Sebé Kan is a local African dance and drum ensemble that weaves music and dance together in a vibrant celebration of culture. Founded in 2004, Sebé Kan became a space for community and solace among Portlanders of the African diaspora and began a youth-specific dance group in 2018. The collective, youth and adults, performed at halftime for basketball games at the Moda Center in 2018 and 2019, at the Portland International Airport and at numerous schools in the Portland Metro area. They rehearse weekly at the Harriet Tubman Dance Studio, studying and performing works from the West African nations of Guinea, Mali and Ivory Coast. Sekou Walker, the founder of Sebé Kan, says, “It’s extremely important to have a connection to West African culture … our connection to it is through music and dance.”

“Not only just learning the culture … it’s an opportunity for Black youth to be in a space where they’re learning something fresh and something new that they’re connected to.”

“(Sebé Kan) is a space for (Black youth) to show up, and learn, and grow and perform.”

“There’s just support everywhere. The support comes down from us as the teacher, drummers, the parents and then those peers.”

“Sebé Kan translates to serious sound. Sebé is a Manden (West African dialect continuum) word that means … something was predestined. It was written before it happened. The second word, Kan, refers to sound or song. Sebé Kan, serious sound.”