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» www.cnn.com

If you're a soccer fan and you haven't heard the music of K'Naan, chances are about 100 percentthat you will soon. A rising star who was born in war-ravaged Somalia beforeemigrating to Toronto as a teenager, K'Naan is the man behind "Wavin'Flag," the enormously catchy songthat will be heard in World Cup stadiums and in TV ads as Coke's official 2010World Cup anthem.

I sat down with him during a stop in Baltimore on his recent tour. We talkedabout a number of topics, including the global power of soccer, Africa'smoment, Fela Kuti, hisparticipation in the World Cup trophy tour and his first trip back to Somaliain 18 years. Here is our conversation (edited for length and clarity): 

SI.com: The World Cup isbeing hosted by South Africa, but in many ways it's viewed as a big moment forthe entire continent. What do you want people to learn about Africa as a resultof this World Cup? 

K'Naan: In the western worldwe have always only known Africa in one way, and it hasn't been positive. So Ithink it's going to be beneficial for the world to finally get to experienceAfrica as a backdrop to a positive world event. That does the world a goodservice, to finally see something about this continent that we have long known. 

SI.com: You grew up inSomalia during an extremely turbulent time. Was it possible for you to have funwatching a World Cup on TV in, say, 1990? 

K'Naan: No. At that time alot of our focus was just on survival -- and the worry and tension wouldn'tallow for us to be a part of world events at the time. But obviously soccerhappens like life does. And so in the streets we'd play whenever we could,contradicting the violence whenever we could. That was a form of our own kindof freedom. We'd play whenever we got a little moment of silence from the guns.Somalia at that time in 1990 and '91 got way too unstable to focus on theoutside world at all. It was all internal, all about: How do we live?

SI.com: When you did play agame of soccer, how did you do it? Did you have a ball made out of something? 

K'Naan: In our neighborhood,certain people would have soccer balls. Some of us would stuff things in a sockand make a soccer ball out of that. I remember once we found a really shinyball, like a professional soccer ball, and that was a big deal on my corner. Wecame back and played. Me and my brother got in a fight over it. It was a bigevent, finding a soccer ball. 

SI.com: One thing I loveabout soccer, because it's so global and universal, is that it tends to pop upeven in some places where things are really hard. Yet the sport somehowsurvives. 

K'Naan: It has a prettystrong unifying element to it. It's very communal, soccer. And it's also verygritty, whereas in other sports you have to be clean and look the part. Socceris about feet on the ground and mud and touch. 

SI.com: Did you have afavorite soccer team growing up? 

K'Naan: No, I wasn't veryloyal to anybody. For me it was more about stars, about the one player thateverybody was talking about, like Maradona.I also was attracted to teams that had a percussive element to their moves. Itwas kind of like they were dancers, more stylish, more musical. So the LatinAmerican teams often are very musical with their movements. The English teammight kick really hard, but the Argentines and the Brazilians would just styleit out. That was what I watched for. 

SI.com: Wavin' Flag isgoing to get a lot of exposure this year as the [unofficial] anthem of theWorld Cup. What sort of message do you want it to send when millions of peoplearound the world are hearing it? 

K'Naan: This song isn't atraditional pop song. Often songs that get that kind of a shot in the world aresongs about nothing. This is a song about something. It's reaching the worldand has something to leave. It's a message of hope and freedom and overcomingobstacles. We all go through these things. It's the moment when you emerge fromdarkness and the light appears. I hope it gives that feeling to people. 

SI.com: You performed in 13African cities as part of the World Cup trophy tour through Africa. Did youhave a favorite moment during that process? 

K'Naan: In Uganda, when wegot on stage there were 10,000 people there singing Wavin' Flag. I'veseen that happen in Mexico now and in different places where a large crowdknows the song. But in Uganda, all you saw was from the beginning to the endAfrican faces chanting along. That has a particular reward to it. 

SI.com: The World Cup trophytour was scheduled to take the trophy to every country in Africa, and I noticedthat included Somalia. I'll be honest: I wondered how that was going to workout.

