Story of an Immigrant (Nomad)

Hi everyone, My name is Abdoulaye Diallo, I am an immigrant and a Fulani (nomade), I was born in a multi-ethnicity; cultural and traditional environment. Growing up in Gbenko (Kerouané, Guinea) where my father was working for the only Diamond Mine in the country. I was fortunate to get the chance to attend both quranic and government school. By the time I was graduating from primary school, most of the employees of the Diamond mine was getting laid off and for some reason my father had to leave the family in the hand of my mother to raise, fortunately, my mother own a store on the main street of Gbenko, where she would sale most groceries needed in the community. We all lived peacefully with many other ethnicities with different traditions. After the Diamond mine permanently stopped operating because the owner of the mine at the time where foreigners and decided to take back their investment. Many of the families lost their jobs, as a result, my family moved to the capital Conakry where I continued middle school. When we arrived the capital, I quickly familiarize myself with different other ethnicities and people. By the time I graduated high school, I was excelling and even knew how to speak English. When I passed my baccalaureate, I was given the choice to either go to a private university or engineering school. I then informed my elder sister Mariama Sadio, she was really happy and gave me admission money for college. The day I was supposed to go pay for admission and start college at a private university is the day my life change. Instead of going for registration, I went to a cybercafé and paid for a connection to the internet to do research about how can you come work and study in the United States. That’s when I found out about the DV Lottery and how to enroll to get a chance at becoming a permanent resident of the United States. After completing my application, I received a confirmation stating check on their website for selection when the results are published. I came home, explained to my sister that instead of using the money to enroll in school, I played the United States DV Lottery. She then said, you are no longer going to a private college but coming to stay with her in Engineering school at Tamakene(Boke, Guinea). In my third year in Engineering school studying geology, I received a letter from the Diversity Visas Lottery Agency informing me that I was selected for an interview in Dakar, Senegal for an Immigrant Visa. With the help of my sister and my family, I was able to depart for Dakar. At the time, my older brother Alhassane lamine was working in Dakar so my sister took me to the station where I embarked in a taxi for my interview and ultimately the beginning my immigrant life. When I arrived in Dakar, my brother gave me a warm welcome and helped me through the process of getting my immigrant visa. After the interview, I received my visa and stayed couples of days with my brother. We visited cultural places and prepared my trip for my new adventure. I left Dakar in May 2011 and arrived in New York and started school at Bronx Community College where I graduated before transferring to Full sail. Where I will take classes like popular culture in media to learn the importance of popular culture. Leadership and organizational behavior will help me solidify strategies to help my decision making and teambuilding skills. In the past nine years I been in the United States, I have learned more about the cultures and traditions the United States offer to the world specially the music and entertainment industry. I send a warm thank and express my proudest and gratefulness to the United States for giving me the chance to have a better life. I find myself in this path because I grow up in a multi-ethnicity and cultural environment that is different from the one that I am living now. Growing up, I listen to music from locale cultures and traditions, now here in the United States, I hear a very different type of cultural music and see different kind of traditions. I have promoted event and attended different cultural venues and I see how all these different people interact with each other and that can create a society where people from different traditions and cultural values connect with each other through their creations. But I am grateful for making the decision to attend Full sail to learn the skills and acquire the tools that I need to achieve my goal of being able to tell my own visual life story at graduation and eventually staring my own production company. For now, I started and setting up a multicultural radio station where I will be hosting and playing music from different cultures, basically an international multicultural station. ( check out my presentation on YouTube: King Ollaid) While completing my degree at full sail, I will be branding myself by telling my very own immigrant story and using the tools the school provides. Which will resonate with the people of my country and immigrants around the United States.

With the emergence of wireless telecommunications, all the parts of the world are getting access to the internet. We can use this in our favor and help connect people from different parts of the world by using music from different cultures and traditions. This will start a new connection between the United States, Guinea, Africa and the rest of the world on a multi-cultural level. And my story will be an example for many young Guinean, Africans and American immigrants.

you can check out my YouTube page for school update and personal videos: King Ollaid

Instagram: Therealkingollaid

Twitter: Therealkingollaid