these are our friends too
'...hard-hitting and thought provoking' - Late Junction, BBC Radio 3 'a shattering work, but also hopeful in its commitment and in any case necessary work, for which everyone involved deserves great praise' - African Paper '...a series of voices that move the mind forward' - Toneshift '...so beautiful' - female pressure |
In November 2019 Tse Tse Fly Middle East partnered with leading UK-based African diaspora women's campaign and support organisation FORWARD to produce These Are Our Friends Too, a unique album that highlights the work FORWARD does to eradicate FGM (female genital mutilation).
The project was the brainchild of FORWARD’s Naomi Reid and founder of Tse Tse Fly Middle East Simon Coates and continued FORWARD’s These Are Our Friends project, a collection of poetry from young people from the UK that responds to the themes of FGM and its attendant consequences. The first stage of the project resulted in a book of the same name that features more than thirty pieces of work, a short film made with Media Trust, and the new collaboration will see twenty of the poems re-imagined.
For the new album Tse Tse Fly Middle East hand-picked a selection of female artists and musicians, and each one was given a spoken word recording of one of the poems from the These Are Our Friends book read by members of the FORWARD team. The artists then composed and recorded a sonic background for their designated piece, with the resulting spoken word and experimental music compositions making up the new, nineteen-track set, These Are Our Friends Too. The album features contributions from some of the foremost female proponents of noise from Egypt, Iran, Turkey, Lebanon, Serbia, Bulgaria and Sweden, as well as UK-based collaborators. And the visceral, uncompromising and unsettling tracks that result reflect the disturbing nature of female genital mutilation.
The album is critically-acclaimed, with plays on BBC Radio 3's Late Junction programme. An exclusive mix of the set was featured as part of London's 2019 Art Licks weekend.
Buy These Are Our Friends Too here
Everyone involved gave their time for free, with all proceeds from sales of the album going directly to FORWARD.
tracklisting
1. I’m Only Human - composer: Negin Zomorodi (Iran) / writer: Ayan Ali / read by Kabung
2. A Day In My Life - composer: Maryam Nazari (Iran) / writer: Muna Abdi-Hajj / read by: Kabung
3. She Said - composer: Ola Saad (Egypt) / writer: Riyaan Ali / read by: Cherrelle
4. The Arrangement - composer: Cathy Lane (UK) / writer: Rasha Farah / read by: Wangu
5. Hush Little Baby - composer: Nilufar Habibian (Iran) / writer: Anam Ali / read by: Wangu
6. Speak Out - composer: Parisa Shirvani (UK) / writer: Mariam Fall / read by: Nafisa
7. What A Woman Must Do - composer: Kumah (Serbia) / writer: Saria Khalifa / read by: Angela
8. So What - composer: Polly Petrova (Bulgaria) / writer: Anfal Ali / read by: Kabung
9. Me, I Don’t Mind - composer: Maryam Nazari (Iran) / writer: Emmanuel Kabanza / read by: Imhotep
10. Tsunami - composer: Kumah (Serbia) / writer: Nima Nuur / read by: Nafisa
11. Keynote Speaker - composer: Nour Sokhon (Lebanon) / writer: Rashida Sanni / read by: Cherrelle
12. Game Face - composer: Iida Aino (Sweden) / writer: Ikram Nur / read by: Cherrelle
13. I Know Her - composer: Jacqueline George (Egypt) / writer: Kaltun Duale / read by: Cherrelle
14. We, Us, Community - composer: Stephanie Merchak (Lebanon) / writer: Foosiya Ahmed / read by: Wangu
15. Choices - composer: Nour Sokhon (Lebanon) / writer: Cherelle Salmon / read by: Cherrelle
16. When the Sun Goes Down - composer: Rhéa Dally (Lebanon) / writer: Siham Ahmed / read by: Angela
17. The Party Plan - composer: Jilliene Sellner feat. the Brain Dead Ensemble (UK) / writer: Fanta Kone / read by: Nafisa
18. She Walks / That Sword - composer: Hüma Utku (Turkey) / writer: Rahman Duale / read by: Nafisa
19. That Magnificent Colour - composer: Dr Mariam Rezaei / writer: Habon Duale / read by: Nafisa
For the new album Tse Tse Fly Middle East hand-picked a selection of female artists and musicians, and each one was given a spoken word recording of one of the poems from the These Are Our Friends book read by members of the FORWARD team. The artists then composed and recorded a sonic background for their designated piece, with the resulting spoken word and experimental music compositions making up the new, nineteen-track set, These Are Our Friends Too. The album features contributions from some of the foremost female proponents of noise from Egypt, Iran, Turkey, Lebanon, Serbia, Bulgaria and Sweden, as well as UK-based collaborators. And the visceral, uncompromising and unsettling tracks that result reflect the disturbing nature of female genital mutilation.
The album is critically-acclaimed, with plays on BBC Radio 3's Late Junction programme. An exclusive mix of the set was featured as part of London's 2019 Art Licks weekend.
Buy These Are Our Friends Too here
Everyone involved gave their time for free, with all proceeds from sales of the album going directly to FORWARD.
tracklisting
1. I’m Only Human - composer: Negin Zomorodi (Iran) / writer: Ayan Ali / read by Kabung
2. A Day In My Life - composer: Maryam Nazari (Iran) / writer: Muna Abdi-Hajj / read by: Kabung
3. She Said - composer: Ola Saad (Egypt) / writer: Riyaan Ali / read by: Cherrelle
4. The Arrangement - composer: Cathy Lane (UK) / writer: Rasha Farah / read by: Wangu
5. Hush Little Baby - composer: Nilufar Habibian (Iran) / writer: Anam Ali / read by: Wangu
6. Speak Out - composer: Parisa Shirvani (UK) / writer: Mariam Fall / read by: Nafisa
7. What A Woman Must Do - composer: Kumah (Serbia) / writer: Saria Khalifa / read by: Angela
8. So What - composer: Polly Petrova (Bulgaria) / writer: Anfal Ali / read by: Kabung
9. Me, I Don’t Mind - composer: Maryam Nazari (Iran) / writer: Emmanuel Kabanza / read by: Imhotep
10. Tsunami - composer: Kumah (Serbia) / writer: Nima Nuur / read by: Nafisa
11. Keynote Speaker - composer: Nour Sokhon (Lebanon) / writer: Rashida Sanni / read by: Cherrelle
12. Game Face - composer: Iida Aino (Sweden) / writer: Ikram Nur / read by: Cherrelle
13. I Know Her - composer: Jacqueline George (Egypt) / writer: Kaltun Duale / read by: Cherrelle
14. We, Us, Community - composer: Stephanie Merchak (Lebanon) / writer: Foosiya Ahmed / read by: Wangu
15. Choices - composer: Nour Sokhon (Lebanon) / writer: Cherelle Salmon / read by: Cherrelle
16. When the Sun Goes Down - composer: Rhéa Dally (Lebanon) / writer: Siham Ahmed / read by: Angela
17. The Party Plan - composer: Jilliene Sellner feat. the Brain Dead Ensemble (UK) / writer: Fanta Kone / read by: Nafisa
18. She Walks / That Sword - composer: Hüma Utku (Turkey) / writer: Rahman Duale / read by: Nafisa
19. That Magnificent Colour - composer: Dr Mariam Rezaei / writer: Habon Duale / read by: Nafisa
composers gallery