#live unchained

[wendybird]

(via » Inspired by The Poetry of Warsan Shire, Design Students Launch Art Campaign / Live Unchained)  

[wendybird]

(via » Inspired by The Poetry of Warsan Shire, Design Students Launch Art Campaign / Live Unchained) ((FROM http://riotpieces.tumblr.com )) 

what they did yesterday afternoon by by warsan shire

they set my aunts house on fire

i cried the way women on tv do

folding at the middle

like a five pound note.

i called the boy who use to love me 

tried to ‘okay’ my voice

i said hello

he said warsan, what’s wrong, what’s happened?

  i’ve been praying,

and these are what my prayers look like;

dear god

i come from two countries

one is thirsty

the other is on fire

both need water.

  later that night

i held an atlas in my lap

ran my fingers across the whole world

and whispered

where does it hurt?

  it answered 

everywhere

everywhere

everywhere.

Editor’s note: Warsan Shire’s poetry and words can be found on 

http://warsanshire.blogspot.com/

http://warsanshire.tumblr.com/

[noiseaux]

http://www.shantellmartin.com/http://shantellmartin.tumblr.com/

[liveunchained-blog]

At The Edge of Your Seat: How Lenelle Moïse Takes a Poet’s Approach to Playwriting

[caption id="attachment_3325" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Lenelle Moïse, Photo by Vanessa Vargas/Brave Vine[/caption]

Eyes wide, spines straight, brows furrowed. Poet, playwright, and performance artist Lenelle Moïse enjoys when the audience is at the “edge of their seats.” Whether she’s bonding with the audience in her autobiographical one-woman show Womb Words, Thirsting or exploring the friendship of platonic soulmates in Expatriate, this 2012 Ruby Prize winner models openness, curiosity, and flexibility in every work she produces. Her brevity and poignant ability to tell stories have audiences participating, even when their mutual laughter lightens the seriousness of her plays’ subject matter.

On stage, Lenelle Moïse is her “most bold, inviting, alert self,” making it easy for audiences to join her on the fantastically captivating, joyously entertaining journey of her characters. Her performances allow audience members to engage in the life of a stranger, while still being challenged in their own lives. Lenelle, the “black woman immigrant lesbian artist with working class roots,” allows her identity to shape her heart, and her heart to shape her art, saturating her work with the drama of real-life. In this interview highlighting Lenelle’s work, we discuss her desire to celebrate her “free body” and to the present “well-told stories about complex characters of color.”

Can you tell us more about your upcoming plays Expatriate and Ache What Make?

Expatriate is a fantastical full-length drama about Claudie and Alphine, two African-American musicians who are painfully platonic soul mates. I wrote the play with a poet’s ear. In one scene, the character Alphine sings:

“I’ve got the makings of a Lady,

a Billie.

I drink but don’t

miss a beat.

Smoke but my eyes

never pink.

Blow but the music

don’t blink…”

You learn a lot about her in a few short lines: she’s talented, arrogant, addicted, clever, sensuous and sad.

I feel the tools I employ to describe the world as a poet are the same tools I use to create a world as a playwright. I’m watchful and sensitive to body language, speech patterns and tone. These traits serve me well in the theatre.

In Expatriate, there’s a scene where Alphine shows up on Claudie’s Parisian doorstep, totally out of the blue. They haven’t seen or spoken to each other in a year. They have a passive-aggressive exchange, there’s an awkward pause, then Claudie bursts it with, “You ever notice how we don’t hug?” It’s a sucker-punch of a line. It shifts the scene. Her question is about the immediate situation but it’s also about their entire relationship. Both playwriting and poetry encourage concision. You have to share a lot of information without sacrificing momentum.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="400"] Lenelle Moïse in Ache What Make, Photo by Hunter Canning Courtesy of Women Center Stage[/caption]

I’m currently developing Ache What Make, a new solo performance. The script is made up of 18 poems and songs, many of which were written after the January 2010 earthquake that shook my birthplace, Haiti. The poems are strong on the page, but I love to perform them. In rehearsal, I’m finding a physical vocabulary and soundscape to compliment the text.

