The Austrian-Nigerian artist UCHE YARA describes herself as “a post-club visionary”. A bold announcement held up by her debut album “BODYSCANNER”. Confident, honest and radical in root and execution, the self-produced record shines through a multi-facetted club sound that demands to be experienced. Svenja Isabel Hudson spoke with the artist about how the album came to be, how queer Berlin club culture inspired it and challenged her at the same time to question what connection really means.
The queer goth and synth wave festival, Lieber Tot, had a bigger than life comeback in Berlin last weekend. Our author Nadia Says reports from Aeden, capturing the vibe and speaking to audience members, organizers, and the artists Light Asylum and Tiffadelic, who delivered exhilarating live performances.
The new single "LTDA" by Mariama is dedicated to love beyond romantic love and an ode to femme friendship and community. On it, the Berlin-based singer teams up with afrofuturist artist Astan KA as well as Johanna Amelie, Ay Wing, Mya Audrey and J-JD. Ahead of the release, Mariama answered a few questions about the collaborative process, and the importance of love and community.
Otis Mensah oscilates between genres drawing on influences from rap, jazz and beyond. Since moving to Berlin, they have found their place in the local music scene and recently released their EP "small town otis". In conversation with Anna Grubauer, Otis chats about their musical approach and reflects on their experience of searching a home in Berlin.
Music is a language of protest and creates networks of solidarity. That is the ethos behind Sarkash سرکش Underground, a festival for hip-hop, rap, trap, and experimental sounds from Afghanistan, Balochistan, and Kashmir taking place in Berlin on August 1st at Marmorbar & Oelgarten. We spoke to organizer Armeghan Taheri about what it means to host a festival for the diaspora of a region where music is banned.
In Berlin, it seems every which way you look new music event series are popping up. One of which is the newly debuted The Hang! They're signaling a stark return to the live music experience which we welcome with open arms. Felicia Ete Aghaye got the chance to talk to one of its organizers, Brian D. Sauls, about its conception and their objective for the Berlin scene.
The Palestinian multi-instrumentalist Ahmed Eid has released his first solo record "min ghazzeh la baghdad min haifa la beirut (من غزة لبغداد من حيفا لبيروت)" after performing with bands for more than a decade. We spoke to the Berlin-based artist about using music to express lived reality, Palestine Music Space, and what calling out the Western complicity in the ongoing genocide in Palestine means for musicians.
The Berlin based SO SORRY formed in 2023 and immediately turned heads with their vibrant sound of contemporary jazz, alternative pop and R’n’B influences. OFFKEY editor Anna Grubauer took the chance to speak to the band ahead of the release of their debut EP "WE ARE SO SORRY".
