Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
Today's episode features three extraordinary women who are not just
shaping music, but also shifting culture, breaking boundaries, and inspiring many.
First up, we have Blue to Tiger, an electrifying bass
player and the first woman to design her own signature
Fender Base Wow. Then we have Shanna, a captivating artist
from Lebanon whose voice is pure magic. I met her
(00:25):
during Read Music Week in Saudi Arabia a few weeks ago,
which was such an incredible experience that showed how music
and the people that are making it are really leading
the massive cultural shifts happening there. And last, but definitely
not least, Fatima known as Fafa and incredible artists from
the UAE whose music and deep knowledge of herbs and
healing is so wonderful I needed. These women are paving
(00:46):
new paths, using their voices to empower and showing the
world what it means to create with purpose and awareness.
I'm so excited to see you, and I was excited
to talk to you about this amazing milestone. I mean,
come on, congratulations, It's crazy.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
We've known each other for so long.
Speaker 1 (01:10):
I know, it's been so cool to see your evolution
and now you have an instrument. Baby, in the world
and it's so beautiful and it's so you it's so
you know, fresh and modern, but has this this vintage inspiration.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
Thank you, thank you.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
The first question I'd love to ask is the blending
of this new and this old. Choosing the elements that
went into this. I guess that was probably you know,
one of the most important parts of this process is just.
Speaker 3 (01:44):
Configuring what actually was going to go into it totally.
Speaker 2 (01:48):
Yeah. I think like when I started doing the whole thing,
I really wanted to make something that first of all,
like I wanted to play like my dream design or base,
but also something that I felt like was kind of
like missing in the market almost And that's where the
kind of like lightweightness of it all came about. Like
(02:12):
I didn't really see or I couldn't really find any
like lightweight bases, and for me is like you know,
touring all the time and constantly playing shows and traveling
through airports with you know, the base, which is a
naturally heavy instrument, I really wanted to make something that
was lighter weight for you know, the touring musicians. So
that's kind of like where that came about. And then
(02:34):
you know, the aesthetics kind of like made themselves, you know,
as you said, like it's just veryed me, Like I
had to make something blue, and I had to make
something sparkly and something that would shine on stage and
just you know, make you feel like superstar holding it
and just like something beautiful and beautiful to look at
(02:56):
as an object itself. And then yeah, like the configuration
and all the technical parts. Yeah, it's kind of just
like a blending of everything. Like it's a blend of yeah,
what I wanted to hear, and just making something that
was very versatile and it was good for you know,
(03:18):
beginner players, but also seasoned players, and that was good
for the studio and for the stage. It's like a
really like well rounded, all encompassing space, I think, which
I'm pretty proud of.
Speaker 3 (03:32):
But yeah, that's amazing.
Speaker 1 (03:36):
And collaborating with legendary Fender, that's such a huge milestone,
and I know that was such a bucket list for you,
and you're the first woman to have a signature Fender base.
Speaker 2 (03:50):
Yeah, that's incredible. Yeah, it's it's I mean it's such
an honor to work with Fender, like such a timeless
and classic company that like, when I think of a
bass or a guitar, Like the Fender shape is what
pops into my head, you know, like that's just in
pop culture, and that's just that's what I think of
(04:14):
when I think of a guitar, So to work with
them is just so amazing. And yeah, it's pretty crazy,
like having the title like the first first woman to
have a signature base. It's such an honor to like
carry that, I guess, yeah, it's crazy.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
I was curious if there was any surprising parts of
the process for you and if there were challenges or
like peak moments of inspiration, because this was probably a
whole new ballgame for you. I mean it's a whole
new ballgame for everyone in this world because you were
the first to have done this as a woman. So
(04:54):
I'm just curious how this process was like for you and.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Surprised you.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Yeah, I mean obviously I've been I've been playing forever
since I was seven, since I was super young. But oftentimes,
you know, I never seen like an actual base put together,
like no one's ever Like I got to go to
the factory and like check it out, like no one
ever gets that opportunity. So I think that was really
(05:23):
really special and really cool to see how it actually
gets made. And then I think just like, yeah, just
the whole process. I mean I never I'd never done that.
