“Let’s insult the soldier’s mother”

This chapter examines the varied ways that women use song to communicate about difficult topics, leveraging stigma and marginality into new forms of power. A distinctive song associated with the Association for Promoting Girls and Women’s Advancement kanyeleng group provides further insight into the unique feature of kanyeleng practice. The song repeats the words “let’s insult the soldier’s mother” in call-and-response fashion. While kanyeleng engage in health communication in part because of their special joking cousin status, the chapter explores why Fatou sang about HIV/AIDS in spite of her marginalized social position as an HIV positive woman. It illustrates the way songs about health topics build on broader dynamics of performative license that have long enabled West African women to have their voices heard, articulate frustrations with gender inequality, and influence public opinion. The chapter shows how differences between Fatou’s motivation and social position and those of kanyeleng performers translate into significant differences in their songs.