Leshao Leshao: The Maasai artist taking climate advocacy to global forums

Maasai musician and civil engineer Leshao Sopia Leshao is using music to draw attention to the effects of climate change on pastoralist communities while promoting Maa language and cultural heritage.

Leshao, who began his musical journey in 2019 while in high school, says his upbringing around the Maasai Mara shaped his understanding of the close relationship between people, livestock, wildlife and the environment.

For him, music has evolved beyond entertainment into a platform for cultural preservation and social advocacy.

“I chose to sing in Maa because I believe our language and culture deserve to be heard, celebrated and preserved,” Leshao says. Leshao Leshao Story

His music explores themes including Indigenous culture, love, education, gender equality, justice and climate change, combining contemporary sounds with traditional Maasai rhythms.

The artist's work has earned recognition, including being named Rift Valley Male Artist of the Year, while his music and advocacy have also featured on platforms including Global Citizen.

In May 2025, Global Citizen featured Leshao through its Emerging Creatives programme, which highlights creatives using art to address social issues and advocate for change.

The platform gave him an opportunity to share his background, music and views on the role Indigenous art can play in climate advocacy.

Leshao says his decision to engage in climate advocacy is rooted in his experience growing up in a pastoralist community where livelihoods are closely tied to the environment.

He says prolonged droughts, floods and changing weather patterns have placed increasing pressure on pastoralist communities, affecting livestock, access to water and pasture, household incomes and food security.

The effects, he says, can extend to resource-based tensions, school dropouts and the loss of productive land.

Rather than approaching climate change solely through technical or scientific language, Leshao believes music can help communicate the human experiences behind climate statistics and policy discussions.

“Music gives me an opportunity to do that. Through lyrics, traditional sounds and stories drawn from lived experiences, I can help make climate issues more relatable and accessible,” he says.

His advocacy journey has been influenced by Spring of the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SASAL), a youth- and women-led organisation working with pastoralist communities on climate justice and community development.

Through the collaboration, Leshao worked on two climate-focused songs, ‘Esipata Oloing'ange’ and ‘ESIANA,’ using Indigenous music to raise awareness about environmental challenges facing pastoralist communities.

‘Esipata Oloing'ange’ was also featured by Global Citizen as part of his Emerging Creatives journey. Leshao performed the song in Meguarra village in Narok County, linking its climate message to the community and cultural setting from which his inspiration comes.

Leshao's advocacy has since taken him beyond local community engagements to international climate spaces, including COP29, SB62, COP30 and SB64.

He says his participation in the forums has allowed him to connect his artistic work with wider discussions on climate justice while highlighting the experiences of Indigenous and pastoralist communities.

However, he says there remains a gap between the technical discussions held at international climate conferences and the lived experiences of communities bearing the brunt of climate change.

His goal is to help bridge that gap by bringing Indigenous perspectives, pastoralist experiences and cultural expression into climate conversations.

“For me, taking Maa music into climate advocacy spaces is also an affirmation that Indigenous culture and knowledge belong in conversations about the future,” he says.

Leshao argues that Indigenous communities should not merely be subjects of climate discussions, but should have their experiences and knowledge incorporated into the solutions being developed.

Away from music and advocacy, Leshao is a trained civil engineer. He graduated from Meru University of Science and Technology in October 2024, balancing his professional training with his growing artistic career.

He sees the two fields as complementary rather than contradictory.

According to Leshao, engineering has taught him discipline, problem-solving and the importance of creating things that serve a purpose, while music gives him another avenue to express ideas, connect with people and contribute to society.

His parents initially encouraged him to prioritise education and establish a professional career. Their support for his music grew as they came to understand his commitment to using his platform for a wider purpose.

As he continues his journey, Leshao says his ambitions go beyond personal recognition.

He wants his music to help preserve the Maa language and Maasai cultural heritage while raising awareness about climate change, Indigenous rights, education, gender equality and justice.

He acknowledges that music alone cannot resolve the challenges facing pastoralist communities, arguing that climate justice also requires policy action, resources, community participation and recognition of Indigenous knowledge.

But he believes artists have a role to play by making issues visible, communicating lived experiences and encouraging audiences to engage with them.

For Leshao, the bigger message is that young people from Indigenous communities do not have to choose between their cultural identity and modern opportunities.

“They can pursue education, explore professional careers, embrace creativity and participate in global conversations without losing their connection to their roots,” he says.