Like before I started the signature process, I had a
custom shop made and that was a little bit similar
in the way where I was like I want to
sound like this, and I worked with this with the
(05:44):
master builder and I was like I wanted to feel
like this, and we kind of went back and forth
and I did the whole thing. But that's a very
singular instrument that's just for me, and this is, you know,
obviously way bigger than that. So yeah, the whole process,
I mean, it takes a long time, takes forever. It
took like three years almost since we started talking about it,
(06:05):
a few different iterations, different like going through color swatches
and like sparkle swatches, just like the whole thing is
really incredible to see like how it all comes together.
But yeah, I don't know, it was a really really
cool experience. Like I'm just like grateful I got to
see how like all of that gets made and like
(06:26):
truly everything everything is customizable. Like I was like, okay,
I wanted to like sound like this, and they're like, Okay,
well we could do like this thing, match with this thing,
and then like what kind of you know, there's just
so many different there's just so many different things, customizable
options that I didn't even like know about just because
(06:46):
I'm you know, I've been playing, but I had I
don't know like the ins and outs of the electronics,
and now I do, which is really cool. So that
that was the thing that I got to really learn
and get into with everyone over there.
Speaker 3 (06:59):
Wow, that's so cool.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
And the custom Blue to Tiger Fireball bass Humbucker.
Speaker 3 (07:06):
Can you tell you about that?
Speaker 2 (07:08):
Yeah? Yeah, so that kind of Yeah, I mean it's
like the first time. It's the first like time Fender's
done this pickup configuration, which is really really cool. Yeah.
It's basically, like I try to like explain it as
like a built and drive almost like when you have
(07:30):
the setting on just the Humbucker pickup, it has like
this really cool edge that you don't normally get from
like a normal Humbucker because it's two like single coil
jazz bassed pickups like wound together. It's just really sick.
It's just like really really awesome, And that kind of
(07:51):
came from like wanting to balance out almost like the
light weightness of the bass. There's a lot of things
had to like kind of balance out to make sure
that nothing was being lost, like no frequency range was
being lost or nothing. Yeah, like no mid range was
being lost, and like having that extra like from the
(08:13):
from the humbucker really balances everything in a really cool way.
But yeah, and it also just makes you get like
super versatile sounds. Like really any sort of tone that
you want to get you can get it through this bass,
which is really sick.
Speaker 1 (08:29):
I'm curious if the progression of seeing a bass being
made in a very visceral way like really changed or
inspired your perspective as a bass player and as a
musical creator.
Speaker 2 (08:46):
Yeah, I mean, I mean definitely, I think it definitely did.
I think there's such a bit like just doing this
whole process. There's there's such a big how do I
put this, like not community, but there's such a big
like like scene of people who are this is their
(09:07):
thing and their specialty, like the I don't know the
technical side of it or like the gear side or
like like I went to guitar Fest the other weekend
and I was like learning a lot over there about
all the different stuff, and I saw the fact like
just seeing all the factories and just how many people
are involved and making these instruments. Like you just normally
(09:28):
see the player, you don't really see all the behind
the scenes of who's putting together what, and who's touching what,
and who's sawing this and screwing that and all that stuff.
So I think that was really cool to see and
it almost made me like appreciate just appreciate every instrument
more when you see like all the love that gets
put into it and all the like different hands that
(09:50):
touch it. I think that was something that really like
moved me almost when I went to the factory just
seeing And what's also crazy that people don't talk about
it is like at the Fender factory, it's like all women.
There's like a lot of there's a lot of women
that are working there, which I don't know, I didn't
really expect for some I don't know why I didn't
expect that, but like it was all like these badass
(10:12):
women like putting together the basis at the factory, and
I was just like, that's the sickest thing ever. Yeah,
And I think that just like moved me just seeing
all the love that goes into it.
Speaker 1 (10:24):
It seems like for a lot of the timeline you
were creating an album, all I ever want is everything
during you know, designing this base, and I was curious
if that inspired this a little bit, if this inspired that.
I mean so much of like creating is about the
(10:45):
elements that you have, So perhaps some of the inspiration
of oh I wish my bass had this while you
were like really working hard on this album kind of
fused into this project.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
Yeah, definitely. And what I was making my album, I
was touring a lot in between. I think the touring
side of it and the live performance side really influenced
the bass and inspired it in a way of like
what do I need as a performer on stage in
this instrument? You know what, what do I need to accomplish?
