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Caliph uplifts, educates, and connects coasts with ‘Immigrant of the Year’

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New Bedford isn’t where Caliph made his newest record, but it is where he found his voice — as an immigrant, a Black man, and a Muslim living in the United States. The Senegal-born rapper moved from Massachusetts to Los Angeles a few years ago, yet what he learned on the East Coast remains at the forefront of his mind on Immigrant of the Year, out today (May 21).

His roots guide the album’s rhythm, as Caliph unpacks a lifetime of establishing a firm, unabashed sense of self in a country that discriminates against nearly every facet of his identity.

“I first moved to New Bedford, Massachusetts when I was seven years old,” he tells Vanyaland. “It was a culture shock and I felt like I went back in time. Being a five-year-old in Senegal is like being a 15-year-old in America so I felt like I had to be a kid again. Growing up in Massachusetts completely shaped me into the person and artist I am. The vibrant culture of Black and hispanic immigrant communities around me made me feel comfortable but I always felt like a stand-out. [I] Always had to fit in until I stopped trying to and that was around the same time I started making music. I found my voice and my confidence through music and had all of these people in my community that I felt like I had to speak for.” 

His mission mushroomed from that point forward. Since moving to California, Caliph’s vision crosses state and country lines, extending a life raft to listeners who find themselves in similar positions of oppression, and educating everyone else about the very real, very serious mental tolls of discrimination.

“I always say that I’m a voice for the voiceless and that I speak for Black, immigrant, and Muslim communities in America and around the world,” he explains. “We are hurt and a lot of us are going through these emotions that we cannot control but there is a stigma around people of color expressing that they are going through mental health issues. The kid that starts selling drugs, robbing people and gangbanging does not want to do all that deep down inside. Those are responses to the trauma of being oppressed, poor and not having the avenues to speak on and express these emotions properly.”

His bars never flinch — although if listeners do, it means his straightforward songwriting is providing the perspective they likely need to hear.

“I just got shot at for the first time,” he raps on “First Time (Edgar’s Story).” “Sad thing is / I know it’s just the first time.” Later in the track, he explains “Mamma told me never end up in the streets / But she don’t know that without the streets we ain’t got no way to eat.”

Pause that. Rewind. Hear it again. Immigrant Of The Year clocks in at 33 minutes, but with the countless press-pause moments folded in, the record realistically offers a multi-hour experience.

“If I am here to speak for us, I have to go to the source of our issues,” Caliph adds. “Our mental health is being beat up, shot at and killed off daily. We are constantly reminded that we don’t belong, that our lives are not worth anything, and on top of that, we are systematically oppressed into poverty. All of these things chip away at our mental health by the minute, second, social media scroll. So my goal is to be very open about how trauma damages mental health in order to spark more conversations around it, which I hope will do away with the stigmas and inspire people to work on themselves, get help and create mental health solutions for our communities.”

Caliph’s already rolled up his sleeves for that aforementioned community work, too; His musical output intertwines with his non-profit SAFE+, an organization “focused on creating a healthier mental space in immigrant and Black communities by addressing social issues with art, technology, fashion, and curated experiences.”

Appropriately, Immigrant Of The Year goes hand in hand with that goal. Better yet, it shares an uplifting message for listeners: Improving your mental health is possible, especially with a 10-track blueprint in front of you.

“Each song on the album goes through an emotion in my journey to find and love myself and as much as I tried to run away from the trauma and paranoia with distractions and arrogance,” Caliph concludes. “It all kept piling up until I faced it all and dealt with it through honesty and empathy. I hope that the kids out there dealing with mental health issues hear this album, recognize that it’s a journey and can turn to it as a roadmap to help them find themselves. And hey, if your journey is stuck on ‘Airplane Mode’ (paranoia), it’s okay. Just know that you will get to ‘Questions’ (clarity) and you’ll find your true (identity) like I did in ‘My Story.'”

Find out why Caliph is Immigrant Of The Year below.