Oral history interview with Emmanuela Yogolelo

This interview was undertaken by the Ahmed Iqbal Ullah Education Trust as part of the archive accessioning process when the When Musical Traditiona Meet and Inspire collection was donated. In it Emmanuela talks about her life in the Congo, coming to Britain, her musical career and the When Musical Traditions meet and Inspire project.

00:28 Family background of being born and growing up in the Democratic Republic of Congo

05:01 Influences on Emmanuela that have contributed to her becoming a performer

14:01 Singing with the school and church choirs as a gospel singer, travelling to Rwanda to train other gospel singers

17:49 Leaving the Congo (Kinshasa) and coming to the UK to claim asylum

24:25 Settling in Oldham, continuing to write music and through gospel singing in the community kick started her career in the UK

29:25 Her musical inspirations

34:00 Reasons for undertaking the ‘When Musical Traditions Meet and Inspire’ project

37:20 Her research trips to the Democratic Republic of Congo

43:50 Collaboration with other artists from other backgrounds to explore combination of African and Indian music

49:30 Challenges of the ‘When Musical Traditions Meet and Inspire’ project

59:20 Legacy of the project and future project

01:05:07 End of interview