What I want to accomplish, And that inspired a lot
(11:21):
of the bass and the like tones that I wanted
to get out of it of you know, what I
wanted it to sound like during a performance, So that
really influenced it. And then yeah, the studio for sure,
I think like yeah, like I think the studio the
same sort of thing, just like, oh I want this
sort of sound on this song. Oh, let me like
(11:42):
go to my let me make sure that my bass
can accomplish that sound for when I want to get
that sound like in the studio. So yeah, definitely, maybe
it's like more subconscious, but it definitely influenced. Yeah, it
always like kind of influences everything. What was cool about
the whole process too, is like you get to see
with it, Like the first model that we made, like
(12:04):
the first iteration, I got to sit with it for
months and I brought it on tour with me. I
was like opening for Charlie Pooth and yeah, I got
to bring it with me and play it during downtime
and in sound check and see what was missing about her,
see what I liked about it. And then I could
go back to Veendr and be like, Okay, like I
just played this in a show and I feel like
it was missing this element, like how do.
Speaker 4 (12:25):
We get that?
Speaker 2 (12:25):
And then we can kind of make that edit for
the next round. So being able to sit with it
and really play it and use it in real life
situations and real performances really helped. Yeah, it just really
helped influence everything. And then like the final base, like
I've been playing it for like the past few months,
like on tour and it's been so awesome instead of
(12:46):
that's amazing.
Speaker 1 (12:47):
Yeah, I think one of the things I'm most excited
about is to see how this bass like even deepens
the inspiration that you have on so many young musicians
and bass players especially. I was curious how you see
this instrument fitting into the evolution of modern bass playing,
especially with young musicians and artists.
Speaker 2 (13:11):
Yeah, I think that was you know. Also, one of
my biggest goals with this bace was to you know,
continue to inspire the younger generation to to pick up
an instrument and to use space to express themselves and
find that passion you know, early in life. And yeah,
I like hope that this does that. But I think
(13:34):
just yeah, just being like the first woman to make
something and also being like I think the youngest to
have a singulature base. Like I just think all of
these like facets of the whole project I think would
have really inspired me when I was younger come out.
So I think, yeah, just the whole The whole like
project I think is representative of you know, hard work
(13:58):
and practice, some in diligence and passion and love and
all that stuff. So I hope that people can see
that when they're kind of checking this out, and I
hope that it kind of makes a dent in that
way and makes hopefully it's you know, powers and some
younger kids be like, oh damn, like she did that,
I can do that. Let me work towards this thing, or.
Speaker 1 (14:19):
Yeah, definitely, I'm sure that's going to be very resonant
for many many people, many young people especially.
Speaker 3 (14:27):
Continuing off of.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
That question, what advice now do you have for a
young musician artists coming up now as as the blue
that you are today, with this amazing creation coming into
the world, do you have anything different than perhaps you
would say a year ago.
Speaker 2 (14:47):
Yeah, I don't know. I think I don't know. I
think I would just like do your thing, just keep
doing your thing. Keep you know, it sounds basic advice,
but like just do what you love and do what
brings you joy and happiness and just go go all
in on that, you know, Like I used to think that,
(15:08):
like years ago, I think before I even started posting
like videos on social media and stuff, like, there's always
something in the back of my head, like a voice
that was like, oh, people don't care about the base,
like people don't care, you know, like there's always some
sort of I don't know, there's just you can have
a lot of doubts or whatever. And I think there
was always something that was like, oh, people don't care
(15:29):
about the base, like I should do something else, or
like this isn't I don't know. And then I started
posting and just really diving into like just really owning
it and like owning my passion and showing that passion
to other people. And then immediately it was like, no,
people do actually care, Like this is actually really sick.
Speaker 5 (15:46):
So I don't know.
Speaker 2 (15:48):
I think I learned that over the past few years
that like you just got to live your truth and
do your thing and they don't find people in that way,
and like practice too, practice important.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
Well, now that you have this checked off the bucket list,
I'm curious what other dreams and inspirations has been in
your consciousness of other bucket list items.
Speaker 2 (16:16):
Ooh damn.
