{{short description|American rapper}} {{Infobox musical artist | image = Sammus live at The Haunt (cropped).jpg | caption = Sammus at the Haunt in Ithaca, New York, in 2015 | image_size = | name = Sammus | birth_name = Enongo Ahou Lumumba-Kasongo | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1986|3|20|mf=y}} | birth_place = [[Rhinebeck (town), New York|Rhinebeck]], [[New York (state)|New York]] | origin = [[Ithaca, New York|Ithaca]], [[New York (state)|New York]],<br />[[United States]] | genre = [[Hip hop music|Hip hop]], [[nerdcore]] | occupation = [[Rapper]], [[songwriter]], [[record producer]], [[teacher]] | years_active = 2010–present | label = Nu-Black Music Group, [[Don Giovanni Records]] | associated_acts = [[Mega Ran]], [[Open Mike Eagle]], [[Xenia Rubinos]], [[Latasha Alcindor]], [[The NPC Collective (group)|The NPC Collective]], [[Sadie Dupuis]], [[Izzy True]], [[Chance Fisher]], [[Gym Class Heroes]] | website = {{URL|http://sammusmusic.com/}} }} '''Enongo Ahou Lumumba-Kasongo'''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ascap.com/repertory#/ace/search/workID/905288561 |title=BRINSTAR |website=ASCAP |publisher=American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers |access-date=January 29, 2025}}</ref> (born March 20, 1986), known as '''Sammus''' (often stylized as '''SΔMMUS'''), is an American underground rapper, record producer, and academic.
== Early life == Enongo Lumumba-Kasongo was born in [[Rhinebeck, NY]] to an [[Ivory Coast|Ivorian]] mother and [[Kongo people|Congolese]] father.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://geekgirlcon.com/creative-corner-sammus/|work=GeekGirlCon|date=December 9, 2013|title=Creative Corner: SAMMUS|first=Kristine|last=Hassell}}</ref> [[Patrice Lumumba]], former Prime Minister of Congo, was her great-uncle.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://sammusmusic.com/2012/07/02/happy-birthday-patrice-lumumba/ | title=Happy Birthday Patrice Lumumba | date=2 July 2012 }}</ref> Her parents, both professors, moved her family to [[Ithaca, New York]], at an early age, her mother teaching at [[Cornell University]] and her father at [[Wells College]].<ref name="Ithacast">{{cite journal|url=http://ithacavoice.com/2015/05/meet-sammus-an-ithaca-rapper-with-rising-star-power-the-ithacast/|title=Meet 'Sammus', an Ithaca rapper with rising star power|author=The Ithacast|publisher=The Ithaca Voice|date=May 6, 2015}}</ref>
She began producing music in highschool under the name DJ Eno,<ref name="shoom">{{cite web|url=https://soundcloud.com/inthemixwithshoom/in-the-mix-w-shoom-episode-eleven-w-sammus|work=in the mix with shoom|title=Episode 11 w/ Sammus|author=shoom|date=June 17, 2014}}</ref><ref name="FanBros">{{cite web|url=https://soundcloud.com/fanbros/fbs-no-53-ladies-night-feat-sammus-girl-gone-geek|work=Fan Bros Show|title=No. 53 - Ladies Night Feat. Sammus & Girl Gone Geek|date=June 5, 2014}}</ref> first using the [[PlayStation]] program ''[[Music_2000|MTV Music Generator]]'', and the [[digital audio workstation]] [[Reason (software)|Reason]] to create beats.<ref name="Ithacast" /><ref name="Mirk">{{cite web|url=http://bitchmagazine.org/post/popaganda-episode-geek-girls-podcast-doubleclicks-video-games|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141219210203/http://bitchmagazine.org/post/popaganda-episode-geek-girls-podcast-doubleclicks-video-games|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 19, 2014|work=Popaganda|title=Geek Girls|first=Sarah|last=Mirk|date=December 18, 2014|publisher=[[Bitch Media]]|authorlink=Sarah Mirk}}</ref> When she was trying to pick a new name for herself, a friend recommended the name [[Samus Aran|Samus]], after the main character of the ''[[Metroid]]'' series of games, since both are women in male dominated genres.<ref name="Ithacast" /><ref name="shoom" /><ref name="FanBros" /><ref name="Mirk" /><ref name="Stephens">{{cite web|url=http://www.mtviggy.com/articles/gee-whiz-rapperproducer-sammus-has-got-game/|title=Gee Whiz: Rapper/Producer Sammus Has Got Game|work=[[MTV|MTV Iggy]]|first=Alexis|last=Stephens|date=October 11, 2013|accessdate=March 26, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518075119/http://www.mtviggy.com/articles/gee-whiz-rapperproducer-sammus-has-got-game/|archive-date=May 18, 2015}}</ref>
