Equally committed to and competent in both fields, Sister Fa divides her time between political activism and fresh young hip-hop, Senegalese-style. She brings the ideal case: both sides coming together in the same breath, outspoken women’s lib and social engagement with a strong, irresistible beat.

There is a clear guiding theme looming over Sister Fa’s career – the fight for women’s matters in Africa, with a special emphasis on her strong personal activism against female genital cutting in particular. These are causes worth fighting many a fight for!

That doesn’t mean Fatou Mandiang Diatta, born 1982 in Dakar, doesn’t have enough artistic qualities to carry her music. On the contrary! She took her first steps in music back in 2000 by getting acquainted with the local rap scene and recording her first demo-tape. Nourished on the energy and creativity of West Africa’s hip-hop metropolis, she injected these into her music with inimitable artistic expression. Her urbane vitality has its roots in the Casamance in Senegal’s south. The rich musical and cultural traditions from her family’s native land have significantly influenced her artistic output, lending it a uniquely personal note.



In 2005 (the year of her debut release “Hip Hop yaw la Fal), Sister Fa’s efforts were rewarded with her first Senegalese Hip Hop Award. Since then, she has become a pillar of the Senegalese hip-hop scene, the best-known female rapper in the country and a strong role model for many young women – not least for addressing important social, political and personal subjects from child soldiers to Islam, AIDS to arranged marriage, culminating in her action against female genital mutilation.

After her move to Berlin in 2006, she organised the Education sans Mutilation tour to Senegal in January 2008, taking the anti-FGM message directly to the people for three weeks – the first example in an ongoing series of projects in that vein including record releases, concerts, speeches and interviews.

In November 2011, Sister Fa was awarded with the Freedom to Create award in Cape Town, South Africa. In March 2011, the movie of which she was subject, “Sarabah”, won the Documentary Award at the Movies That Matter Festival in Den Haag, Netherlands.



And the music plays on: backed by a versatile band of Berlin musicians, the young mother is developing rapidly, from her Senegalese roots into jazz, soul, reggae and more. May Sister Fa’s tireless non-musical activism leave time and energy for more thrilling records soon!