Speaker 1 (16:18):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (16:18):
Well as a player, like as a bass player, this
is definitely I think the ultimate goal for me. So
this like it feels amazing, it feels crazy. I think
like as an artist, there's a lot of stuff I
want to do, you know, festivals, I want to play
and venues I want to, Like, I want to headline
madis a square garden. I played there this year, but
(16:39):
I was opening, So now I want to Now the
next thing is headlining obviously, Like there's just some sort
of you know, these other sort of milestones like an
artist's career that I would love to to get to.
But yeah, as a player, like I think this is
the one for me as a player. So I don't know.
Speaker 3 (16:59):
It's wow, comet, that's amazing.
Speaker 2 (17:03):
Yeah, it's awesome. I hope we can continue this and
make different generation, different color ways and just yeah, continue
this journey. But yeah, I don't know's it.
Speaker 3 (17:26):
That's incredible?
Speaker 1 (17:28):
How do you give back and what is your influences
in that? And this seems like, you know, such a
way to give back, And just for me, it's like
just creating and just the energy that it takes to
make music and to give that inspiration to others is
such a way to give back. But I know that
so many artists have specific things that really inspire them
(17:52):
and their work.
Speaker 2 (17:55):
Yeah, I think, I mean, I think in the broad
sense like this bas is kind of it. But I think,
like I'm very interested in like music education and music mentorship,
and that's something that I've really been getting into recently,
even like Grammy Camp is a great example, Like I went,
I went back there and I gave a talk at
Grammy Camp. I don't know, it fulfilled me in a
(18:15):
way that I didn't that I haven't like gotten other places,
Like I don't know, I'm just really yeah, like passionate
about about that, you know, mentoring younger artists and younger
players and the education of it all, like educating people
on the instrument, educating people on music and what it
can do for your life and all that stuff. So
(18:35):
I think that's where that's where I find like a solid,
like a tangible way of doing something of giving back
is in that like mentoring and educating. And it was
so cool to see these kids like on the come
up like they're they're dope, and they were asking such
intelligent questions too, which was so I was just like damn,
(18:56):
these kids they got it going on, Like it was
just I don't know, it was really cool to see
because that's I remember that being such a like transformative experience,
the Grammy Camp and just like meeting like meeting you
and meeting like everyone there and just I don't know,
it was cool to go back and like kind of
be that for those kids for sure.
Speaker 1 (19:18):
Yeah, do you remember one of the questions that you
were really like taken by that a kid ask.
Speaker 2 (19:24):
I knew they were, like they were all so good.
Like one person was asking how you separate, like how
do you separate your artists self from your like personal self?
Which I thought was like an interesting question, and like
how do you balance that? And someone was asking, like,
what's the most effective way to like what's the most
(19:48):
effective way to to like lead your team around you
or something like what was the most effective way to
like express to your your managers and your agents and
your label like what you want? Which I thought was
cool because I like, I don't know, I didn't that's
like only something I started to think about recently when
your team gets bigger and stuff Like. I just thought
(20:09):
it was cool that they were thinking about that at
like sixteen. But yeah they were asking they were asking
good stuff or just like how like, yeah, they're asking,
they're asking good stuff. I was inspired.
Speaker 1 (20:23):
I love you know, anything that like feeds you and
feeds them. That's that's when you know that that you're.
Speaker 3 (20:29):
On the right path.
Speaker 2 (20:31):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
Yeah, So another one of these overarching questions if you
don't mind, it's kind of too deep, But what is
your purpose?
Speaker 2 (20:43):
Oh my god, girl, you're out here. What a purpose?
It's just like sharing my passion. I think making music,
showing my passion, expressing myself. That's what I would say.
Speaker 3 (21:00):
The music. Inventing basses. What can't she do? Incredible, dude.
Speaker 2 (21:07):
Purpose is just yeah, putting basses out there. I don't know.
I guess I'm still finding it too. I think it
like it can change or I don't know, you can
like grow into it too, But I think, yeah, just
like sharing my sharing my my love and my passion
enjoy probably the biggest one.
Speaker 3 (21:25):
So what's on the horizon for you?