What has been your favorite work to complete to date?

That’s a tough question...I love all my babies! I do enjoy performing my one-woman show Womb-Words, Thirsting. It’s about growing up politicized, working class and queer. It’s an evening full of laughter and I get to bond with my audiences. On stage, I am my most bold, inviting, alert self. Off stage, I’m a bit of a recluse, always sorting the past or thinking ahead.

What’s one thing that you want the audience to walk away with after seeing one of your plays or performances?

I want to empower my audiences to talk to strangers. I want us to celebrate our similarities and to practice loving each other for our differences. Through solo performance, I want to model openness, curiosity and flexibility. I want to help people balance their private, deep epiphanies with public, bubbling laughter.

Most of my work confronts racism, sexism and xenophobia. I want my audience to feel good about having “gone there” with me. Even when the truth-telling hits hard, there has to be some pleasure in the theatrical experience. As an artist, I am always interested in beauty—in creating a positive spectacle on stage. It’s nice to see eyes widen and spines straighten and furrowed brows melt. I want you at the edge of your seat.

Congratulations on winning the 2012 Ruby Prize for your play Merit.  Can you tell us a little bit about it?

Thank you! Merit is a comedic drama in two acts. It follows African-American fiction writer, Mona, into her prestigious and predominantly white MFA program. She’s a lioness of a character. Mighty, naughty, searching and troubled. She has an affair with her professor, Dr. Sive, the only other person of color in their department. They attempt to strike a balance between power and affection. They teach each other humility. In some ways, the play is my black feminist response to David Mamet’s Oleanna. But mostly, it’s about one woman writer’s creative process. Dr. Sive is an intellectual, he writes from his head. Mona is whip smart, too, but she’s writing with her entire body.

How has being a black female artist contributed to your work? Has it inspired your work or posed any particular challenges in the reception of it?

My identity shapes my heart and my heart shapes my art. I get to experience the world as a black woman immigrant lesbian artist with working class roots! It’s a deep, fascinating and lovely journey. My goal as a playwright is to create leading roles for women and people of color. I want to give voice to the range of our experiences. With my pen, I can steer marginalized narratives to the center of the stage. And I find that audiences—across race, gender, sexuality, class and culture—are ready to embrace well-told stories about complex women characters of color.

 What does “living unchained” mean to you?

The first Haitian Independence Day was January 1, 1804. With faith, wit, desperation, and a whole lot of nerve, the slaves of Haiti overthrew their French slave captors. It was the only successful slave revolt ever recorded in history. I think about it every single day. In the face of brutality and injustice, my ancestors imagined and fought for my freedom.

I owe it to them not to be owned. I owe it to them to feel free—to love who moves me, to make what moves me. So “living unchained” means taking good care of my free body. It means feeding myself vegetables, long walks, good music and divine orgasms. It means letting my body be hugged by true friends. It means advocating for the freedom of others.

...

If you are interested in Lenelle's work, the Theater Offensive will bring Expatriate to Boston from October 4-6, 2012. You can also stream/embed the music from the show for free here: http://music.lenellemoise.com/album/the-expatriate-amplification-project

  [vimeo 26444973 w=500 h=375]

Meet Lenelle Moïse from Lenelle Moise on Vimeo.

Written by Cera Smith

Original Article

[liveunchained-blog]

Editress’ Note: I decided to get a little off-the-chain with this introduction to our Queendom interview. I invited one of the most inspiring and unchained cultural workers, I know, Jess Solomon, to write the intro as a siren song to women of African descent around the world making collaborative artwork like the Pan-African Norway-based music and performance group, Queendom.

Jess Solomon

As a black woman who creates performance art collaboratively with other black women, I know our art takes on an intimate, cultural complexity that is not explicit in its basic definition. Art that is rooted in a cultural aesthetic, born out of personal experience, and nurtured in safe (but challenging), creative spaces is magical. It’s the kind of stuff that affirms, transcends language, and can smooth over self-doubt, self-sabotage and plain old fear (of greatness). On this leg of my journey of self-discovery and becoming, my artistry is fluid, moving between that which is both core and distant to me: my experience as a woman, born when and where I was, in the skin and body I am in.

