Keinan Abdi Warsame was born in 1978 in Mogadishu, Banaadir, Somalia. The musician and lyricist otherwise known as K’Naan, fled his home country with his mother and two siblings during the height of the civil war in 1991. Catching the last commercial flight out of the country, they were welcomed to Toronto, Canada via New York as refugees. Settling in the Rexdale neighbourhood of Toronto, K’Naan listened to records sent by his father to learn English by phonetically copying the lyrics. He not only used music as an educational tool, but as a coping mechanism and form of self-expression. His grandfather was a well-known poet and his aunt a notable singer; their work was a constant source of inspiration for the artist. Dropping out of school in the 10th grade, he began to perform at open-mic nights, eventually capturing a manager who would help secure him a performance at the 1991 50th anniversary of The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Geneva. His politically driven spoken-word performance on the topic of failed UN peacekeeping missions to Somalia garnered a standing ovation. His piece also brought the attention of Senegalese singer Youssou N’Dour who invited him to participate in the album Building Bridges which featured artists living in exile.

In 2005 K’Naan released album The Dusty Foot Philosopher which combined African instrumentation with American hip-hop. The politically fused album won the Juno award for Best Rap Recording in 2006 and was nominated for the Polaris Music Prize. His following album Troubador (2009) continued to grow his popularity and held the explosive track “Wavin’ Flag”. The song was remixed by multiple celebrities to raise money for earthquake relief funds for Haiti and another remix was used as the official anthem for the 2010 World Cup. Both versions of the song became immensely popular and brought the musician international fame. K’Naan published a children’s book capturing the creation of the song titled When I Get Older: The Story Behind Wavin’ Flag. He credits his grandfather’s poetry and relentless support as the inspiration for the anthem. Following this album, he won two more Junos for Artist of the Year and Songwriter of the Year. The year 2012 brought the release of his latest album Country, God or the Girl and an acting stint in the renowned Canadian filmmaker David Cronenberg’s thriller, Cosmopolis. The talented poet has worked with many other notable artists including Mos Def, Nelly Furtado, and Damien Marley. After a ten-year hiatus, K’Naan reemerged with the slam dunk single “Refugee”. The emotional track won a Grammy in 2024 under the “Song for Social Change”category and is paired with an equally powerful music video. K’Naan continues to be an ambassador for the plight of his homeland and all refugees.