Skip to main content

The Heroic Burial of Traditional Liberian Musician Tokay Tomah

Last Saturday, December 16, 2017, in a 40’s weather, the sympathizers, friends and family from a tropical country, Liberia, attended the funeral of a fallen Liberian traditional musical icon, Tokay Tomah. 


The sympathizers, who included not just Liberians, but also Americans. Some traveled from Liberia, Maryland, New York, Minnesota, North Dakota, Delaware, and New Jersey.


Tokay died on November 13, 2017. She reportedly collapsed in an elevator and subsequently died at the Paoli Hospital in Pennsylvania as a result of cardiac arrest. Tokay was a celebrated singer, composer, recording artist and cultural dancer in Liberia and abroad. She had a melodious voice and her dances were immaculate.


Tokay, was a native of the border town Butuo, in Nimba County, Liberia, West Africa. Nimba is one of Liberia’s 15 counties. The County is located in northeastern Liberia and shares borders with the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire in the East and the Republic of Guinea in the Northeast.

Ms. Tomah passed at age 49. She was born in 1968 in Butuo. She was the last of her parents’ six children and was therefore named Tokay, meaning ‘stay in the house’. She was her parents’ favorite child. She moved to the United States of America in 2010 in search of greener pasture. She was a resident of Southwest Philadelphia. The late Tomah came to prominence at age 10 when she through a special recommendation of the late President, William R. Tolbert, was recruited as a traditional dancer of the Liberia National Culture Troupe in the 1970s’.

Tokay was recruited as a teenager to join the Liberian National Troupe when former President Tolbert and the Director of Culture Peter Ballah visited Nimba. The late President and former Director Ballah spotted Tokay while on a tour in the county. They were moved and impressed by her dancing prowess. As a member of the National Dance Troupe, Tokay and members of the troupe toured Europe, United States, and several African countries during the 80s. As a dancer and singer, the late Tokay served as a background vocalist for several eminent Liberian traditional singers including Culture Ambassador Juli Endee, Fatu Gayflor, Zaye Tete, and Nimba Bird.

Alias, ‘Queen of the Stage,’ Tomah entered the music arena in 2002 as a solo artist with her debut album, ‘Chay Chay Polay,’ which established her as Liberia’s premiere female recording artist at that time. From 2002 she produced six albums, with the last being ‘What You Know About Me’ in 2012. Among the six albums Tomah released, ‘Open the Door’ and ‘Chay Chay Polay’ were the most popular and sold in their thousands. When Liberia was at war with itself from 1989 to 2003, Tokay was one of several local Liberian cultural artists that worked with the United Nations Mission in Liberia on disarmament and reconciliation through music.

As a singer, she was also involved in campaigns on HIV/AIDS, rape, sexual exploitation and abuse.The ‘Chay Chay Polay’ songstress received awards from the Musicians Union of Liberia, Africare Liberia and the Ministry of Agriculture. She performed in England, Ghana, Guinea, the Ivory Coast, Libya, and Nigeria.

Tokay’s funeral was held at the Christ Assembly Agape Missionary Church of the Nazarene in Collingdale, Pennsylvania. Her remains were interred at the Saint Peter and Saint Paul Cemetery in Springfield, Pennsylvania. Rev. Jerry Kabbah of the New Hope Emmanuel International Baptist Church delivered the eulogy. He referred to her as a devoted Christian, who committed herself to serving the Lord. He prayed for her soul and urged the congregation to embrace Christ as their savior. “The end time is near. Death is for everyone and it comes at any time,” he advised.

Tokay’s only offspring, Jamah Ndoma, read her life sketch. Jamah underscored the cordial tie which subsisted between her and her mother. “My mother and father showed me love. They cared for me, gave me everything I wanted, and they raised me very well. We were good friends,” young Ndoma stated eloquently while holding back tears.


Tributes at the funeral came from Tokay’s family, Liberian Association of Pennsylvania(LAP), associations of Liberian gospel and cultural artists, and other US based Liberian community organizations. In their respective tributes, the groups hailed the deceased for the outstanding role she played in the promoting Liberian songs and artists at home and abroad. Tokay is survived by her only daughter and two grandchildren.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

President George Weah's One Day National Forum Successfully Attended by 26 Political Parties

On Thursday, August 8, 2018, President George Weah had a sit down with 26 political parties of Liberia.  The meeting aimed at advancing ideals that promote the spirit of national unity and political tolerance between opposition political parties and the government.  ANC, LP and UP attended the meeting as a team. According to Deputy Minister Eugene L. Fahngon, Deputy Minister for Press and Public Affairs at Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs & Tourism, all 26 political parties attended and participated from start to finish.  Even though, social media was buzzing about AB Dillion walking out of the meeting, he walked out as an individual and not a political party, "the invitation was extended to political parties and not to individuals," Minister Fahngon stated in his live video.  Each political party gave ideals and recommendations, which made the meeting a great success.  According to  Deputy Minister Fahngon, "there will be future engagements as such.&quo

What President Trump and Kim Jong Un Ate

The historic summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un continued midday Tuesday, as the leaders satisfied their appetites while holding negotiations with a contingent of advisers over a working lunch. The lunch, which followed a 45-minute one-on-one meeting between the leaders earlier in the morning and bilateral discussion with senior aides, was held at the Capella Hotel on Singapore’s Sentosa Island. It was far from an intimate affair, with each leader accompanied by a bevy of senior staff, according to the White House. Joining Trump were Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Chief of Staff John Kelly, National Security Advisor John Bolton, U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim, press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and Deputy Assistant to the President for Asian Affairs Matthew Pottinger. Kim was accompanied by Kim Yong Chol , the former spy chief and one of North Korea’s chief negotiators, as well as Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho, former

Liberia: Kpanto Entertains Small Crowd at Australia Concert

Kpanto's Australia tour's first night in Perth on April 1st was a tour in terms of attendance, but the artist still managed to put up a fantastic show in spite of the low crowd. Despite Kpanto's tremendous popularity, the attendance was unsatisfactorily low. A video that was just found online shows that there were between 25 and 65 people present. According to the promoter who planned the event, the actual number was 210. Despite all, the musician provided a standout performance.