For me, Queendom – a dynamic constellation of women artists of the Diaspora – is a light that shines through the cracks in the silos we Creatives sometimes build out of self-preservation and/or survival. Queendom’s beautiful light reminds me that we – like light – are EVERYWHERE, creating, affirming, re-imagining, challenging and transcending. Queendom, I want to come to Norway with my Sister-Friend Artists (SFA’s) from Washington, DC, New York City, New Orleans, Oakland, Chicago and Durham for a visit.  We’ll write radical love poems in between cups of tea and laughter. Keep shining. The glow feels good.

Queendom, Left to Right: Asta Busingye, Hannah Wozine, Monica Ifejilika

How did your group come to have the name Queendom?

Queendom is a sisterhood, a mindset, and a creative space where we can express ourselves freely and be proud of who we are, despite our imperfections. The name Queendom reflects that we are female artists in a male dominated entertainment industry and Black women in a white society. In our minds, all women are queens, and they should live it by loving themselves, supporting their sisters, and taking control of their lives.

With members from Ethiopia, Nigeria and Uganda, Queendom is a pan-African female crew.  How did you all connect?

We met in the 90’s through a theatre in Norway’s capital, Oslo, called the Nordic Black Theatre and we were also involved in an NGO called Afrikan Youth in Norway. As aspiring artists, we realized that we didn’t want to just act in other people’s plays, but wanted to write and perform our own material! Years later, we have performed for royalty, Nobel Peace Prize laureates and for ordinary people all over Norway and abroad, so we know that our stories hit a nerve.

You all share some powerful thoughts on women’s empowerment with songs like “‘Till the Battle is Won.”  What makes a woman empowered?

A woman is empowered when she has control of her own life. That requires a lot of things: A society that gives room for women’s ambitions and dreams, and a self that does the same. It has been a long journey for us. Just as other young women, we used to struggle with low self-esteem and fear of other people’s judgment, but through constructive criticism, supporting each other and pushing each other to do things we are afraid of we have become better people and better artists.

How does your African heritage inspire you?  How does Norway inspire you? 

Africa is a continent that brims with talent, innovation and energy, so Queendom wants to challenge all the negative images people are presented with through Western media. Our African roots are the basis of our music, and people love the combination of groovy African beats and politically conscious and funny lyrics. We performed at the HIFA festival in Zimbabwe (an arts festival bringing together international artists) in May 2012, and the fantastic response proves that our music really speaks to Africans, women especially.

Norway has probably inspired us more than we think. We appreciate the values that Norwegian society is built upon – gender equality, peace and distribution of wealth – but it is also a country that has subjected us to racism and taught us the importance of defining ourselves, and fighting for our place in society. Queendom would not be Queendom without Norway.

Your song “Zum Zuma” really made an impression on me. Can you tell me about the creative process for that song?  In the lyrics, are you referencing the orisha Shango?

Hannah of Queendom Peforming with Manou Gallo

Yes, the lyrics refer to the orisha Shango inspired by Yoruba culture found in Cuba, but the origin of this song is based on a very personal experience when Hannah in our group went to a small town, Mafikeng, at the border of Botswana: “I had one of the strongest spiritual experiences of my life. One early morning, just before the sun came up, all dressed in white, we were doing a cleansing ritual to welcome the good spirits and chase the evil ones away. This to bless the wedding that was going to take place on the same grounds later in the day. As I opened my heart and let the good spirits in, I felt an inexplicable inner peace. Later, that inspired me to write the song ‘Zum Zuma’. I am a person who doesn’t easily let go. So when I dared to just be still and accept, magic happened in a good way.”

I once heard someone say the only reason poverty and other developmental issues remain prevalent across African countries is because Western industrialized nations have not fully decided to intervene. What do you think of this sentiment? What role do you think art like yours plays in creating positive relationships among Western and African countries?