Speaker 2 (21:30):
I have another short tour coming up at the end
of the month, and some other touring stuff on the
rest of the year. Yeah, and make I'm making my
second album now, so going back to the studio and
working on music and that's kind of yeah, that's it,
and just like, yeah, getting this space out there and
(21:52):
doing all this all the stuff that surrounds this base
launch and but yeah.
Speaker 3 (21:56):
Studio and tour, that's that's amazing position.
Speaker 1 (22:00):
Yeah, is there anything that I didn't ask you about
that you wanted to include about the bass, the creation
of the bass, the launch of the bass.
Speaker 2 (22:12):
I don't think so. Just check it out. Hope you
love it. I hope you rock out on it. I
don't know. I think we covered all of good stuff.
Speaker 3 (22:22):
Beautiful.
Speaker 1 (22:23):
Yeah, And it seems like this bass, because of how
modern meets vintage, it can be used in so many
different styles and genres. And I'm sure it's going to
be super cool to see how people utilize this.
Speaker 2 (22:39):
I'm like, so excited to see other people play it,
Like so far it's only been me playing it. I'm
excited to see like how it sounds and others another
uh yeah, other senses. I'm excited to help get this
word was like, yeah, say, she's like talking about you.
I was like, yeah, it's my girl.
Speaker 1 (22:59):
I'm here with the incredible Shanna, a wonderful artist with
the most stunning voice. You are calling in from Beirut.
Speaker 3 (23:07):
I am.
Speaker 5 (23:08):
I'm in Lebanon right now. I'm in my home country.
It feels so good to be here.
Speaker 3 (23:12):
That's lovely.
Speaker 1 (23:14):
I'm so excited to talk to you more about your
journey in music and otherwise, but I'd love to start
with Read Music Week. Was this your first time there
during Read Music Week or I know that it's been
going on for a number of years now. And what
really struck me about that was how prevalent the feeling
(23:35):
that music transcends all else, serving as our universal language
and unifier. And I'd love to start with the big
question of how you've seen music as a bridge to
cultures and as a connector around the Middle East and beyond.
Speaker 3 (23:52):
Honestly, it's a beautiful question.
Speaker 5 (23:54):
Before I start, I want to say thank you so
much for having me. It's a pleasure. Regarding XPEL, it
was one of the best experiences in my career as
an artist. And it's been three years I'm in that industry,
and it was my first time at XP. I know
that it's been going on for years, but this was
my first year thanks to car Jsachi, who's an amazing
(24:17):
guy that I'm working with currently. I believe that what
I've noticed when I was there is that we're so
different in such a beautiful way and in so many
ways culturally, the way like our style, the way we
dress up, the way we talk, the way we introduce ourselves,
(24:37):
and you know at XP we have different panels, we
have different discussions. So wherever you go, you meet someone
that's that has his world on, you know, like he's
in his bubble and I'm online, and we just try
to link up. And now, for example, I might go
to Egypt with the people that I've met in XPS.
(24:57):
So I think that things have changed enormously, especially in
the Mena region, especially in Saudi Arabia, and I just
feel very blessed that I was a part of it,
you know, that I got the chance to witness everything,
because believe me, this year or the next year, it's
going to be insane. Things are going to change. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:17):
Yes, I was so grateful to experience that, just the
warmth of the people and the incredible artistry, Like I
am in love with the music there, and I'm so
excited for that to really expand and for more people
to experience.
Speaker 5 (25:34):
I agree. I agree. They inspired me so much. Like
I left XPEED with so much inside. I thought I
was going to talk to many people, so my energy
would be drained and from It's a three day program,
so I needed sleep. No, I came back home. First
of all, I didn't want to go back. I wanted
(25:55):
to stay in Saudi. I wanted it to repeat and
go back to that experience, and I just went directly
to my home studio, started writing some stuff, started contacting
the people that I've met, such as you, all of
these things. I mean, everything is so inspiring and we
have so much to offer, and step by step we're
going to get there. We're on the right road for sure.
Speaker 3 (26:17):
Yes, certainly.
Speaker 1 (26:18):
I mean music, It really felt like music is leading
the change and everything, Like, obviously there's so many changes happening,
but it really feels like music. Maybe that's just coming
from my perspective because that's where my psyche is. But
you know, people like yourself that are creating the music,
it feels like are the ones leading the change. And
(26:39):
I think there's something so pure and beautiful about that.