K'Naan: It didn't. It's theonly country that it didn't get to go to. It was sad. I was the one marchingthat one. I really tried. You could make a documentary on the days leading upto that and how much I did. I was on the phone with the Somali government inMogadishu and with the president on the north side of the country. I wastalking to the FBI security people, Coke, FIFA, and stressing staying up nightafter night trying to make this work. Eventually I got the e-mail: It's notgonna happen. It was so sad that I almost stopped going on the rest of thetour. But I tried to look up. I went to Somalia on my own after that inDecember.

SI.com: I've always beeninterested in Somalia. How hard is it to even get in there if you want to go?

K'Naan: It's not reallydifficult because Somalis are incredibly resourceful and innovative. You haveflights that go from Dubai to Djibouti and Djibouti into Hergeysa. Hergeysaflies into Mogadishu. There are these Somali-run and Somali-owned planes thatmake those trips. It's just not safe to go at all. No one can really safely besecured in Somalia. Everybody is armed.

SI.com: So you were back inDecember? 

K'Naan: For three weeks. 

SI.com: What was your senseof things back there?

K'Naan: I got to go to thepeaceful side of it. 

SI.com: The north?

K'Naan: Yeah. Landing inMogadishu alone is dangerous. Even the guys that are flying the plane, theytold me because I was interested in going to Mogadishu. They said for normalpeople it's crazy; for you it's impossible. They just land, off-load and fly.They can't even stay there. But Hergeysa is pretty amazing in Somaliland. Reallypeaceful. You could go there and enjoy it. I've seen Irish people there hangingout. But the Irish are crazy (laughs).

I know this sounds insane, but it was like a return home. People were linedup by the sides of the streets. I didn't expect it. I went to try and be asprivate as possible, so my trip was secret. Only my family knew. I landed andsomeone snapped a photo at the airport and it got published in the three majornewspapers the next day. And everybody knew I was there. I would be with some securityand walking the street and there would be people lining up to shake my hand andsay thank you for what you do. It was powerful.

SI.com: How many otherglobally famous people are there from Somalia?

K'Naan: Not many. There's Iman, the famous model. That'sbasically it. There's an important writer named Nuruddin Farah. Iman is famous as a model, but my fame in Somaliais different. I got fame by being Somali, by writing from the Somali experienceand being an artist who embraces that and all its complications. That to themis more real than any other kind of thing. I faced it head-on and was them.

SI.com: Had you been back toSomalia since you left the country?

K'Naan: No. That was my firsttime in 18 years. There was family, friends, people I grew up with. Everybodycame. It was amazing.

SI.com: I find it interestingthat an African musical giant like FelaKuti has gotten more mainstream popularity in America this year as theresult of the musical Fela in New York City.

K'Naan: It's awesome. You'vegotta see it.

SI.com: I saw it last month.

K'Naan: I want to see itagain. I was at the opening. It's so great.

SI.com: What do you think ofFela going more mainstream in America?

K'Naan: I think it's good forAmerica anytime people get to discuss something outside of their culture orwhat they're used to, and discover brilliance and genius. It's like mediscovering [Bob] Dylan. You know that's going to begood for me. Discovering Fela for you is like me discovering Dylan.

SI.com: We're here in Baltimore,which is known as one of the toughest cities in America. But from listening tosome of your music, including tracks like TIA (This is Africa), you'dlike to take some of the tough-acting rappers from America to see how they'dfare in Mogadishu. How would you compare and contrast Mogadishu to, say, WestBaltimore? 

K'Naan: I lived in D.C. inthe mid- to late-90s when it was tough in Anacostia, in the Southeast. The twoyears that I spent there in low-income housing and all the murders that arehappening and the friends that I had, I got to experience America in that way.The thing is, struggle is struggle, and hard circumstances are hardcircumstances everywhere. But there're just degrees of difficulty, oftoughness, of hurt that cannot possibly exist in America. It's unfathomable toimagine Mogadishu in America. You just cannot. You can have all the WestBaltimores in the world, but it can never amount to what one street inMogadishu is.

It's everybody with a gun. It's five-year-old boys standing in front of yourcar with an AK47 pointed at you. It's a woman carrying a child and over backhangs a machine gun. That's a different kind of life. And we're used to that.We live in that, where we walk out of a home and the house next to us explodesand we move with no reaction to that. When you get to that point ofdesensitized violence, the American culture of violence becomes a little morecomfortable for you. 

SI.com: So you're probablyone of the few people who would go and live where you did in D.C. and say ...

