"There aren't many people from the African community in Budapest ," says singer-songwriter and MC Sena Dagadu, tossing back the dreadlocks. "So my presence on the Hungarian music scene is important". Born and raised in Accra, Ghana, to a Ghanean father and Hungarian mother, she moved to Budapest aged 18 to study "and make mum happy" by learning to speak the language well. The transition was difficult but the initial loneliness and shock of coming face to face with racism from skinheads spurred her on to write. When she tried her hand at a freestyle hip hop session in 2002 she had plenty to say. Now touring France with her second album Lots of Trees, an energetic blend of hip hop, Ghanean highlife, and soul, she talks about finding her place, thanks to music.
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