Johanna Schwartz is director of this documentary which explores the tenacity and creativity of various musicians in the African country of Mali where this universal means of expression has been banned by
Islamic jihadists. She profiles two women musicians, Khaira and Disco, and Moussa, a male guitarist who escaped to Burkina Faso when the violence of the civil war in his homeland became too much for him to handle.
One musician confesses that they have a yearning "to create something to lift ourselves out of our pain." Another states that the ban on this art form is "like cutting off oxygen for people." A large part of this documentary revolves around the Songhoy Blues, a band comprised of musicians from all over the country. They see themselves as ambassadors for their people when they get the opportunity to tour England. In one visually stunning sequence, we see the Songhoy Blues performing near a river during a gorgeous sunset.
They Will Have to Kill Us First affirms the many soulful meanings of music for these African artists.