GoFundMe Launched To Help Mdou Moctar After Strife In Niger Strands Band Members

Three of Mdou Moctar‘s four members hail from Niger, a West African nation suffering through a period of severe instability. Namesake Tuareg guitarist Mahamadou “Mdou Moctar” Souleymane and bandmates rhythm guitarist Ahmoudou Madassane and drummer Souleymane Ibrahim — who along with bassist Mikey Coltun finished a North American tour on Friday in New York City — can’t return home as a group of right-wing militants overthrew the country’s democratically elected president. A GoFundMe campaign has been established to help “provide them with what they will need to be able to safely spend time in the States while they wait and see when they will be able to return home to Niger to reunite with their loved ones.”

One positive in this terrible situation is that the community has rallied around Mdou Moctar. As of press time, six hours after the campaign was launched, over $40,000 has been raised. “We are completely overwhelmed by the outpouring of support,” wrote organizer Dan Oestreich. “All funds received over our initial goal will be used for the band’s extended families that have been affected by the upheaval.”

Mdou Moctar, Ahmoudou Madassane and Souleymane Ibrahim are currently waiting it out in the States while waiting to be reunited with their families. “The costs associated with finding emergency housing and living expenses for the band while they are stuck here in the US are considerable as well as undefined, as there is no timeframe for when peace may return to the region,” noted Oestreich, one of the group’s managers. “As the band’s touring activity regularly supports their families at home in Niger, this extended stay in the US will, unfortunately, divert that income away from their dependents.”

Head here to contribute to the GoFundMe put together to support Mdou Moctar and band members’ families.