K'Naan: ... that you're stillin a safe zone. Me and my brother came from Mogadishu and we first flew intoNew York. Harlem was our first home. This was '91-92. That time was toughthere. One night we're having some food, and my uncle's sitting with us there,and me and my brother are not yet talking about Somalia. We haven't beeninterviewed yet by my uncle and my father. They're waiting to give us someroom. And a gunshot comes from the window very near where we were sitting. Meand my brother were having pasta, and there was no change for us. My uncleducks and says, 'See! I told you! Be careful here!' And my brother says, 'Iheard that. That's a 9 mm. That's called popcorn in Mogadishu. We don'tconsider that to be a real gun.'

 SI.com: South Africa isspending more than $6 billion on the World Cup for stadiums, airports, roadsand other projects. It's going to be a great event. There's still a tremendousamount of poverty in South Africa, whether it's in townships like Soweto andKhayelitsha or other places. Are you comfortable with that much South Africanmoney going toward a sporting event?

K'Naan: The interesting thingis, it's not really going to a sporting event. It's going into the country'sconstruction. My philosophy is it is always better to light a candle than tocurse the dark. For me, if it wasn't for this world event South Africa wouldnot spend that money on the country. And they would not spend it on Soweto orthe townships at all. There would be zero money spent on anything. Right nowthere is $6 billion being spent on the country. I love that. It's by no means asolution or a great change for what the people need. But I think it's betterthan yesterday, and we always need to do one step better than yesterday.

There are also things that are happening. There are foreigners who arecoming from all over the world who are interested in seeing what townships are.At first I didn't know how I felt about this, because now they're organizingbus tours to visit these places, and people are inviting foreigners into theirhomes. But now I see that as a positive. It's showing the world what is up withthis place, but it's also showing the world to persevere beyond all of this.It's teaching the world something. It's positive on so many levels: someeconomic empowerment for the people who live there, but also emotionalempowerment for the people who don't.

SI.com: Are you planning tobe at the World Cup?

K'Naan: I will be. I'll beplaying concerts. There's a big opening concert. And I have tickets to thefinal. I have a house I'll be in the whole time there. They're taking care ofme.

» sportsillustrated.cnn.com

A perfect storm of epic musical proportions is speeding towards Williamsburg, combining two of the rising stars in hip-hop, 2,000 screaming fans and the College of William and Mary. The Wale and K’naan concert will take place tonight at the Lake Matoaka Amphitheater. AMP will bring these hip-hop stars to the College as part of this year’s spring concert, and the campus is buzzing with excitement.

Wale and K’naan are two of the brightest up-and-comers in hip-hop. Wale recently released his first studio album, “Attention Deficit,” and was the Master of Ceremonies for MTV’s 2009 Video Music Awards. K’naan’s most recent album, “Troubadour,” was hailed by Billboard as “socially alert and frequently brilliant.” His single “Wavin’ Flag” was selected by Coca-Cola to be the official anthem of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Booking not just one of these big names, but two, marks a huge success for AMP.

“It reflects a lot of hard work from members of our Music Committee and we’re all extremely excited that we are able to bring such great music artists down to William and Mary,” AMP Director of Public Relations David Cooper ’10 said.

However, Cooper said that this spring concert does present a few unique challenges.

“One of our biggest concerns has been making sure everyone is aware of the concert’s start time, which is earlier than other concerts we’ve done in the past,” he said.

The concert will begin at 6 p.m., so AMP is working on a promotional item to be handed out to the first 500 attendees to encourage timely attendance.

Response from the campus community has been full of excitement and eager anticipation.

“It really shows to me that this isn’t some small ‘hole in the wall’ kind of school,” Caitlyn Darnell ’13 said. “We are big enough and important enough to attract such big names, and that we have an amazing AMP team who can pull it together. It’s really awesome that something this cool is being brought to Williamsburg.”

Lamar Shambley ’10, who co-founded the Student Hip-Hop Organization in 2007, said he is glad to see these artists coming to campus.

“It’s great to see hip-hop being headlined at the spring show,” he said. “I think that AMP has been doing an amazing job with bringing in diverse and quality artists to the College.”

Having such enthusiastic support from the campus community is what makes it all worthwhile for AMP’s members.

“The overwhelming positive response we’ve received has been great. Its made us feel wonderful,” Cooper said in an e-mail.

