Child soldiers: the Art and arts of healing (Part 1 of 2)Child soldiers: the Art and arts of healing (Part 1 of 2)
All In The Mind
Born into the bloody horror of war, Sudanese rap artist Emmanuel Jal was 9 when he was recruited into the Sudanese Peoples' Liberation Army as a child soldier. Incredibly he survived, and his music reaches a generation of Lost Boys. And next week, a remarkable dance and movement therapist helping former child soldiers in Sierra Leone express and heal the traumas of their psyches through their bodies.
30:07•30 May 2009
From Child Soldier to Rap Artist: Emmanuel Jal on Trauma, Art and Survival
Episode Overview
- Emmanuel Jal recounts being recruited as a child soldier, normalising death and violence from a very young age.
- Music, poetry and performance act as his main form of therapy, helping to ease flashbacks, fear and anger.
- He describes art, school and structured activity as crucial for keeping traumatised people engaged and less dominated by nightmares and memories.
- Support and acceptance from others, including being able to share stories informally with peers, are highlighted as powerful aids to healing.
- Channelling anger into purpose through his Go Africa foundation and the Emma Academy school project helps him stay away from further violence.
“Art is one of the quickest therapy you could ever give somebody who has been tormented.”
What emotional and inspiring tales of recovery are out there? This conversation on All In The Mind centres on former Sudanese child soldier turned rap artist Emmanuel Jal, whose story is as harrowing as it is focused on healing. At around nine years old he was given an AK‑47, told “the gun is your mother and father now”, and thrust into battles where death, starvation and trauma were everyday realities.
Host Natasha Mitchell keeps the tone careful and respectful, asking direct questions while allowing Emmanuel’s own words, poetry and lyrics to carry the weight of his experience. You’ll hear him reflect on being “forced to sin to make a living”, describing how hunger drove him to raid villages and how extreme starvation left him tempted to eat the flesh of a fallen comrade.
A chance encounter with British aid worker Emma McEwen, whom he calls “my angel”, eventually led him out of the army and into school in Kenya — and later into music. The heart of this episode is how art and structure can help someone live with deep psychological scars. Emmanuel explains that music is his “therapy” and “painkiller”, keeping his mind busy when flashbacks and anger threaten to overwhelm him.
He talks about drawing violent scenes as a child, then being gently redirected to cartoons and hippos, and later using rap and performance to channel rage, madness and grief into something creative. There’s also a powerful focus on purpose. Emmanuel describes founding his Go Africa charity and building a school in honour of Emma, even eating only one meal a day to fund it.
For anyone interested in trauma recovery, including from addiction or violence, this is a raw, honest look at how faith, creativity, structure and service can keep someone from being pulled back into destruction. It might leave you asking what kind of creative outlet or cause could help you process your own pain.
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