Africa’s problems are caused by a number of historical and present factors that are very complex, and the solutions are just as complex. When Western nations “intervene”, they have often done so out of their own economic interest, and/or with a paternalistic political agenda, so that is certainly no quick fix. To get a healthy relationship, they must see Africans as equal partners, and help Africans do what is best for Africa.

As artists, we cannot liberate a whole continent, but our music highlights important societal issues, provides comfort, empowerment, and strengthens people’s spirits. This, in turn, can inspire people to fight their own private or political battles. Queendom knows that women play a key role in peace and development and hope that our music can inspire women to take charge of their own destiny.

You all deal with some serious issues, but there is also a lot of fun and humor in Queendom. You all even have a comedy show.  Can you share one of your funniest experiences collaborating with each other?  What makes you all laugh when working together?

We wouldn’t survive if it weren’t for our sense of humor! In our early comedy shows, we would act out the racial prejudice and the ignorance we had encountered in Norwegian society. Then we started making fun of ourselves, like how come the most white-looking queen in the group has the blackest voice and the most African name, and how the Soul-Sister queen can’t dance and loves Willie Nelson? The audience didn’t always share our sense of humor. Once, in a small, conservative village, people covered their children’s ears and left the room! We still laugh when we think about those days.

Finally, what does living unchained mean to you?

In Queendom, we believe in artistic freedom, brutal honesty and quirky personalities – but also respect and consideration for our fans. We are all bound in some way by family, history and society, but that doesn’t have to limit us. As artists, it is also our strength.

Be sure to “Like” Queendom on Facebook for the latest news.

[liveunchained-blog]

Art with a Conscience: Mona El-Bayoumi on Creativity, Egyptian Politics, and being African-Arab

When talking about socially conscious art, which serves a purpose beyond its aesthetic value, a few names come to mind. Mona El-Bayoumi stands among those venerable ranks. An Egyptian-born, Michigan-bred, Washington, D.C.-based artist, Mona exemplifies what it means to be a global artist. Her art is beautiful, but more importantly, it is meaningful. Influenced by disparate cultures and locales and a resolve to voice injustice, Mona uses the canvas to illuminate connections between people’s suffering the world over. Her work is an attempt at subverting the status quo and elevating to the surface that which goes unnoticed, encouraging viewers to think, without being obvious or endorsing a certain political agenda. Simply put, Mona’s work illustrates the idea that in its highest form, art is ultimately about striving to make individuals question all that exists.In this interview we discuss the political inspiration of Mona's work, how she believes Egyptian uprisings "have been hijacked," why she would like to see all Egyptians fully embracing their African identity, and, of course, what living unchained means to her.

...

[caption id="attachment_3285" align="alignleft" width="225"] Mona El-Bayoumi[/caption]

When did you first realize you wanted to be an artist?

All children are artists.  It is a natural thing to be an artist.  But some adults continue with their artistic ways.  So, I always knew I was an artist, but other people started seeing that I was an artist when I was about eight years old.  People began asking me to submit my work in art shows and I began to win prizes, and the art teachers started pointing me out to other students as an example.  As early as I can remember I defined myself as an artist.

How has your experience living abroad and your extensive travel around the world influenced your art?

The world is a much smaller place now than it was when I was growing up. You are able to see other places through the computer so easily now. But, back in the 70’s, places were more distinct. Traveling on an airplane and arriving in another country with its unique culture was a sharp contrast to one’s normal surroundings. One was transported to a unique place with its unique smells, designs, colors, and feelings. I think seeing a different world subconsciously influenced my palette and my composition reflecting space and time.

Different rules in different cultures translated to freedom of no rules on the canvas. Growing up in Michigan, I was exposed to a set of social rules much different than those expected in Egypt. If one were to switch actions in a respective country, it might be unacceptable. When one paints, you might find people who find your rules very acceptable, and others may find them unacceptable.  In other words, art is a culture of its own. It is for the viewer to create their own translation.

[caption id="attachment_3288" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Breaching the Wall, 2011 by Mona El-Bayoumi[/caption]

A lot of your paintings carry a political or socially conscious message. What do you think the role art and artists play in raising people’s consciousness and awareness?