Speaker 5 (26:44):
That's beautiful. Yeah, I mean, if I have to talk
about like for myself, that's what I'm trying to do.
All I try to do is be authentic, and all
I want to do is be authentic and show and
share my passion with the world and also work with
people that are that have the same vision and that
(27:04):
relate to you know, the way I want to create
my music. And that's what I've noticed as well. You
saw rappers, you saw you saw literally an artist that
performed in front of five hundred people, playing with his guitar,
and that was it, and everyone was crying, and I
was like, I mean, that's it. That's where I want
to be surrounded. I want to I want to be
(27:26):
surrounded by these types of people. I want to be
surrounded by music, and honestly, you don't really get that
here in Lebanon. You have the support, you have amazing artists,
you have upcoming artists, but you don't have what you
have in Saudi and maybe even in Dubai, and you
don't have that magic yet. And that's what us Lebanese
artists are trying to to do. We're trying to bring
(27:50):
that magic that we see and that we can bring
to our people. First, why go somewhere else when we
can change our country, you know, our bubble before going
out there, which is why we go out there to
kind of learn what we don't have here.
Speaker 3 (28:07):
Yeah, Well, you have so much magic.
Speaker 1 (28:10):
I mean, your employice is transcendent and I love the
storytelling elements in your music, especially songs like.
Speaker 3 (28:18):
Breakaway that really can write your voice.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
And for me, like, there's such a sense of empowerment
in the authenticity that your music has that I really
resonate with as a woman, Like I feel like you really,
you know, are deeply connected to your femininity and your intuition,
and you're really highlighting the empowered aspects of that.
Speaker 3 (28:39):
And I'm curious, as a woman.
Speaker 1 (28:42):
In the music industry, especially in the Middle East, how
has this shaped your personal journey From an outsider.
Speaker 5 (28:51):
What I try to do honestly, you know, sometimes I'm
going to be super transparent because I think that when
you are as transparent as possible, people really to that.
You know, sometimes we don't say everything. Yeah, honestly, I
people think that I am fully confident, which which I
(29:12):
am now. But that was like hard work, that was hustle,
that was that was years of doubting myself when it
came to music or even my looks or even the
way I spoke, the way I sang everything. And it's
not but I started first of all listening to my
(29:34):
own body, listen to my to my listening to my soul,
kind of closing the doors of people that were kind
of spreading negative energy. I don't think I chose this
year not to have that anymore. And also when you
talk about the confidence and feminine like all of this,
I have to say that it's forget about me being
(29:56):
that woman that's pretty confident, but it's because I pray
a lot as well, and I'm a big believer.
Speaker 1 (30:02):
It's so beautiful. I love to talk about rituals, you know,
this kind of feminine side to creating, because I think
that that's something that our world really really needs. Yeah,
and it's kind of the opposite of a lot that's
going on right now. Any rituals or practices that you'd
be willing to share.
Speaker 5 (30:24):
Of course, of course there are many things I'm going
to start first with. Obviously, I pray, So this is
what gives me strength. Right nowadays, if we're talking about women, girl,
women are booming. We took over in our own way
without you know, downgrading the rest or bringing down anyone.
(30:47):
But I think that these days we're pretty good. We
know how to handle things, and we're powerful, and that's
also what gives me strength. So an advice is when
you see an artist. When I see an artist's that's
going viral, that's doing her thing, sometimes it is hard
to see it as to see it as wow, my God,
(31:09):
and you actually see it as oh dann, why am
I not like that, and you start comparing yourself. Well, no,
what I've learned is that you should be inspired by
these women. You should be inspired by the way they
by the way they live their life, by the way
they talk about their culture. And this is what I'm
trying to do with my own, with my own life
and my own music, is that I'm a Lebanese artist
(31:31):
and I want to represent my country and the way
I was educated here because I was educated pretty differently,
I mean than the Arab artists in our region right
now that are booming. They're all singing in Arabic. They're
all doing this and that. So also an advice is
not to look and compare and let it bring you down,
(31:53):
but really say to yourself, oh, okay, I admire that.
