ministries or workers unions and their troupe/band members derived their income from the government. In effect they were state employees. However Dur Dur was private. Not affiliated to any state agency, they did not need to sing songs that were political. 

Although they did not perform propaganda songs for the state. They still faced a major issue that all Somali artists had to deal with under the military regime. Censorship. Whenever Dur-Dur wished for their music to be played on the radio they would be interrogated on the meaning of the lyrics. Working for the government was a council of artists whose job it was to decide if songs had any elements that sounded like criticism, if so they would either have to change the lyrics or their music would not be played. 

Cujeeri, barring Ubaxa Kacaaka, did not perform with any public band or troupe this had the major benefit of giving him freedom to move from band to band without needing permission from the government as was expected from members of public troupes. This allowed him to gain more income and also not be tied to the whim of the state affiliated troupes.

Dur-Dur has had a long history, playing backing music in plays such as Mashaakilka Jaceylka, playing music at nightclubs, touring the country and releasing many albums. 

When the war happened some members of the band fled to Addis Ababa, recorded an album there and then split up taking refuge all across the world.

Dur-Dur International 

After the civil war in Somalia a major shift happened in the music. Due to the costs of keeping a band, the rise of electronic music and the rise in status of a singer as a singular artist, live music almost completely disappeared. Although there were musicians available Somali singers got into a habit of using pre-recorded electronic music. This helped them save money, in a time where artists were new to a country and had bigger worries than organising a band. Liban said that the music was "suffocating" the art of live music was dying completely.

Abdillahi Cujeeri

Dur-Dur international, the reincarnated Dur-Dur has its roots in 2003, a theatre being built in Hargeysa need funding and so Liban, the manager of Dur-Dur, organised a concert in Brixton Academy with live somali music.

Bringing together artists such as Luul Jeylaani, Cabdulqaadir Jubba and Feynuus Sh Daahir, all legends, 6000 to 7000 people came together for the performance and as such the target was raised . Although the land the theatre would have been built on ended up being sold to private developers, it showed Liban that there was a hunger and need for live Somali music. 

In 2004/5 through a friend on the Norwegian Refugee Council, Hargeisa who was a big fan of Somali music, Liban was introduced to festival organisers in Norway who wanted to  showcase Somali music, not wanting to bring the pre-recorded electronic music that the the encompassed the Somali music scene, he instead decided to bring together Faadumo Qaasim, Xudeydi, and brought Mohammed Karaama and Xasan Cajami and some other, non Somali, musicians to perform there. 

Liban said 'I couldn't bring them a CD to the festival and have one singer on stage with 300,000 attendees. This kind of  Karaoke is childish we need to move away from that’ 

It was after this successful performance that Liban had the idea for a full time, permanent Somali band based in London.

And so in the house of Qoomaal, a member of old Dur-Dur, amongst some of the biggest names in Somali music, Dur-Dur International was born.

In 2012. They had their first show but due to a myriad of difficulties, including the cost of keeping a band, finding a market  for a type of music that has been overtaken by what Liibaan calls, karaoke "playback" style, finding many shows was difficult. It’s only in the past few years, with the surge of interest in Somali music, that they have been able to properly tour.

With the release of Analog Africa's reissue of Dur Dur band (the contract partially negotiated by Liibaan) came a larger interest of Somali music by a non Somali audience, with it Dur-Dur began to rise, their interviews with BBC put them on the radar of many music promoters. This led them to performing at the presitigous HKW in Berlin. Liibaan and Cujeeri told us of how it reminded them of Golaha Murtida iyo Maddadaalada in Muqdisho, the national theatre, the day making all the musicians and singers very emotional .

Liban Noah and Abdillahi Cujeeri

Dur-Dur before, Cujeeri says, were a group of youth fighting their corner trying to reach success. Now it’s seasoned musicians, reliving their glory days and trying to usher in a new period of Somali Music in the diaspora.

Written by Ibrahim

Interview conducted in the presence of Idel