This is not the first time that the Matoaka Amphitheater has hosted a hip-hop concert. In April 2008, AMP brought the Ying Yang Twins to the lake, and in October 2008 The Cool Kids took the stage. While it may not be the first hip-hop concert here, it may promise to be the best. Shambley, who has been responsible for bringing many developing hip-hop acts to the College through SHHO, knows what makes a good college concert.

“I like to see artists who acknowledge the audience and know the crowd they’re performing for,” Shambley said. “Maybe if they knew a bit about our school. If anything, it’ll make the crowd more receptive.”

That is entirely possible for Wale, who grew up in Washington, D.C. and currently lives in Largo, Md. For him, Virginia is familiar territory.

“This is a homecoming for me,” he said at a recent concert in Richmond, Va. last April.

K’naan, who grew up in Mogadishu, Somalia, brings something completely different to the table. While many rappers brag about their rough upbringings, K’naan’s youth was spent ducking Somali pirates and rebel militias. His songs reflect these experiences, combining energy and intensity with impressive lyrical depth.

Though these two artists have come to us from continents apart, they’ll come together Friday night at Matoka for the highly anticipated concert at the College.

» flathatnews.com

Gangsta rappers have been known to boast about how mean their hometown streets are, but none of them comes from a more violent ‘hood than K'naan. Born Keinan Abdi Warsame in 1978, K’naan grew up in Mogadishu, Somalia, amid one the most brutal civil wars in history.

When he was 13, K’naan and his family fled Somalia and took refuge in New York and finally Toronto, where they still live. Coming from a family of performers and poets, K’naan naturally gravitated toward the arts to make sense of his new home and to process the trauma that nearly overwhelmed him in Africa (three of his friends were killed in the conflict). A poet, spoken-word artist and rapper, he has spoken out about his home country’s plight at the United Nations and recorded two albums, the latest of which is “Troubadour” (A&M), released last year. The album blurs the boundaries between spoken word and hip-hop, and incorporates everything from heavy metal to reggae.

In excerpts from an email interview with the Tribune, K’naan described his personal and musical journey:

Q: What were your memories of growing up in Mogadishu? What about the music there? Did it have an impact on you as a child?

A: I grew up in the Mogadishu of dreams. During an idyllic and optimistic time, and music [was] almost its Siamese soundtrack.  I remember realizing very early how music could so seamlessly go from being fun in one moment, to deadly serious in the other.  A song would play in the record player at home, and you could sing along loudly and then another would come, and mom would turn it down swiftly, as the song might be considered what they called "anti" -- usually music with subliminal poetic messages against the government. 

Q: You have described yourself as a “poet by nature.” When did you first start writing poems and what were they about?

A: I recited my first poem when I was 7, my grandfather asked me to recite something for him, and apparently, the poem I wrote kind of stunned everyone. It was a very adult-like piece detailing the absence of my father and the effect it was beginning to have on me.

Q: You’ve talked about Bob Marley, Tracy Chapman and Nina Simone as formative artists for you. How old where you when you discovered each of them? And what was it about their music that spoke to you?

A: Tracy Chapman's “Fast Car” found its way to every home in the globe at some point, I think. I loved her melancholy moods. Bob Marley was a great contributor to the household as well, it was my older [sibling] who first loved him most. Nina Simone I discovered later, and Bob Dylan also. I think all of them have changed me in some way.  There's no scientifically viable evidence for this, but I think they've made me more ambitious about humanity.   

Q: You left Mogadishu in 1991 – what do you remember about that time? Did you feel you and your family’s lives were in danger?

A: There was a war, the danger was so generously spread out, I remember avoiding thoughts of a future.  Too many people were dying for me to have some lofty dreams about a future.  

Q: How difficult was it to adapt to New York and then Toronto?

A: It wasn't easy.  But even in the confusion and the algebra of our new life in North America, it was colored with gratitude.  I think sincere gratitude for life made the weather and language barriers tolerable.

Q: You have talked about post-traumatic stress of living in Somalia. The sense I get is that music helped you deal with it – how so?

A: I think music is just a very good magic trick for self-betterment.  It doesn't solve everything, but it helps over time. It's like seeing a therapist that you don't have to pay. In my case, I just took painful facts and made them melodic and rhythmic, so we could sing about ‘em and dance about ‘em. 