== Education == Sammus received a [[Bachelor of Arts|BA]] degree from [[Cornell University]] in 2008, double majoring in [[Science and technology studies]] and [[Sociology]].<ref>{{cite web| date=20 Mar 2020|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBKGGUhPfwg|accessdate=2021-03-30|website = [[YouTube]]| title=Hey it's my birthday | also WTF is going on }}</ref> She then worked full-time as teacher, in [[Houston, Texas]], for [[Teach for America]]. Sammus then returned to Cornell in Fall 2011 to pursue an [[Master of Arts|MA]] degree and doctorate in Science and Technology Studies, which she obtained in 2015 and 2019, respectively.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://sammusmusic.com/2014/02/05/ithaca-times-sammus-feature/|work=The Ithaca Times|first=Louis|last=DiPietro|page=17|date=February 11, 2014|title=Revelation: Sammus}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=enongo lumumba kasongo – rapper / producer / professor |url=https://enongo.net |access-date=October 27, 2022}}</ref><ref>[https://ecommons.cornell.edu/handle/1813/67782 PhD Dissertation Enongo Lumumba-Kasongo: On the boundaries of multivalent musicking; a study on the politics of community-studios] - website of the [[Cornell University Library]]</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=enongo lumumba kasongo |url=https://enongo-lk.com/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150730023313/http://enongo-lk.com/ |url-status=usurped |archive-date=July 30, 2015 |access-date=March 3, 2022 |website=enongo lumumba kasongo}}</ref>
In 2019, Sammus was awarded a two-year Postdoctoral Fellowship in Music at the Cogut Institute for the Humanities at [[Brown University]], focusing on the aesthetics and techniques of music of the African diaspora.<ref>{{cite web |date=May 7, 2019 |title=Enongo Lumumba-Kasongo to Join Brown University Department of Music and Cogut Institute for the Humanities as Postdoctoral Fellow for 2019-21 |url=https://music.brown.edu/news/2019-05-07/enongo-lumumba-kasongo |access-date=March 3, 2022 |website=Brown University Department of Music }}</ref> {{As of|2025}} she is the David S. Josephson Assistant Professor in the Brown University Department of Music.<ref>{{cite web |title=Department of Music Faculty |url=https://music.brown.edu/people/faculty |access-date=December 13, 2025}}</ref>
== Music == Sammus' influences started with her older brother Disashi (formerly a member of [[Gym Class Heroes]]), who exposed her both to video games and [[alternative rock]] bands like [[Weezer]] and [[Nirvana (band)|Nirvana]].<ref name="Ithacast" /><ref name="FanBros" /><ref name="Stephens" /> In addition, Sammus has stated that she has been heavily influenced by [[Kanye West]],<ref name="shoom" /> particularly his debut album ''[[The College Dropout]]'':
{{blockquote|text=It just hit me at the right time. I was about to go into college, and I think prior to that album dropping, I hadn't felt like I could have a voice in hip hop. What [was] represented were two sides of the spectrum: you had 'I have a lot of money, and I do a lot of cool things with my money'—hip hop that was on [[MTV]]—and then there was the super lyrical, very conscious, [[Mos Def]], 'let's talk about the system.' And I didn't feel qualified to contribute to any of that discussion, because my problems were kind of like: 'uhh, I don't want to go to school...' And here was Kanye West talking specifically about 'I don't want to go to school!'|sign=Sammus|source=The Ithacast<ref name="Ithacast" />}}
