Guest Articles

Annika Henderson, known as Anika created an immersive stage performance as a commissioned work for this year's Pop-Kultur festival. Working with several international and interdisciplinary artists, the project "Lost Voices" gives space to frequencies and voices that are unheard and marginalized by a hetero-patriarchal and capitalist society. She shares thoughts on working with these complex topics.

Berlin-based sound artist and singer Dumama has a special relationship to XJAZZ!. Following the event in May, Dumama now shares a live video of their performances. Working with the body and voice as modes of tapping into ancestral vibrations, Dumama collaborates with many artists across Berlin's boundary-pushing music scene. Read her personal reflections on the festival below.

The German-Filipino singer and musician Ray Lozano just released her debut album "Pairing Mode". It is a collection of polaroids, or short stories, about being alone, longing, and belonging. Raised in Cologne between two cultural identities, Ray found a home in the music of Jill Scott. In her guest article, she writes about the influence of the RnB singer on her younger self, and how it continues to shape her until today.

The collaborative record "Through the Cycle" by the Berliner Duo Modha engages in vulnerable and open conversations about mental health. With the aim to destigmatize the conversations around the topic, Modha share their emotions with the collaborators to create an atmosphere of trust. Among their collaborators are poet and writer Candice Nembhard, and the singers Noah Slee and Jermaine Peterson. We spoke to Modha and their contributors about the experience, vulnerability, and hopes for the album.

On the 88th day of the year, Piano Day, LEITER release the second compilation featuring pianists from different musical backgrounds. The record represents the diverse stories and emotions the piano can invoke. With artists like Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, Yann Tiersen, and Meredi, the compilation celebrates the sound of the unique instrument.

"It was a CD I think, the first time I seen the cover. A dark, burnt orange background with a shirtless Al in the middle, half smiling staring straight through the barrel of the camera. Al Green’s Greatest Hits." Self-taught musician and singer Joesef sat down to muse on one of his favorite records. Following the release of his latest single "East End Coast" his love for Al Green explains the soulful touches on the single dedicated to the sense of belonging he experiences in his hometown Glasgow.

Just a few weeks back, ambient folk artist Will Samson released "Active Imagination", a beacon of calming and meditative bliss. Reflecting on the surrounding themes of the record, the musician opens up on the matter of national identity, belonging and the feeling of being in between in this very personal guest article.

Soft Drug are the litte red pill that invites listeners on an eye-opening trip - not just musically. Targeting topics like depression, accepting weakness, and toxic masculinity the RnB/Pop trio uses music as a tool to dissect gender-based discrimination in society and the music industry. Ahead of the release of their debut EP "Easy", band member Sascha reflects on his experiences with expectations of masculinity and the track "Man Up" released in April.