Personal Info
- Country of residence: United States
Information
Sammy Totah has been rapping on stage with Grammy Award winning performer Carlos Santana, and his son Salvador, since he was still in high school. Born and raised in San Francisco, Totah's Palestinian father and Mexican-American mother gave him a culturally diverse introduction to music and the arts. When he was just seven Totah began writing poetry to fill a creative urge and to articulate his feelings.
Totah's father encouraged his creative development and introduced him to different genres of music and musical instruments. Totah opened the door to a musical career by going to San Francisco's School of the Arts High School to play the classical French horn and baritone tuba. Totah met Carlos Santana's son, Salvador, at school.
In 1999, Totah performed for the first time on stage with Carlos and Salvador Santana at a benefit concert for his high school. "Being on stage with Santana gave me energy and inspiration to do what I wanted to do," he said.
Totah continued performing with the legendary singer and his son doing benefit concerts for The Milagro Foundation, a non-profit organization founded by Deborah and Carlos Santana to help underprivileged children around the world.
In 2004 Totah became the vocalist and lyricist for the Salvador Santana Band. But, Totah also works on solo projects close to his heart. "I can't ignore the issues that face the Palestinians," he said. "It's in my nature as an artist to be the voice of the people."
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