Q: What was it about hip-hop and Nas’ 1994 album “Illmatic” in particular that spoke to you? Had you heard much hip-hop in Somalia?

A: I heard Eric B & Rakim's “Paid in Full” while still in Somalia.  But it wasn't till Nas' “Illmatic” that I wanted to make records.  I just saw what he was doing as the poetry of the underprivileged and it inspired me. Between that, and my sincere dislike for misunderstandings, I wanted to write songs to explain a few things.

Q: Is it true that you learned English by rapping along to hip-hop records?

A: Yes, don't be alarmed. Rap was my first English teacher. But my second and best teacher was literature. 

Q: Were you performing much in the days leading up to your appearance at the United Nations High Commission for Refugees in 1999?

A: Yes, I was doing small performances in the DC, NY and Toronto areas, mostly in the underground hip hop scene and in the Somali community in the diaspora.

Q: What was the reaction to your spoken-word piece criticizing the UN for its failed aid missions to Somalia?

A: What seemed like a century of silence stemming from discomfort, and then a powerful standing ovation led by [Senegalese singer] Youssou N'Dour

Q: What did you learn touring with Youssou N'Dour afterward?

A: I learned a lot from Youssou, he was like an older brother to me. But mostly, his grace was infectious. He gave me encouragement when no one else knew my name. Similar was Wyclef [Jean].

Q: When did you make the transition into recording music?

A: I was traveling around Europe with a Somali band called Sheego. And they had an American drummer from DC, who happened to be an incredible producer named Art Powell. So we created stuff on the road together. 

Q: You have been loosely defined as a hip-hop artist, but there is more to your music than that. Were you concerned about how you might fit in as a musical artist?

A: Yes, I was concerned.  I wasn't sure that my music would be understood, let alone appreciated.  And it's not in me to follow popular trends, so the only choice was create what I create, and just hope it's OK with everyone else too. 

Q: When you went to record “Troubadour,” did you approach the album differently than you did [his 2005 debut] “The Dusty Foot Philosopher.”

A; I don't remember approaching any of my albums. I always just find myself cornered and held up by them.  I think it's natural to have all the plans in the world about what you will and will not do, but then you go in to the studio and the songs happen to you, and you quickly realize that everything you thought was nonsense.

Q: “Troubadour” includes many guest collaborations with artists such as Metallica’s Kirk Hammett, Chubb Rock, Chali 2na, Mos Def, Damian Marley and Maroon 5’s Adam Levine. Were these artists friends of yours? How did you decide to include them in the project and why?

A: Yes, the guests are friends of mine.  As the songs developed we asked people to see what they could contribute to the process, and in a lot of ways people asked to be involved. It was a communal effort to make “Troubadour” what it is.

Q: You take hip-hop to task on songs like “T.I.A.” Considering the big role hip-hop played in your life, are you disappointed in how it has evolved?

A: I don't know, I think sometimes it's all just growing pains. I think maybe it's evolving with society and it's maybe speaking to what people want to hear these days, which is nothing. I think my frustration mostly comes from those who aren't very good wordsmiths, filling all the space on the radio with terribly constructed sentences. 

K’naan: 7:30 p.m. Sunday at Metro, 3730 N. Clark St., $20 (advance) and $22; etix.com.

» leisureblogs.chicagotribune.com

Globe-trotting hip-hop artist K'Naan will perform a concert Friday, April 9, at the College of William and Mary's Lake Matoaka amphitheater.

While not a household name in America, K'Naan is respected in rap circles and admired by music critics.

"Rapping like he was Q-Tip, singing like he was Bob Marley, and ambitiously taking on the global sound like he was Wyclef Jean, K'Naan is not only a ridiculously talented man but one who comes with a story of survival so big it can't help but top most other tales of inner city pressure," wrote David Jeffries in a profile on allmusic.com.

Born in Somalia and raised in Toronto, K’naan has played concerts and festivals across five continents, with artists such as Jason Mraz, Stephen Marley, Lenny Kravitz, Mos Def, Damian Marley, Youssou N’Dour, Amadou and Miriam and many more.

This spring, K’Naan’s song “Wavin’ Flag” is being used as the soundtrack for Coca-Cola’s promotional coverage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Here are the show details. Go here to see more.

