For Maasai artist Leshao Sopia Leshao, music is more than entertainment. It is a way to preserve his culture, tell stories and speak about issues affecting his community.
A musician, civil engineer and climate justice advocate, Leshao has built his sound around contemporary music and traditional Maasai rhythms, choosing to sing in Maa as a way of keeping the language and culture alive.
His musical journey began in 2019 while he was in high school and grew more seriously during his university years.
Since then, his work has explored Indigenous culture, education, gender equality, justice and climate change.
His efforts have earned recognition, including being named Rift Valley Male Artist of the Year.
In May 2025, Global Citizen also featured him through its Emerging Creatives programme for using his art to advocate for social change.
“I am not a climate scientist, but I am an artist with a voice and a platform.”
Coming from a pastoralist community, Leshao has seen how droughts, floods and changing weather patterns affect livestock, livelihoods, food security and access to water.
Rather than speaking about climate change only through statistics and policy language, he uses music to tell the human stories behind the crisis.
His collaboration with Spring of the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SASAL) produced two climate-focused songs, “Esipata Oloing’ange” and “ESIANA.”
“Esipata Oloing’ange,” which was featured by Global Citizen, was also performed in Meguarra village, Narok County, bringing climate advocacy directly into the community and cultural setting that inspired the song.
For Leshao, climate conversations do not have to remain in conference rooms. They can also happen through music, culture and stories people understand.
Leshao has participated in international climate spaces including COP29, SB62, COP30 and SB64, where he has connected his artistic work with wider conversations on climate justice.
He believes Indigenous and pastoralist communities should not only be discussed in climate negotiations but should have a voice in shaping solutions.
Alongside music and advocacy, Leshao is a trained civil engineer, having graduated from Meru University of Science and Technology in 2024.
Today, he hopes to use his platform to preserve Maa and Maasai heritage, amplify pastoralist voices and inspire young people to embrace both their roots and their ambitions.
For Leshao, a song can be more than music, it can carry a culture, tell a story and give a community a voice.
