The lessons learned can all be found in African alien. He was released from prison in April 2024 with two years of songs and eight books full of lyrics. “Every song on this tape means something to me. In prison, it’s different. The words, the thoughts, they mean 10 times more,” reflects Salieu. The final version consists of 11 tracks of Salieu spitting the best of himself, without restriction, on his characteristic genre-free style. (Of the genre, Salieu says: “No sound is consistent. I think my genre is called Freedom of Expression.”) The band is an affectionate mix of afrobeats, dancehall, R’n’ B and amapiano, commemorating his stay in the interior and the path to freedom. On tracks like “YGF” (Young, Great and Free) – one of his favorites on the tape – it’s clear that Salieu has undertaken a sort of self-audit. The lyrics are proof: “Facing death made me move brazenly / Facing the trial really made me wilt / Sipping lean every day, I wonder why they push me / I wonder if death will give me more peace.”

Finding inspiration isn’t difficult for Salieu. “There is a simple fact,” he leans. “If I wake up in the morning? “Ah, I’m alive today! It’s not tomorrow that’s promised! I’m inspired by that, by moments of loss,” he says, his innate rhythmic flow permeating his speech. “You learn the most in your lowest moments. It takes difficulty to find ease. You will be too comfortable. So when difficulties come, you will be surprised… I don’t know, man. I’m inspired by everything, brother.

Born in Slough to Gambian parents, the rapper moved to West Africa at the age of two and spent much of his childhood there with his grandparents. “(My mother) almost went crazy when she had to send me home. She sent me away when I was two years old, not because she wanted to, but because my grandmother’s house burned down and she had to work,” says Salieu. He would later return to the United Kingdom, more precisely to Coventry, where his parents had since settled. “I’m lucky I can go home if I want to,” he said shyly. “I’m homesick.” As a fellow Coventry resident, I’m curious about his favorite place in Coventry. “My mother’s house!” he jumps in his seat. I can say that family is everything to Salieu, in name and in practice – just listen to his most popular song “My Family” for proof. In a musical landscape where many rappers go by nicknames, Salieu’s choice to use his full government name was a no-brainer. “My name is Pa Salieu. Why should I hide? I don’t hide my voice. I don’t think I need a pseudonym…”