Sammus released her debut EP ''Fly Nerd'' in 2010. She followed up with the album ''M'Other Brain'' in 2012. After [[Mega Ran]] was exposed to Sammus' music, the two began collaborating.<ref name="shoom" /> In 2013, within a few hours of releasing her second album, ''Prime'', it became the bestselling rap album on [[Bandcamp]].<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://afripopmag.com/2013/08/she-got-game-producer-rapper-s%E2%96%B2mmus-levels-the-playing-field-by-making-video-game-inspired-beats/|title=She Got Game|first=Helen|last=Herimbi|journal=AfriPOP!|date=August 2013|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150325104951/http://afripopmag.com/2013/08/she-got-game-producer-rapper-s%E2%96%B2mmus-levels-the-playing-field-by-making-video-game-inspired-beats/|archivedate=2015-03-25}}</ref> In December 2013, Sammus launched a [[Kickstarter]] campaign for her fourth album, a concept album based on ''Metroid''. This album, ''Another M'' earned her fans of the [[nerdcore]] subgenre. In various interviews and social media, Sammus has clarified that she doesn't identify herself as a nerdcore rapper, and instead prefers the term "Afrofuturism" to refer to her video-game centered music because it requires an engagement with her Blackness.
== Performances == Sammus has toured the U.S. with [[Mega Ran]] on the ''Rappers with Arm Cannons'' tour in 2015. She has performed at the [[SXSW]] Music Festival since 2015, the [[Penny Arcade Expo]] (PAX East) in 2015, [[Geek Girl Con]] in 2014 and 2015 with plans to return in 2016. She has also performed at the east coast's music and gaming festival, [[MAGFest]], in 2015, 2016 and 2024.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://super.magfest.org/blog/registration-opens-today-2024|title=REGISTRATION OPENS TODAY!|website=[[MAGFest|Super MAGFest]]|access-date=September 9, 2023}}</ref> In June 2017 she performed at McCarren park in Greenpoint Brooklyn as part of the Northside Festival.
== Discography == * 2010 - ''Fly Nerd'' (EP, self-released) * 2012 - ''M'Other Brain'' (NuBlack Music Group) * 2012 - ''Reset: Instrumentals'' (self-released) * 2013 - ''Prime'' (NuBlack Music Group) * 2013 - '' Nerdcore Instrumentals: Castlevania Edition'' (with [[DJ Cutman]]) * 2013 - ''Castlevania: The Nocturnal Cantata'' ([[Joypad Records]]) * 2014 - ''Another M'' (NuBlack Music Group) * 2014 - ''Nerdcore Instrumentals 2'' (with [[DJ Cutman]]) * 2016 - ''InFusion'' (EP, NuBlack Music Group) * 2016 - ''Pieces in Space'' ([[Don Giovanni Records]])
== References == {{reflist}}
== External links == * [http://sammusmusic.com/ Official Website] * [https://www.dongiovannirecords.com/artists/sammus Sammus at Don Giovanni Records] * [https://genius.com/artists/Sammus/ Sammus on Genius]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sammus}} [[Category:1986 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:American hip-hop musicians]] [[Category:Cornell University alumni]] [[Category:21st-century American women rappers]] [[Category:Nerdcore artists]] [[Category:Musicians from Ithaca, New York]] [[Category:Rappers from New York (state)]] [[Category:21st-century American rappers]] [[Category:Educators from New York City]] [[Category:20th-century African-American musicians]] [[Category:20th-century African-American women]] [[Category:Don Giovanni Records artists]] [[Category:Ithaca High School (Ithaca, New York) alumni]] [[Category:21st-century African-American rappers]] [[Category:21st-century African-American women rappers]]