Mdou Moctar sounds softer on ‘Tears of Injustice’ but the fire remains

Nigerien singer, songwriter and guitarist Mdou Moctar is known for his electrifying Tuareg rock performances, but his latest album sees the band unplug.

Tears of Injustice, a re-imagining of 2024’s Funeral for Justice, sees the band stripping away the amplification and distortion of their signature sound. These new acoustic re-recordings are powerful, addressing the conflict he’s seen in his native Niger — from losing Indigenous languages to the false freedom he sees for his countrymen.

In this session, Moctar and his band perform songs from Tears of Injustice live in the studio. Plus, Moctar and bassist/producer Mikey Coltun talk about why they wanted to make an acoustic album and how being stranded in the U.S. during a military coup in Niger played a part in making it happen.

This episode of World Cafe was produced and edited by Miguel Perez. Our senior producer is Kimberly Junod and our engineer is Chris Williams. Our programming and booking coordinator is Chelsea Johnson and our line producer is Will Loftus.