Smockey was undoubtably born with a musical gift. Born in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) on 24 November 1971 to a Burkinabe father and a Rrench mother, Serge Bambara alias Smockey is from Bissa in the South East of Burkina.

In the 1990s he was on the fringes of the up and coming rap scene in Burkina before he left in 1991 to go and study in France. It was there that he set up a home studio with his Cameroonian friend Koto and his real passion for rap music was ignited.

In 1999 he was signed by EMI and released his first single featuring the famous French singer Laam. He adopted his nickname Smockey from the french 'se moquer' (to make fun of).

In March 2001, Smockey returned home to Burkina with the firm intention of setting up a specialist recording studio in order to make rap music one of the emblems of Burkinabe culture.

In September 2001, in his studio ABAZON, he created and produced his first album entitled EPITAPH. Two years later he released his second album entitled ZAMANA which means 'the people' in his native language Bissa.

"EPITAPH":
is the product of Smockey's blend of cultures: it aims to represent African youths in general and Burkinabe youth in particular. This album was the first album to emerge from Smockey's brand new production studio and it was used as an experiment to try and bring together young rappers who were separated up until this point by lack of proper support and access to studios.

This 17 track album with 8 songs featuring other artists seeks to question the Burkinabe and African socio-political structures.

Key themes:
Through the use of titles such as: Ouaga c?est pas les states »,( "Ouaga is not the USA") « les moutons », ("the sheep") "chanson pour un réfugié" ("song for a refugee"), Smockey seeks to fight against all those who consider emancipation to equal westernisation. A fervent Africanist, Smockey argues for self belief, the need to return to one's origins.

Author, composer, producer and owner of a specialist rap studio, Smockey is a leader of the rap movement and and a true unifying leader of Burkinabe youth.
« EPITAPH » enabled new talents to be discovered through its tracks featuring different artists. The album is a true blend of modern rhythms and traditional African music. Its personality derives from its lyrics and this rhythmic blend.