Throughout history art has been the most powerful means of documenting life.  While some documentations seem more subtle, reflecting more mundane events, others might document more seemingly important or pivotal times. While words might be more easily censored by the ruling class, a picture here and there can be more easily neglected, even though it may be just as powerful or even more powerful.

When I paint about a given event, I paint it with the same intensity, as I would a still life or a landscape. It is expressing my personal thoughts and feelings about what is happening. I think this is very important, because someone might say, “Oh, what a pretty picture,” at first, but may later question why the artist feels it is so important to depict a given subject. The viewer might not want to read about the injustices against the Palestinians or racism in general, but he or she might look at the “picture” of the girl with the oranges and ask what is so important about oranges or olive trees, or why are men in orange jump suits on someone else’s island. Why is the women sad about other 9/11’s, I thought there was only one. Artists have always been pivotal in helping citizens question.

[caption id="attachment_3289" align="aligncenter" width="500"] From the South Tip of Africa to the West Bank, to South East DC in Unity, 2004[/caption]

I was really intrigued by your piece titled, “From the South Tip of Africa to the West Bank to South East DC in Unity.” Could you say more about the inspiration and meaning of this piece?

We are lucky that the world is getting smaller in some ways, because more people can see the similarities of the greedy and powerful against the majority of the people. There are many similarities between apartheid South Africa and apartheid Israel. And there are also similarities to what has happened to African Americans in general, but in a more amplified manner to those living in DC. The girls’ braids in this piece are connected, the South African, to the Palestinian, the Palestinian to only part of an image of the girl in DC because one often turns a blind eye to the suffering right before their eyes. Only recently are people beginning to make transatlantic comparisons. There is racism against all of these girls. There are land and border issues confronting all of them. There is a lack of resources for all of them. There are inferiority issues brought against all of them. Linking visually and politically was my goal.

Growing up in a university town, I was exposed to many different struggles around the world, whether it was in Central America, South Africa, Palestine, Vietnam, Eritrea or right here in America. My politically savvy parents always made the connections when they spoke publicly about injustice in general.

Live Unchained attempts to expand what it means to be a female artist of African descent. Often times, being Arab is separated from being African. Where do you think this idea comes from? Do you think we can blur this fictitious cultural divide between “Arabs” of North Africa and the rest of Africa? In other words, is there such a thing as Arab-African?

I grew up at the end of the time where Pan-Africanism was popular, and the former President of Egypt, Gamal Abdel Nasser, celebrated our African identity.  Egyptians are African… that is a fact. We are also Arab. Some of us are Muslim, Christian, and even Jewish.

Africa is such a rich continent in its natural resources, cultural resources and creative resources. Dividing such a powerful continent is the wish of the powerful. Even though negative connotations with the word “African” are expressed in Western culture, simultaneously, there is a fascination and desire to emulate. The Arab World, North Africa, more specifically, is being defined by others, as a means of controlling it. There are Arabs who are not African, but the Arabs that are North African are just as African as any other African.

I personally define myself as an African-Arab. To be honest, most Egyptians have now been indoctrinated to see African as a negative despite the progressive Pan-African history. I look forward to a day when more young Egyptians will confidently embrace their African identity. And that won’t happen until Egypt is truly liberated from all outside controlling forces, “revolution” or not.

Seeing that you are originally from Egypt and your work deals with the recent uprisings, what future do you envision for Egypt?

It looks very bleak at this point. While some of the uprising was spontaneous and people flooded the streets in numbers due to economic and social despair and frustration, history will document in a Wikileaks-like file or perhaps in a visual manner, the way in which the “revolutions” were orchestrated behind the scenes in order to solidify Western control of the region. Egypt has seen people come and go for thousands of years, but whenever there is injustice and dogmatic control of a people, they will rebel. Egypt’s “revolution” has been hijacked to further solidify Western control of the country, under the guise of religious control.

