Tag Archives: protest rap

Myanmar anti-junta activist pens a rap song seeking justice for his murdered parents

His parents were killed in 2022 after he escaped from prison

Screenshot from YouTube video of “The Sun sets before the Sunset” / BPLA VENTURE

This article was written by Mong Palatino and originally published on the Global Voices (GV) webpage on 7th of November 2023. It is republished here under the media agreement between GV and Shouts.


Myanmar activist Sann Minn Paing released a song on YouTube a year after his parents were killed by junta forces. His Facebook post announcing the song and his demand for justice went viral, reflecting the continuing resistance and online pushback against the military government.

The military grabbed power in February 2021, which was immediately fiercely resisted by pro-democracy forces. Sann Minn Paing, a member of the All Burma Federation of Student Unions, was among those who challenged the junta and was arrested for being part of the civil disobedience movement. According to a report by The Irrawaddy, an exiled Burmese media group, he spent a year at three interrogation centers and four police stations in Yangon. Since he was only 17 at the time of his arrest, he was transferred to a juvenile facility.

Together with 13 other young prisoners, he escaped on September 23, 2022. Authorities killed his parents inside their house on September 29.

A year after the killing, Sann Minn Paing posted on his Facebook page that he has written a song to pay tribute to his parents. The Irrawaddy translated an excerpt of the post:

“I still suffer from mental trauma. But I try to keep going. I don’t know when I will die. So, I want to create a piece of art that will last and that demands justice for my parents, in case I die before the revolution succeeds. So, I created this song.”

In an interview with The Irrawaddy, he said he wanted to inspire other victims of the junta brutality to continue the fight for justice.

“I could never repay them. This is the first thing I have done for my parents. If we bow to every act of oppression, we won’t be able to stand up in this life. I hope my song will encourage families who have been affected by the fascist military to demand justice in the future.”

A report by the Special Rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar revealed that as of October 2023, junta forces have killed 4,000 civilians, destroyed 75,000 civilian homes and infrastructures, displaced over 2 million people, and driven 15 million into food insecurity over the past two years.

The title of the song is “The Day The Sun Disappears Before The Sunset.” A music video was uploaded on YouTube which depicts the artist’s anguish and guilt over the death of his parents.

Screenshot from YouTube video of “The Sun sets before the Sunset” / BPLA VENTURE

Even after the death of his parents, he continues to be involved in the pro-democracy movement. In his song, he speculates about what might become of him due to his resistence.

Screenshot from YouTube video of “The Sun sets before the Sunset” / BPLA VENTURE

Sann Minn Paing’s rap song is an example of the creative forms of resistance used by young activists and artists who joined the ‘Spring Revolution’ against the junta dictatorship. Other forms of resistance have included subversive pro-democracy messages through clothing and “silent strikes,” where citizens closed their businesses and stayed indoors on the same day as a method of resistance. In October 2021, a group of rap artists released a music album featuring anti-junta songs.

Listen and watch the song of Sann Minn Paing on YouTube:

Song Of The Day: Fist Up By Armaan Yadav

For any hiphop artist getting started in the rap game, it is a great feat to make it to Sway Calloway’s radio show Sway In The Morning. During the pandemic, Sway started giving rappers and lyricists from around the world a chance to step onto his virtual stage and show their talents. One of these rappers comes all the way from India and his name is Armaan Yadav. We here at Shouts are familiar with Armaan as we have been following his protest rap for a while.

Armaan seems to always feel compelled to pen down words about the injustice he constantly witnesses in his home country of India, which he then shares with the rest of the world. For the outside world, it is a great thing; that there are artists that journal what is going on so we can all become more informed, more empathetic humans.

Armaan’s latest offering is a full steam protest tune available for anyone looking for some energy boost during their resistance.

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(Banned) Song Of The Day: Mama By Nay Wa Mitego

As per usual, when a song is banned or when an artist is oppressed by a tyrannical government or authority, we at Shouts do our best to show that work of art and free artistic expression to the world.

This time we present the song Mama by Tanzanian rapper Nay Wa Mitego. After Nay sent in the song to the Tanzanian government for review (as government’s rules dictate) the officials deemed this song unfit for the public for its alleged provocative content. This kind of oppression can understandably take a toll on a creative mind.

“I sometimes think of quitting doing music because of these kinds of struggles, this system will make some of the artists to not do their work. You cannot edit songs penned down by artists in the name of review, when that happens, the song automatically is disclaimed by artists,”

– Nay Wa Mitego (Source: https://bit.ly/3o9oGqo)

Nay seems to still carry on though and make music so that the world can be brighter and more beautiful for all of us.

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