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Sheila Cecilia Escovedo (born December 12, 1957) better known under the stage name Sheila E., is an American percussionist, singer, author, and actress. She began her career in the mid-1970s as a percussionist and singer for The George Duke Band. After leaving the group in 1983, Sheila began a successful solo career, starting with her critically acclaimed debut album, which included the career-defining song, "The Glamorous Life". She became a mainstream solo star in 1985 following the success of the singles "The Belle of St. Mark", "Sister Fate", and "A Love Bizarre" with the last becoming one of her signature songs. She is commonly referred to as The Queen of Percussion.
The Balanta (Guinea-Bissau Creole and Portuguese: balanta; French: balante; lit. “those who resist” in Mandinka) are an ethnic group found in Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Senegal and The Gambia. They are the largest ethnic group of Guinea-Bissau, representing more than one-quarter of the population. Despite their numbers, they have remained outside the colonial and postcolonial state because of their social organisation. The Balanta can be divided into 7 clans: Nhacra, Ganja, Naga, Mane, Patch, Sofa and Kentohe. The largest of which are the Balanta Kentohe.
Archaeologists believe that the people who became the Balanta migrated to present-day Guinea-Bissau in small groups between the 10th and 14th centuries CE. Oral tradition amongst the Balanta has it that they migrated westward from the area that is now Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia to escape drought and wars. During the 19th century, they spread throughout the area that is now Guinea-Bissau and southern Senegal in order to resist the expansion of the Kaabu kingdom. Today, the Balanta are found in the modern-day countries of Senegal and Gambia but mostly reside in the southern and central regions of Guinea-Bissau.
All important decisions amongst the Balanta are taken by a Council of Elders. To become a member of the Council of Elders, the person has to be initiated during the Fanado ceremony. In general, egalitarianism prevails amongst the Balanta. Consequently, the Portuguese colonialists found it difficult to govern them. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Portugal mounted pacification campaigns against the resistant Balanta and subjected them to appointed Fulbe chiefs. Because of the Portuguese repression, the Balanta enlisted as soldiers in great numbers and were principal supporters of the PAIGC in the nationalist struggle for liberation during the 1960s and 1970s. Many Balanta resented their exclusion from the government; their prominence in the military spurred a series of Balanta-led coup attempts in the 1980s
The Balanta practice indigenous, spiritual customs and rites. In the Balanta society, God is believed to be far away, and communication with the Almighty is established through their spiritual practices and traditions.
The Balanta have initiation rites at various states of the individual's life. Each phase of life, from childhood to adulthood, is regulated by an initiation that marks the entrance into a new social category. From early childhood up to age 15, the child belongs to the category of Nwatch. Around age 18 to 20 the individual enters the Fuur and then enters the Nghaye around age 25. Around age 30, according to the rites of Kgness a man will be authorized to take a woman.
After the young Balanta man has become a landowner and taken on family responsibilities, he can then be chosen by his maternal uncle to participate in the Fanado initiation. Once chosen for the Fanado, a Balanta man cannot refuse the family's wishes. The Fanado initiation ceremony takes place once every four years. The Fanado is a two-month process in the “sacred woods” which is the ultimate phase of initiation rites and social hierarchy. Initiation during the Fanado ritual opens the doors of maturity and wisdom in the Balanta community. Depicted on the back of the 50-peso note (No. 1) is a man in the costume worn by young Balanta men during the “Fanado” or male circumcision ceremony. Part of the costume is a tortoise shell that is hollowed out and worn on the back.
The first day of the Fanado ceremony is a general festival for the entire village during which people eat, drink and dance. The initiates are presented to the village by their maternal uncles and greeted by the village. After the presentation and greeting, the initiates are brought in the middle of a tropical forest to a place completely secret called the “sacred woods.” In the “sacred woods” the initiates are circumcised by the “master”, a sort of magical figure-pedagogical. After the first few days of circumcision, the initiates must build a kind of hut that will serve as their home-base for the next two months. During these two months, the initiates only have contact with their uncles and the “master”. The initiates undergo test of endurance and learn to be men. What is imparted to the initiates during the Fanado not only concerns their entire culture, but also how to behave with others, how to manage the family, and how to live as adults and men therefore wise. The tests and trials are hard to the point where some people face physical suffering, mutilation, and/or do not survive.
Once completed, the initiate is a mature man, capable of taking care of other people in the tribe. After two months in the “sacred woods,” the initiate (if survived) is ready to return to his family as a new man. Nothing remains of the place where the rite was held, everything is burnt and jealously guarded in secret by those who took part. Mothers learn of the fate of their children only on arrival to the village of the “new” men. The most valiant initiates that do survive emerge from the “sacred woods” to songs of their bravery by family and friends. The initiate then wears a bright red hat to show that he has become Lante Ndang (brave and wise), and the following day he will be allowed to serve on the council of elders who manages village life. The ex-president of Guinea-Bissau Kumba Yalla is a member of the Balanta people and was often seen wearing a red hat as a sign that he had completed the Fanado initiation