Let me see if I can be inspired, but also
let me see what I can do and what's unique
about my about who Shana is and in every way
about my music and about the way I live my life,
and the fact that I'm Lebanese singing in English. So
you just got to do what you gotta do and
(32:13):
be yourself, really be as authentic as you can be,
And don't you care about people's opinions that are negative,
but take advice and you know, write them down and
see which ones are actually good.
Speaker 1 (32:34):
I love to hear when really living and their truth
and in their voice and the their power. There's so
many things that can be preventative towards that, So thank
you for being a beacon for that. You know, it's
hard to sometimes define things because there's such an intangible
quality to music and artistry and words. I like to
(32:55):
say words are dumb, even though I love words so much,
but like they make everything smaller than I think they are.
But I'm curious, if you had to, you know, break
down your message, what would be the key things that
you feel that you're in service of. I know you've
mentioned authenticity.
Speaker 5 (33:14):
Down and I think we all have a purpose in life,
a beautiful one. If it's not music, it's going to
be something different, and it's always beautiful because it's always
going to be different. I believe that I got this
gift with my voice and maybe with you know, we're
all different when it comes to our voices. So I
just it's a beautiful question, but also difficult because there
(33:37):
are so many you know, there are so many things
that I want to show the world and inspire the
world with. But I would say really just using my
voice in any way possible, by using melodies and that
magic about singing it out loud instead of writing it,
because I really I don't like to write. I usually
(33:59):
don't don't write lyrics. I didn't used to, and I
forced myself to when it comes naturally when it comes
to with music and just writing about my feelings and
singing it out loud. And I think that this is
mainly my purpose, and of course as a Lebanese artist,
that also came from difficult times in my country. It's
(34:20):
also to show that you just have to go right
through it. You know, like you're going to have You're
going to have to go through difficult times, You're going
to have to go through really things that might bring
you down, but you just Sometimes some people ask me
how do you do it? Do you jump over it?
I say, you just go right through it.
Speaker 1 (34:38):
Yeah, because so quick to intellectualize things and try and think, think, think,
But I love your reference to the body and just
to feeling. There's so much power in that you know,
we're saying thinking, yeah, power is in the mind, but
there's this kind of otherworldly energy that people can tap into,
(34:59):
both and women because we both have femininity and ask I.
Speaker 5 (35:02):
Agree, I totally agree, and we're all coming together. If
you've noticed, like there there really isn't any for me,
any competition. You know, if I had to think about
a competition, it would be a competition against not against myself,
but you know, I would see where I was last
year and where I am this year, and and it
(35:25):
really isn't about being better than anyone else. I feel
like in our region right now, all of the women
or even the men, all of the artists in the
Mena region, we're just all supporting each other and we're
all doing our thing. And I think that when you
don't think about the competition, there's magic everywhere. There's like
(35:45):
in each artist, and we all collaborate and we're all
willing to do just a camp a boot camp together
and write and create.
Speaker 4 (35:54):
It's creating.
Speaker 5 (35:55):
That's what I love about the Mena region because you know,
in the US, I'm not saying that this is what's
happening every like this is what's happening in Google like
in general, but there is a big competition at the
end of the day. Well here, there's a competition if
you think about it. But we really don't think about that.
We think about creating together. We think about spreading a
(36:18):
specific message to the world, which is peace. And if
we can do that by collaborating or by singing about it,
or by talking about it, even us as artists, if
we have that recognition and people are willing to be
inspired by us and listen to us, then this is
our message and this is our.
Speaker 4 (36:39):
Job to do that.
Speaker 5 (36:41):
And what's so beautiful is that it's actually happening, you.
Speaker 1 (36:45):
Know, Yes, I mean you can just feel that you
are just as light and I can't wait for your
music to find more and more people. Congratulations on the
album release.
Speaker 2 (36:56):
Thank you.
Speaker 3 (36:57):
What are you most excited about.
Speaker 5 (36:59):
I'm just excited about just the journey because things changed,
things changed. I released my album in twenty twenty four,
August twenty twenty four, and with the war and everything,
I had to put a stop and you know, put
everything on hold, and so I was working, you know,
at the back without really putting something out. And now
(37:21):
that you know, things have been better in Lebanon and everywhere.
