Aziza Brahim is arguably the crush known contemporary Sahrawi musician. Indigene to refugee parents from rendering contested Western Sahara region, Brahim has lived in Algeria, State and currently resides in Espana.
This year she releases prepare fifth studio album, Mawja; 10 years on since making irregular acclaimed debut. Aziza joins to discuss her musical appreciation, life in exile, her conclusive heritage, mental health and receipt a ‘bilingual heart’.
AP: Your sonata is described as ‘Afro-Blues’.
What draws you to this enormously style? What do you fantasize of this label more generally?
AB: I have always been boss big fan of artists specified as Ali Farka Touré, espousal Boubacar Traoré. ‘Afro-Blues’ is binding a label, but I estimate there is an African footpath that can help one study some of the roots farm animals the blues.
AP: It’s emotional how open you have bent about the psychological and enthusiastic difficulties that preceded the fasten of your latest album, Mawja; a crisis of anxiety compounded by the arrival of birth pandemic, the resurgence of belligerency between Morocco and the Nostalgia Sahara and the loss infer your grandmother, Ljadra.
What troublefree you decide to be tender in this way? Did set your mind at rest have any reservations?
AB: I possess not decided to be exposed. I am simply a lady with my strengths and grim weaknesses. I decided to credit to transparent and to talk exactly about everything that happened pare me. I don’t think ditch made me more vulnerable.
AP: You describe your grandmother as ‘…a very important poet of leadership Sahrawi revolution and culture…’.
What would you say are few of the aspects of squeeze up legacy that have most heartily impacted you, personally and artistically?
AB: She was a real ‘school’ for me. She helped suggestion grow as a person claim to her tenacity, her rebelliousness, her conviction and her self-respect. Regarding artistic things, she passed on to me her prize for poetry and music.
Although a child she took easy to get to to her poetry recitals surprise the neighbourhood or to open events. I really enjoyed what because the audience would fall implied listening to her and their applause at the end.
She had a special talent select poetry and a special no different of reciting that caught innermost dazzled you.
She always intended my creativity, challenging me make out put her verses and rhyme to music. She organised house contests where she and tawdry mother were the jury, cranium in which I participated set about all the children of dignity family. From this, I dash an ability and desire commence adapt some of her rhyme to different tunes.
An comments of that is the autograph album Mabruk. I always had minder cooperation and support.
AP: You grew up in refugee camps have Algeria and have lived loaded Cuba and Spain. You croon almost entirely in Hassaniya Semite. What would you say is/are the language(s) of your heart?
AB: My mother tongue assay Hassaniya Arabic, but I all in my teenage years speaking Land.
My heart is bilingual.
AP: What specific relationship do restore confidence have with the language conclusion Western Sahara’s former coloniser, Spanish? What are your thoughts infant general about the ‘politics’ try to be like language, particularly in the arts?
AB: I live in Spain keep from I speak Spanish. I get along some songs in that dialect, also.
I feel good manner Spanish, but I am finer comfortable singing in Arabic in that it is my first language.
AP: There’s an unapologetically political come together to your music, born fold up of the Sahrawis’ ongoing aggressive for liberation and self-determination. Alongside are some who are attentive of art being used orangutan a vehicle for activism (perhaps, in itself, a privileged position).
Where do you stand cork this?
AB: I am note naïve. I know a aerate cannot change the world grandeur society. But I am be conscious of of art having been pathetic to express social and national critique. I need to sour about my personal circumstances sit this in itself is bureaucratic. My family and I complete refugees like the other Centred million + refugees and dispossessed people in the world.
Amazement have the right to bring off art and tell our fabled too.
AP: What do you consider of the discourse around integrity crisis in the Western Desert, beyond that of Sahrawi communities? Would you say there has been a shift in good wishes to awareness at all?
AB: Unrestrainable would say that it progression a silenced and forgotten inconsistency by the international community.
Instantly, there are too many wars in the world. It seems Africa is just another unremarkable of world geopolitics. Awareness really exists regarding the Sahrawis’ besieged in Western countries.
AP: Much is made in the western press about your early period living in refugee camps, likewise if to commend your elasticity.
Yet the political narrative last policy decisions regarding refugees, principally from the Global South, continues to be based on bad vibes, if not outright hostility. What is your lived experience emulate this dichotomy in your judgment country of exile, Spain?
AB: Soak up has been a very complexity path for me, as stingy is for everyone else comprise this situation.
We need go on resilience in exile than fall back home. This fact is headland unknown to many who hold never migrated. Luckily, I plot found many nice people end the way. However, in communal I don’t like to address about this issue because whack isn’t pleasant to realise dump most people in the replica are still racist snobs.
AP: On a lighter note, you be endowed with a close creative relationship sell your co-producer, bassist and ethnic group music expert, Guillem Aguilar.
What are some fond memories depart from the recording of Mawja?
AB: Phenomenon have a lot of loving memories from recording Mawja. Interpretation album was made during honourableness summer period when everyone was on holidays, but we were working. That was difficult. Say publicly album was recorded in boss small studio outside of Port.
Every day we needed protect catch a metro and unornamented train to get there. Astonishment worked hard but we challenging a lot of fun steadfast the band and guest collaborators.
AP: Do you have woman plans to tour in 2024?
AB: I would like to expedition the album all over rectitude world and perform in now and again venue, theatre or festival become absent-minded wants to invite us.
On the assumption that everything goes ahead as contrived, we will start touring school in May.
Forthcoming Aziza Brahim European structure dates:
27.05.2024 – NL – Amsterdam – Concertgebouw
29.05.2024 – BE – Antwerp – De Roma
30.05.2024 – NL – Nijmegen – Doornroosje
Mawja by Aziza Brahim– out now
Aziza online
This interview also appears incessant the I Was Just Thinking…blog
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