But, for me, it is not only about Egypt, it is about the whole world. Economically, the few wealthy people control the economy of the world. They are robbing a whole generation. It is not just about Egypt’s young people, it’s about America’s young people, Africa’s young people, Europe’s young people… This time in history will be looked upon as the bubbling of a greater eruption to take place.

Finally, what does living unchained mean to you?

Speaking your mind with a light tongue and a light heart.

Written by Nesrien Hamid

Original Article

[liveunchained-blog]

When did you fall in love with punk?: Noah Sow on Afrounk Chanson, Freedom and Living Your Truth

You can bet there will always be a million pigeonholes people can't wait to stuff you inside. As a black woman in the punk music scene, Noah Sow of Noiseaux, flips the bird to each and every one. When asked how it feels to be black, German and doing punk music, Noah replied: “I’m educated enough to know that "Black music" is [many things]…you bet whenever I open my mouth to sing, what comes out is Black music by definition.” Noiseaux has even created their own music genre, Afropunk Chanson, which they'll have people headbanging to on their upcoming tour with 24-7 Spyz, one of the most influential black bands  in the punk scene.

A mutli-talented artist and activist, Noah’s humor and wit also comes across in her book, Germany, Black and White. Take, for example, her “List of Stupid Phrases” said to Black Germans and practical responses. She suggests when someone asks: “Do you feel more African or German?” one can respond: “Do you feel more ‘ass’ or ‘dumb-ass’?”

For Noah, race is not just some categorization she wishes would disappear so we could all live in peace. Blackness represents the heritage she, and many Black Germans don’t want to continue to see attacked or minimized. Noah sings with passion and intensity on all her songs, and this especially comes across in songs like, “Be Calm,” which criticizes European beauty standards and black stereotypes in popular media. She was a member New York's, Anarchists of Color, whose 3-word motto was: “Disgrace Your Stereotype.”*

Here Noah talks about punk as a musical genre and lifestyle, being a black woman on the scene and Noiseaux’s latest album Out Now!.

...

When did you first fall in love with punk rock?

My key punk rock experience was as a teenager when the Black female fronted German punk band “Jingo de Lunch” came to my school to play a show. The headmaster had no idea what he had let through the nod. Punk audiences came from near and far and destroyed the whole sports ground by by moshing. It was the most wonderful day of my life (until then...more have followed since :-)).

I was already a punk kid then, with green hair and all, but had not known the band before, although they were quite influential. Jingo De Lunch were and still are the only influential Black female fronted punk rock band out of Germany.

I was one of three Black kids in the whole town. The town was racist as f*@k. Jingo de Lunch's singer, Yvonne, was my first female role model. So powerful. I was in awe. Almost made me cry. I’ll never forget that day.

Is punk a way of life?

Punk has different aspects. One is a musical genre. The second and more important one for me is that it is an attitude. I’d call it being deviant, living on one’s own account. Not accepting society’s stereotypes and pigeonholes--that can definitely result in a way of life. When the two are combined, like in new Black Rock movements to reclaim the terms “punk” and “rock”, there’s no more “punk police” going: “Hey, the Sex Pistols are Punk but not Grace Jones or Little Richard,” but a more unifying and causal definition of “punk.”

I could always relate to some of the punk rock elements: openly expressed emotion, explicit resistance against societal norms, I experienced this as very freeing. Some other elements of “punk rock” I never quite understood...like, how did they manage to turn it into this 90% white scene? Like Tamar Kali said, punks wear mohawks and ear tunnels. It’s never been a white thing. I’m not even starting about the musical influences.

What do you think is the biggest misunderstanding of punk rock?

That the first thing that pops up in one’s mind when hearing the word is a white male.

You’ve gotten a lot of great feedback on your new album, Out Now! What was your vision for this album?

My vision was to combine the attitude I had at that time with melodic songs. I have a soft spot for beautiful melodies and like to incorporate them into a louder and heavier sound. I wrote my book on everyday racism at the same time when we recorded the album, so I could have a positive outlet for all the sad and heavy stuff that was in my head. In many ways it was an emancipation record for me.

