Real name Joël Windtoin Sawadogo, Burkinabe rapper Joey le Soldat was born in 1985 in Koumbri, in the northern region of Burkina Faso. The grandson of a tirailleur and son of a pro-independence activist, he grew up in the world of rap and began to express his frustrations and dreams in his school notebooks. He went on to form his first group in Ouagadougou and played a series of open mics. In 2009, at the Waga Hip Hop festival, Joey le Soldat won first prize in the national battle clash, which put him in the spotlight of the Burkinabe rap scene. He went on to collaborate with Art Melody as part of the duo Waga 3000, thanks to which he was spotted by the Tentacule Records label, which signed him to his first contract. In 2012, he released his first album, La Parole Est Mon Arme, followed two years later by Burkin Bâ, which consolidated his reputation and enabled him to perform at the Transmusicales de Rennes, where he was one of the sensations of the 2016 edition. In 2017, his album Barka earned him a place on the bill at a number of festivals, including Francofolies de La Rochelle and Les Fiestas des Suds. He returned with an EP in 2019, signing Faaso alongside Mad Rey, while a new album, Back to the Roots, was released in 2022. Joey le Soldat's 14 tracks reflect on the deteriorating security situation in his homeland, Burkina Faso.