K'NAAN

Friday, April 09, 2010 at 6:30 PM

Lake Matoaka

General Admission $15.00

» weblogs.dailypress.com

K'Naan didn't share a hometown advantage with his fellow performers Sunday night at 9:30 club but still delivered a pleasing set. (All photos by Kyle Gustafson/FTWP)

Sometimes where you're from and where you're at are of equal importance - as was the case at the 9:30 club on Sunday night, where D.C.-area natives Wale and Tabi Bonney felt the full effect of hometown advantage.

The MCs, currently on a nine-city tour, seemed excited to perform for a sold-out DMV audience. Bonney, who previewed material from his upcoming "Fresh," said being on home turf allowed him to use his own DJ and dancers; Wale, who is promoting his major label debut, "Attention Deficit," talked smack about the Redskins; both mentioned that their parents were in attendance. And, it was nice, if not surprising, to find that Wale's "Nike Boots" and "Pretty Girls" and Bonney's "The Pocket" and "Syce It" still thrill a local crowd.

(Life stories from K'naan and John Forte, plus more pictures after the jump.)

The D.C. rap heroes served as goodwill ambassadors of sorts for the other acts on the bill, priming folks to receive Somali/Canadian rapper K'naan - Wale's co-headliner - and Fugees collaborator John Forté, who gave an interesting set, if more for the biographical information he shared than his mix of singing, rhyming and acoustic guitar playing.

In between "Nervous" and "Breaking of A Man," from last year's "StyleFree the EP," Forté, who was sentenced to 14 years in prison in 2001 for a cocaine offense, explained why he's not a member of the hip-hop club fond of bashing the 43rd president.

"I was away for a little while, I was in federal prison . . . in November 2008, former President George W. Bush commuted my sentence, so I'm home seven years early, and I have the opportunity to do what I love - responsibly this time."

He paid tribute to the men he met while incarcerated with the somber track "Running Up That Hill," then promised that the rest of the night would be less serious. "You're like, 'I came out to have a good time, shake my [butt] and John Forté is talking about prison . . . I'm on spring break!'

K'naan's set was just as political and intense, although he was more adept at making people move and inspiring them to think at the same time. With help from a live band, he mixed hip-hop, Afro-beat, soul, and funk, ripping through tracks from 2009's "Troubadour" and his 2006 debut "The Dusty Foot Philosopher" - including the edutainment focused "ABCs," geo-political master class "T.I.A" (This is Africa), and the brave-front battle tune "Smile."

The centerpiece of his set was an extended version of "Wavin' Flag," where K'naan gave an a capella version of his life story - fleeing civil unrest in Somalia, learning English, falling in love with hip-hop - while the crowd sang the song's chorus, making him feel right at home.

» blog.washingtonpost.com

When the globally attuned Somalian rapper/singer known as K'Naan poses the question "What Is Hardcore?" - challenging gangsta poses and talking about his own experience on the mean streets - he's not just blowing smoke.

When he was still in knee pants, K'Naan knew how to operate an AK-47 assault rifle and throw a hand grenade, " 'cause that's what you do where I grew up, in a country that's suffered from civil war for almost 20 years, and still lacks central leadership. Protecting yourself is an everyday fact of life."

And that's why even tough guys like T.I. (recently sprung from prison) don't take offense at K'Naan's challenges. "They tell me they respect me," shared the talent, who arrives here tomorrow, along with his band, for a show at the Trocadero that also spotlights the talents of rap buddy Wale.

At another extreme, when K'Naan delivers his reggae-flavored shout-out "Wavin' Flag," a lulling, lovely anthem of liberation, patriotism and peace, the artist is hailed as a mellow messiah and global icon in the great tradition of Bob Marley.

Recently, at the tail end of the Winter Olympics, the likes of Nelly Furtado, Avril Lavigne, Justin Bieber and Drake massed in Vancouver, Canada, to cut an all-star version of "Wavin' Flag" as Young Artists for Haiti, a Canadian contribution to the island relief effort. Since K'Naan now lives in Toronto, they embrace him as one of their own. The performance debuted late March at No. 1 on the Canadian singles chart.

Oh, and Coca-Cola has started to use yet another version of that same anthem - originally found on K'Naan's much-admired 2009 sophomore album "Troubadour" - to teach the world to sing, again.