I’ve always wanted to see what it would feel like to record all the songs both in English and German, how they would change, how their feel would change. And I really wanted to reach out to my Black rock music loving folks in my own country as well as anywhere else, so a 2-language-album made sense.

I also managed to become autonomous after long and unlovely experiences with the German record industry’s stereotyping issues. Being able to release the album on my own label “Jeanne Dark Records” felt especially awesome.

Do you think you’ve been able to connect with artists and fans abroad because the stereotypes and issues you communicate through your music are so similar around the world?

I absolutely feel this is a universal Black rock woman experience. For me it’s great to make international connections because wherever we are we are such a minority that we simply don’t find many people to connect with if we don’t reach out pretty far.

I’ve met women in every part of the world with similar experiences: not “fitting in” (or not wanting to fit in), not being content with serving submissive “non-threatening”, exaggeratedly feminine images, every one of them having to fight against so much bulls*@t and adversity only to be able to show her art. Of course, this results in powerful connections. I’m happy and honored that I can call Maya from Mother Goddess and Honeychild Coleman my dear friends, among others.

It seems like there aren’t too many female led punk-rock bands like yours (or are they just less recognized?).

Hmmm, I don’t consider NOISEAUX a "punk-rock band". There might be some correlations in my or our music and biography, but "punk rock" for me is not a synonym for "part of the Afropunk culture". I guess I know what you mean though--how is this still such a male dominated genre? It’s because when women are loud, in charge, in control, self-confident, we are frequently reprimanded, ignored or attacked. We’re a threat to male privilege and probably also the whole identity construction of some guys. And women of color are not exactly being encouraged to start a rock band hahaha.

I have the impression that this is slowly changing--I hope I’m right. Media images are definitely pushing in the wrong way regarding young women’s self images.

Would you say your femininity influences your music?

I don’t have any clue what "femininity" is supposed to be, other than a collective experience from a certain socialization. I can only say that yes, of course, my music is influenced by how I grew up, what my role models were supposed to be, how my daily life is shaped by the challenges and benefits of being a woman of color. It’s in my lyrics.

Most musicians I know have very eclectic music tastes. What musicians of genres other than punk or rock have influenced you?

Bunches. I don’t care so much for genres, it’s more the songwriting and vocalists’ expressions that I connect to. I have the most random genre mix in my "all-time-favorites" folder: 24-7 Spyz, Suicidal Tendencies, Jessye Norman, Bloc Party, Kele Okereke’s solo record, Grace Jones, Miles Davis, The Spin Doctors, Roxy Music, The Police, Brandi, Whitney Houston, Boyz II Men, and I didn’t even get to the guilty pleasures!

Congratulations on your upcoming tour with 24-7 Spyz! One of the best parts of a concert to me is the song or collaboration I don’t anticipate. Can you give Live Unchained a little taste of anything you have in store for the audience that they may not expect?

Thank you!

This tour means a lot to me, I still have a hard time grasping the fact that we’re actually touring together! We’ll be presenting our new style and genre “Afropunk Chanson” on this exciting occasion, I think nobody’s going to expect this from us hahaha. We’ll play songs from the album Out Now! but, a little differently... and mostly new tunes. If we have the time, we’ll upload something shortly before the tour so folks can catch a glimpse :-).

Finally, what does living unchained mean to you?

Creating and talking about my art without being reduced to some fantasy image of what a Black Woman’s art is supposed to be. Being without having to explain. Being seen as a person.

Being able to make a living from my own ideas and being independent in my choice of projects and work: the books I write, the music I play, the theatre shows I produce…I love the fact that they are uncompromisingly what I want to show, sometimes radical.

I’m very thankful for all these chances. Don’t get me wrong, it’s been quite a struggle to get there. I don’t take anything for granted.

Keep in touch with Noiseaux on Facebook and Twitter.

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*The term "Disgrace Your Stereotype" was coined by New York's Black Rock Star Militia Vox, http://www.militiaismyname.com/, founder of Anarchists Of Color.

Original Article

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BlackBrown's Feminism HipHop by Beth Consetta Rubel