Baloji is a singer/songwriter who blends the ancient rhythms of Africa with more contemporary aspects of modern music, like hip-hop styled lyrical rhyming. Though he was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, at the age of three he was sent to Belgium and raised in a boarding school--until the age of 15, when he left and joined a rap collective called H-Posse. Though the group struggled to find a listener-base, it finally managed to break through in 2001, after releasing its platinum-selling album, Survivant. Though hip-hop was a musical pursuit of Baloji's, after a trip to the DRC, he decided to pursue a more defined Afro-centric sound. Seeing the living conditions of many in Africa, as well as the vibrant music community, inspired Baloji and pushed him to create music in a style that he felt a deep-rooted connection with.
