Instead We Became Evil

A gripping story of how one man escaped gang life and became one of the most successful rappers in Denmark Sleiman is a Palestinian born in Lebanon during the 1982 Bombardment. Eventually his family immigrated to Denmark, but the life they found there was far from ideal. Sleiman faced violent abuse at home, and a social system that rejected him as a Muslim immigrant. Angry and powerless, he found himself drawn to gang life. Soon Sleiman had dropped out of school and as a teenager was one of the most feared and respected members his gang. At his most active he was involved in hundreds of crimes, but after surviving an attempted assassination, he faced his demons and left gang life for good. Now Sleiman is telling his story in his own words in the hope that it prevents others from following his dangerous path.

The brutal, moving debut, co-written with journalist Dart Adams, paints a complex portrait of one man and the many ways he was failed by every social system that was meant to save him while delving into the psychology of immigrant gangs and the young men who fall into them. But ultimately, it is a story of perseverance, survival, and hope for the future.

Sleiman Nejim is a Danish rapper of Palestinian origin. He is known by the mononym Sleiman. He was born in Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near Sidon, Lebanon. He immigrated to Denmark as a child and grew up in Askerød, a housing project in Hundige, a suburb south of Copenhagen. He joined the local gang Bloodz and ended up with a criminal record and jail time. After an assassination attempt on him, he left gang life. Dart Adams is a native Bostonian journalist, historian, lecturer and researcher. His work has appeared in various online and print publications including Complex, NPR, Mass Appeal, Okayplayer, Ebony, DJ Booth, Rock TheBells, uDiscover Music, LEVEL, Boston Globe Magazine, and Boston M a g a z i n e.He’s also the owner/operator of Producers I Know/Fat Beats and hosted Dart Against Humanity and the Boston Legends Podcast.