News and Events

College Students Act To Help Victims of Genocide: The Afrobeat Sudan Aid Project

On Tuesday, November 23, ASAP: the Afrobeat Sudan Aid Project was released on the Apple iTunes Music Store for retail sale, the first charity project hosted by iTunes. All proceeds from the sales of the album are to go towards the relief of the victims of ethnic violence in the Darfur region of Sudan. Produced by independent student-startup MODIBA Productions (www.modiba.net <http://www.modiba.net/> ), ASAP is an all-star compilation of some the hottest overground and underground Afrobeat artists today, including Tony Allen (ft. Fela Kuti), Antibalas, Dele Sosimi, Keziah Jones, and many others. In addition to its primary mission of fundraising, MODIBA hopes that this project will raise awareness about the dire situation in Darfur: by some estimates, over 250,000 people have died due to dehydration, disease, and at the hands of the Janjaweed – armed horsemen supported by the government of Sudan.

To accomplish this task, MODIBA has teamed up with TrueMajority, a grassroots education and advocacy group founded by Ben Cohen of Ben and Jerry's that is committed to social and political justice. TrueMajority (www.truemajority.org <http://www.truemajority.org/> ) has already done extensive work in Darfur, sending camera crews and attempting to bring witnesses into the United States (the US State Department refused entry). Apple Computer has also provided key support, prominently featuring the album and allowing 100% of the sales from ASAP on the iTunes Music Store (www.apple.com/itunes <http://www.apple.com/itunes> ) to go towards relief for the victims of the genocide. You can also purchase a hard copy of the album featuring the cutting-edge digital graphics magic of Adam Tuck on TrueMajority’s website starting in early December – just in time for the holiday season. Also, be sure to check out a promotional video for the album on TrueMajority’s website, a montage of images from refugee camps, interviews, and music put together by independent film maker Joe M. F. Wilson and starring some of artists on the compilation.