"Wavin' Flag" has been embraced for an international ad campaign, as the soda maker's celebratory jingle for the FIFA World Cup soccer tournament commencing June 11 in Johannesburg, South Africa. A pretty big deal.

"It's amazing what that one song has already done for me," said K'Naan, checking in by phone from Slovenia, "a tiny, tiny country in central Europe. That's why I'm here. Because they love the World Cup and what it means. And what a great opportunity this is to unveil the rest of my songs."

'Obsessed with eloquence'

Born just shy of 32 years ago in Mogadishu, Somalia's seaport capitol (and infamous pirate hangout), Keinan Abdi Warsame was raised to be an artist, not a fighter. His aunt, Magool, was one of Somalia's most famous singers and his grandfather Haji Mohamed, a poet.

"Somalia is a country obsessed with eloquence," K'Naan told me. "It's known as the nation of poets. In the Somalian cafes, you'll hear major exchanges of Shakespearean-quality poetry. The point of language is not just to communicate. You wear it, employ it as something that represents you. Words are life and death."

His rhymed word play in English is masterful, though K'Naan (it means "traveler") said he "only started speaking it at age 15." That was a year or two after he, two siblings and their mom hopped on "literally the last plane out of Somalia before the airport shut down," and took flight to the United States.

This saved him from certain conscription into one warring tribal faction or another. (Even today, 16 years later, he refuses to publicly identify with one tribe for fear of retribution against family members, especially from Al-Shabab, the most reactionary, music-condemning religious faction.)

K'Naan stayed briefly with relatives in Harlem, N.Y., then moved to a neighborhood in Toronto with a large Somali population.

"I learned English by listening to records - my influences are everyone from Nas and Rakim to Bob Dylan to Fela [the late, great Nigerian funk/jazz/protest superstar]. I attacked the pursuit of English with the same kind of fervor I use in my raps and songs."

His first big break came with an appearance before the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in 1999, where K'Naan delivered a spoken piece criticizing the U.N. for its failed aid missions to Somalia. The Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour was in the house and was so impressed by K'Naan's eloquence and courage that he invited the young man to contribute to his 2001 album "Building Bridges" and join a world tour.

From that sprang the chance to make his debut album, "The Dusty Foot Philosopher," which won a 2006 Juno Award (Canada's equivalent to the Grammy) as best rap recording. The album also scored in Britain with a BBC Radio 3 Award, hailing this genre-straddler as best newcomer in world music.

K'Naan has gotten an even bigger push since signing with A&M/Octave Records and releasing "Troubadour," which made many a "Best of 2009" list.

"In K'Naan, we see a hybrid of musical styles," said James Diener, CEO and president of Octane. "There's an African hip-hop component, but what distinguished him were the elements of reggae and world music, and most interestingly, his sense of melody and his pop aesthetic. The album has incredibly commercial appeal."

That's really Keane

A concert recording of his early material, "The Dusty Foot on the Road," also released last year, found K'Naan working with a stripped-down trio, heavy on the African hand percussion and rapping more than singing. Nowadays, K'Naan tours with a larger, more traditional rock-style group and dramatic lighting rig.

Also seeming to point in a certain direction - his next big exposure will be word slinging and singing on an album by British melancholy popsters Keane called "Night Train." (Philly folks will especially connect with the "Rocky" references on the song "Looking Back.")

Still, K'Naan won't be pinned down to any singular course his show and work might be following. He clearly enjoys carrying different passports, touching a diverse audience.

"I have a bunch of incredibly talented musicians. Sometimes we break down in the middle of a power show and go into an acoustic melodic show, then bring it back up. It's a journey of emotions. We're just trying to keep it honest." *

K'Naan, with Wale, guests John Forte and Tabi Bonney, Trocadero, 10th and Arch streets, 7:30 p.m. tomorrow, $23.50/$25, 215-922-6888, www.thetroc.com.

» www.philly.com

By: Jim DeRogatis

Though it's an undeniably narrow and one-sided portrait, the enduring image that many Americans have of Mogadishu, the capital of the war-torn African nation of Somalia, comes from the book and movie "Black Hawk Down." And that's if they have any conception of the place at all.

