‘You either quit or abide’: A Liberian rapper refugee surviving on music

Theophylline Mulbah has had a long journey to Tunisia, but he’s found hope — and music — along the way.

Theophylline Mulbah is in no rush. “I have things to do here,” he says from a rain-soaked alleyway in central Tunis. “I am seriously pursuing my musical career. I am a rapper.”

Two years ago, Mulbah left his home in Liberia in West Africa and took his time travelling before arriving in Tunis in August. Mulbah moved through Sierra Leone, Guinea, Mali and Algeria on foot, spending some time in each country as he raised funds for the next stage of his journey.

His longest stay, he says, was in Algeria — a visit that lasted a year and four months. “There were so many things and experiences I wanted to get acquainted with, so I had to stay for some time.”

“I did a couple of songs in Algeria, and I’m planning on doing a couple more here,” he says of his music. “I have a good game, and I know that my game will do me well. I’m a hip-hop rapper. I talk about my past, my present, things I feel troubled about, my situation, my childhood.”

While some people in the alleyway are fleeing war and revolution, 28-year-old Mulbah says a failing economy and high inflation led to his flight.