Princess Hawa Daisy Moore
Princess Hawa Daisy Moore was born in Ganta Negbahn Nimba County, Liberia and comes from a family with a rich history. Her mother was a daughter of the traditional clan Chief. Her father's mother was a daughter of Sao Boso known as King Boatswain of Bopolu lower Lofa. Her father played the saxophone in a band called Greenwood Singers and the Tubman Jolly Boys in the fifties. It’s no surprise that Ms. Moore would begin singing in Kpelle and Vai at the tender age of 3. She would sing with the elders of the town as they would gather in the evening with family and friends.
This piece introduces Hawa Moore, a Liberian singer and songmaker, and her children, recent immigrants to Philadelphia. Ms. Moore talks about her background as a singer, in a "royal" family in Liberia, telling how her music was encouraged by her father, discouraged by missionaries, how difficult it is to perform here, and how she tries to teach her children. She and her children sing two songs. 8:27 minutes. 1997
Hawa Daisy Moore, July 2022
Princess Hawa was discovered by Mr.& Mrs Sherman Brown during a Christmas production with the St. Thomas Episcopal Church chorus group at ELBC TV. Her first LP Just Dazy was released in 1977 by Studio One, an eight track recording studio owned by Edgar S. Mitchell Sr. and located in central Monrovia. Later on, Miriam Makeba would take her on the road in her group Makeba band. When the Liberian Civil war began, Hawa Daisy Moore and her 5 children came to the United States in 1991.
Ms. Moore has continued performing and was the first Liberian to perform in the Philly Dance Africa programs. She was able to include other Liberian legends including Kumafa Bobo and Tamba of the National Cultural Center of Liberia. She was also featured in Philadelphia Folklore Project 1998 photography exhibit “Artists in Exile.”
