Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars - seven outstanding West African musicians forced to live as refugees during the brutal civil war of Guinea - announced on 9 November 2006 that they are committing themselves to helping the world’s nine million refugee youth by supporting ninemillion.org. Partnering with the UN Refugee Agency’s ninemillion.org campaign, the band and lead singer Reuben M. Koroma will use their new album release and documentary film to raise awareness and funds.

As former refugees who can directly speak to the plight of refugee children, and who’ve gained significant notoriety in their extensive concert touring, the band members were eager to join the campaign. "In the refugee camps we found the most traumatized youth--those who had lost family, had been maimed, or had been taken as child combatants--and we focused on helping them," said Koroma, who taught at a school during his time in a refugee camp and will assume an individual role as advocate for the campaign. "In addition to music and theater, we had the greatest success in helping them achieve a sense of normalcy through sports and basic schooling. We sincerely hope that ninemillion.org can expand on these efforts to reach the millions of youth still in need."

The seven touring members of SLRAS range in age from 19 to 50 and each member brings a unique musical element to the group, from 19-year-old Black Nature’s hip-hop style to some of the older members who play traditional West African goombay music. The band combines elements of reggae and rhythmic traditional folk for a live experience unlike any other. Though SLRAS formed in a refugee camp in remote West Africa, they have taken their infectious music and message of peace on tour around the world in 2006.

Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars’ ‘Living Like A Refugee’ album, released on September 26 by Anti- Records, features an insert about ninemillion.org, with a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the CD to be donated to the ninemillion.org fund.

ninemillion.org’s refreshed and enhanced website features the album’s single, ‘Living Like A Refugee.’ MSN Music, at http://music.msn.com/artist/?artist=49836758 is featuring the band to further promote sales of the album and to extend its support of the campaign. This feature allows users to listen to album tracks, purchase the album, and receive up-to-date information about the tour.

The album was recorded as part of the production of a documentary film about the band. Filmmakers Zach Niles and Banker White and musician/Record Producer Chris Velan met the band in a refugee camp in 2002 and followed their story over the course of three years. The resulting film, "Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars" (SLRAS), is one of the most acclaimed documentaries of the year, winning more than a dozen awards at film festivals around the world.

"We are all, the world over, touched by the refugee experience. The story and music of Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars brings that experience to a level of deep emotional connection fueled with reality and hope," said Wendy Chamberlin, Deputy High Commissioner for the UNHCR. "We are very pleased to announce the campaign’s partnership with the band to bring the message of ninemillion.org to audiences around the world."