Bakala Martin Net

Born in 1985 in Kingoue, Congo-Brazzaville, Chériff Bakala is a writer, slam poet, actor, and singer. He dives into music, develops a passion for theater, and takes an interest in dance. He creates musical documentary shows like Martin Luther King, Apostle of Non-Violence (2012), Sony the Hydrogen Bomb based on texts by Sony Labou Tansi (2015), and Viva Mandela on Nelson Mandela’s struggle (2017). He’s part of the music groups Légitime Brigade (hip-hop) and FB Stars (folksong).

Forced to flee his country, he’s lived in France since 2019 and joined the Agency of Artists in Exile. He leads slam workshops and, in 2021 with Rusan Filiztek, created a musical version of Lord Byron’s Giaour for the Musée national Eugène-Delacroix. He has been in residence at the Chartreuse de Villeneuve-lès-Avignon, the Centre international des musiques nomades in Grenoble, and the Dynamo de Banlieues Bleues to recreate Sony, the Oxygen Bomb, performing at the Détours de Babel and Visions d’exil festivals. He founded the Bakala Band, which performs at the Jaune Moutarde festival, the Agency of Artists in Exile, and the VYV festival. Through the Collège de France’s Pause program, he resides at the École nationale supérieure d’art de Dijon. He’s a recipient of the Porosus endowment fund.