Rapper, singer and songwriter K'naan doesn't disavow Western notions of the city where he was born as one of the most dangerous places on earth. In "ABC's," the second track from his second album, "Troubadour," he movingly portrays a world where kids learn the mechanics of handling a gun before they're taught the alphabet: "I'm from the most risky zone/No place is more shifty global/More pistols, Russian revolvers/We shootin' all that is normal," he raps.

The music of Somalia native K'naan, who will perform at Metro on Sunday night, combines hard-hitting word play with memorable rhythms and melodies.

But K'naan isn't glorifying the violence like some tough-talking gangsta; he sees it as the nihilistic result of a place where no other options exist: "It ain't just because we want to/We ain't got nowhere we can run to/Somebody please press the undo/They only teach us the things that guns do."

Born Keinan Abdi Warsame in 1978, K'naan -- a name he adopted from the Somali word for "traveler"-- the musician was raised in an artistic family. His aunt was a famous singer, his grandfather was a well-known poet, and as a young child he fell in love with hip-hop via the records his father sent him from America, where he'd moved as an immigrant.

As the situation in his native country grew increasingly dangerous during the civil war that began in 1991, K'naan's mother struggled to move him, his brother and his sister out of harm's way. Lucky enough to get tickets on the last commercial air flight to leave Somalia, the then 13-year-old singer and his family first relocated to Harlem, where they had relatives, before eventually settling in Rexdale, a Toronto neighborhood that is home to a large Somali-Canadian community.

Learning to speak English phonetically by studying the rhymes of hip-hop heroes such as Nas and Rakim, K'naan dropped out of high school and began his musical career by rapping at open-mike nights. The situation in Somalia was never far from his mind: One spoken-word piece criticizing the United Nations for its failed humanitarian efforts earned him an invitation to speak before the Commission for Refugees, and there he caught the ear of the famous Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour, who tapped him to go on tour and contribute to the 2001 album "Building Bridges."

K'naan released his own debut album, "The Dusty Foot Philosopher," in 2005, and it garnered widespread critical acclaim in Canada. That led to an American record deal and last year's release of "Troubadour."

Filled with vivid, deeply moving and even grimly funny glimpses of life in wartime and abject poverty -- "Nobody fat enough for lipo" in Africa, he dryly notes in one song -- K'naan's dispatches from the front wouldn't be nearly as powerful if he wasn't such a fluid wordsmith, deftly spinning rhymes that have earned comparisons to American greats Mos Def and Talib Kweli. At the same time, the artist creates genre-defying backing tracks that, like those of Chicagoan Kanye West, are rife with imaginative rhythms and bursting with arresting melodies.

In an interview last year with the Toronto Star, K'naan said he has two ways to measure if his music is working.

"It's how my mother feels -- that's the trajectory of success, that is how I decide, and she's been moved by the album," he said. "And my second measure of success is how my own people feel about the music I make about them. If they feel like the music is about them and not for them, it's not successful to me; but if it's about and for them, as well as for everyone else, then I'm satisfied."

The only knock on "Troubadour" is the fact that K'naan's American label wasn't quite as willing to rely solely on his talents to carry the disc, instead trotting out a thoroughly unnecessary series of cameo appearances by the likes of Maroon 5 vocalist Adam Levine and Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett. On the other hand, the guests could be viewed as just one more indicator of the universality of his music: He also has collaborated with the English pop band Keane, singer-songwriter Jason Mraz, Damian Marley (he spent several months recording at the famous family's studio, thrilled to be playing the same Hammond B3 heard on "Exodus") and Wale, with whom he is currently touring, and one of the few American rappers who have the same sort of boundless musical goals.

"The truth is that I'm an ambitious person and I feel like when we say, 'The game is not ready' or 'Are people ready for a fresh sound?' or 'Can they take you without a genre?,' I feel they must," K'naan told the Toronto Star.

"If you don't drive people forward as an artist, what will? We're not plumbers. We're supposed to be innovators. We're supposed to be inspiring. We can't just say, 'Oh, that's what they're listening to. I'm going to do that, too.'"

K'NAAN WITH WALE, JOHN FORTE and TABI BONNEY

•  7:30 p.m. Sunday

•  Metro, 3730 N. Clark

•  Tickets $20 in advance, $22 at the door

•  (773) 549-0203; www.metrochicago.com

» www.suntimes.com