Women of colour are currently having a weird time in the music industry. On the one hand, we’ve dominated the charts, but on the other, we have been analysed, called-out and ridiculed. Doja Cat, Beyoncé, Megan Thee Stallion and Nicki Minaj sat at the top two only a couple of weeks ago, a feat that […]

What’s the first thing you do in the morning at the moment? It could be easing out of bed, drowning your sorrows in coffee as you remember the realities of lockdown. But Corinne Bailey Rae’s philosophy is that mornings are filled with possibility, and we can directly harness that through setting the mood for our […]

Today would have been the Eurovision Song Contest’s 63rd iteration. A competition that is perhaps more divisive than marmite. Personally, I hated it for many years. I thought it was long-winded and full of garish cheesy pop, however, my opinion changed slightly in more recent years. In 2014 we saw drag queen Conchita Wurst, often […]

In case you didn’t know it already, we’re in week eight of the coronavirus lockdown in the UK, and with the recent news that Britain has the highest coronavirus death rate in Europe, it’s not looking like we’ll be DLT brunching anytime soon. But people still need an outlet. Something to bring us together and […]

With the news that Notting Hill Carnival has officially been cancelled, I was left unsurprised but nevertheless disappointed. Of course, it had to be cancelled. Last year’s carnival has an estimated attendance of over 2 million. It’s an event that simply could not take place during these unprecedented times. This didn’t change the fact that […]

Lianne La Havas has been away for a long time. Five years have passed since the singer-songwriter’s last album release, Blood, in 2015. But sitting in front of me (pre-lockdown), hair piled up and twisted into a big kinky bun, wearing a slouchy crop top, clutching a hot drink and laughing throatily, she’s back to […]

Despite concerns about how the music industry would fare during coronavirus, it’s been a busy week in music. Drake, a celebrity with a work rate that can only be compared to Kris Jenner’s, has released a surprise 14 track mixtape while we wait for his album later this year. Nicki Minaj jumped on Doja Cat’s […]

Everyone has a lockdown ritual of sorts. Many spend evenings watching TV or FaceTiming loved ones, but for Dutch-Sudanese artist Gaidaa each day is spent standing outside trying to soak up the sun. She’s photosynthesizing, recharging and reconnecting with the things that ground her – like family, her mother-tongue and soul-bearing music to sing to […]

Each Thursday I’ve been going out at 8pm to clap for the NHS and other key workers. I’ve seen arguments questioning the usefulness and genuineness of this from a Britain that voted in a Tory government, which is understandable. However, I’ve still made an effort to go out each week, mainly to show support and […]

As NAYANA IZ (pronounced: eye-zee) answers my FaceTime call, I’m glad to see that we’re both chilling in bed in our loungewear, and think, “it couldn’t get any more lockdown than this”.  Part of the enigmatic, up-and-coming west London creative collective, NiNE8 (which includes Lava La Rue and Biig Piig), NAYANA IZ is a vocalist […]

I’d like to start where it all began. It began with me hearing music in a totally different way. I was born and bred in Notting Hill, west London, with the Notting Hill Carnival right on my doorstep. My childhood was spent surrounded by music, but my hearing wasn’t great (in fact, in 2011 I […]

Unwittingly, with five on it, I have created a weekly column in which to air my end of Friday stresses and neuroses (largely under the assumption that no one will read this bit, but you need something here to take up some space). For all it can be manic, it’s still nice to have this […]