Music opens up opportunities for relief, connection and even education, and the internationally known African Children’s Choir program spreads this message throughout the world in its annual tours. The African Children’s Choir will bring its 51st choir tour “Just As I Am” to Faith Assembly of God in Rock Hill on Feb. 23.
Established in 1984 in the aftermath of the Ugandan civil war, The African Children’s Choir is one component of the organization Music for Life, which sponsors relief and education programs in Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda and South Africa. According to a release, “[Music for Life] has educated over 52,000 children and impacted the lives of over 100,000 people through its relief and development programs during its history. MFL’s purpose is to help create new leadership for tomorrow’s Africa, by focusing on education.” The organization tours throughout the world, performing mostly in local churches and collecting donations or “love offerings,” which all go towards educating the children.
Choir manager Tina Sipp has worked with the African Children’s Choir for 16 years, and said each child in the program only performs on one tour, then receives educational funding through college. “Education is not accessible to all. They might have government schooling, but even a government school requires a uniform, books, paper and pencils,” Sipp said. “Those things are out of the financial means of the families.”
According to Sipp, one of the main draws of the show is the spirit, energy and passion the children bring to their performances. “They embrace a day like none other. They have taught me so much to live in the moment, rather than have regrets of the past or plans for the future, they live in the moment,” Sipp said. “Life just doesn’t bother them in the same way that it bothers us.”
“It’s true that they come from very humble backgrounds and means, but the definition of wealth and poverty gets upended. All of a sudden, these ‘poor little children’ are giving this wealth of spirit, this wealth of soul, and I think without really knowing it or being able to tag it, I think the western audience member is kind of pinned to the back of their seat,” Sipp said. “They’re just coming out on the stage and enjoying themselves, and when the audience starts clapping and shouting and giving standing ovations, that just feeds them. The energy just pumps up.”
Sipp said the children are talented performers, and Western audiences often enjoy the cultural aspect of the shows. “The performance of the children is pretty astounding for their age. It’s a good concert, the energy, the dance, the cultural aspect – there’s drumming, there’s the three different African costumes and there’s the traditional dance from the countries they represent.”
In the past, the choir has performed at several high-profile events such as American Idol, during which Sipp said the children referred to Simon Cowell as “Uncle Simon.” “Everybody to them is just ‘auntie’ and ‘uncle,’” Sipp said. “They’re not impressed [by celebrities]. They’re just themselves.”
The choir will perform at the Faith Assembly of God on 2800 Faith Blvd, Rock Hill. The 45-minute performance will be at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 23. Admission is free, but donations are encouraged. For more information on the choir, visit https://africanchildrenschoir.com/
