As an orphan, Elibariki was raised in the city of Arusha at a center for street children called Children For Children’s Future (CCF). Elibariki first learned to read and write at CCF where he also developed a strong passion for music. He sang in a group of six young boys. They called themselves the Bongo Street Boys. “We were young,” he recalled, “but we were singing big things. Hip-hop songs about children’s rights.”

Elibariki was first sponsored by Project Zawadi in 2003 at the age of 14. Looking back, he views Project Zawadi as a parent of sorts, “[without PZ] I wouldn’t be where I am at the moment. Maybe I would’ve been dead already.” When PZ learned about Elibariki’s talent for producing music, they sponsored him to attend music school in Nairobi, Kenya. He learned to use some new software and make his own beats. Below is a song that was produced by Elibariki.

In recent news, as a result of his hard work and strong affinity for working with people, Elibariki was hired to work for Project Rehema, an organization that provides basic needs and support to orphans and other vulnerable children and families across Tanzania. Elibariki explained, “My job is to hug them, put smiles on their faces, to make them forget that they are orphans.” He is very happy and fulfilled in his new job. He claims, “It is like I was born for this job. It reminds me where I came from. I am doing it from the deepest part of my heart because I have an experience of being an orphan.”