I've been more active and I've been more inspired, and
I'm just excited to create. And I'm trying not to
think about, Okay, what is going to happen next year
or end of this year, because usually I have a
vision board and I do have it in my head
(37:41):
and I write it down. But this time, I really
want to enjoy every step of this journey, every step
of this year, every step of this this change in
my life of being an independent artist and trying to
figure out my style at the end of the day,
because my album was more of the different layers of
(38:03):
why I'm as an artist. So that's why it's called
identity crisis. I was literally in a crisis who am
I as an artist? And we often have this pressure
like you have to find yourself, you have to know
who you are as an artist and brand yourself and
identify it. Well, I couldn't this year. I said to myself,
I'm really going to take it easy and I'm going
(38:23):
to work as hard, and because I love to hustle,
I feel like it's exciting, but I'm going to take
it easy and I'm going to believe in the process
and I'm going to keep on praying and hope to
for everything to go as planned. I know that that God,
that God has a plan for me, and so that's
why I'm very you know, I'm good inside.
Speaker 1 (38:45):
Yeah, you are such a delight to talk to.
Speaker 5 (38:50):
Thank you, you are honestly thank you for listening.
Speaker 1 (38:53):
No, this is an honor to talk with you. And
I'm really excited to you perform live someday and to
see you in the future. And yeah, just continue on
this beautiful journey.
Speaker 3 (39:08):
Thank you, thank you.
Speaker 1 (39:10):
I'm here with Fatuma, an incredible multifaceted artist based in
the UAE with an amazing story and uplifting spirit. I'm
so happy to call her my friend. The first time
I met her, you showed up with a bag of herbs,
healing herbs, and I knew that I was just in
love with you and your music. So excited for more
people to hear it. Let's start with that. Can you
(39:33):
share more about your journey and your path in music?
And I know so many people are so excited to
hear this soon give us the tea.
Speaker 6 (39:42):
So my journey in music, I mean I started I
started singing when I was six. I took some piano
lessons too, and then I was in musicals growing up choirs.
I just did everything that I could to be on stage,
anything to sing, because it made me feel really good
and it's like the one time where like I don't
(40:04):
have to really worry about anything, like who I am,
what I'm doing, what's up singing. Then I started off
that way, and then I started writing songs when I
was twelve, And when I went to go study for
my bachelor's which wasn't in music but in hospitality, I
was doing my best to make music a part of
(40:26):
everything that I did. That I actually like submitted homework
and like assignments with like full music.
Speaker 4 (40:34):
So anything to tie in the music to what I
was doing, I would do it.
Speaker 6 (40:37):
And then I went to Chicago. I started recording in
there with a bunch of friends. They go by ever
involved in rhyme, storted really really cool people, and then
came to New York for my masters, did a bunch
of performing in between that. Oh, just like singing is
doing doing my thing and doing it the way that
(40:59):
I want to, in the way that.
Speaker 4 (41:01):
Makes me happy, that brings me joy.
Speaker 2 (41:03):
I think that's the most wort word.
Speaker 1 (41:06):
What I really appreciate about you and your music process,
the desire to really get into your truth, like really
carve out your own sense of self in all these
different facets and then take that and put it into
your music. I think there's such a pressure to just
like put out music, put out music, and just like run.
(41:28):
But I so appreciate the commitment to being slow and
the commitment to really understanding what you want to do
and then doing it. And I think people really feel that.
And you had some amazing viral moments where people are
connecting to that desire of authenticity of course, but also
(41:51):
the real pride and work within your own self to
put that into your music, and that's where people really need.
Speaker 4 (41:58):
Thank you.
Speaker 6 (41:58):
No, Yeah, that that was interesting that video that I
was talking about myself and I was explaining a song
that I had written. It is called Dance and but
now I'm like changing the name because everybody keeps referring
it to Kishen now because I was describing what curly
hair is sometimes called, and it's not a nice it's
(42:19):
not a nice word. It's like saying it's frizzy. It's
my say, it's unruly. You know, all this and that
and when I was on stage, I was kind of nervous,
so I was trying to like get my words in
and also catered to a Western audience and make it
relatable too, not just to be like, well, this is.
Speaker 4 (42:38):
My experience from here and it's isolated.
Speaker 6 (42:40):
I kind of wanted to have a moment where we
all understood what was happening.
Speaker 4 (42:46):
And so I know that like.
Speaker 6 (42:48):
In the States, for example, with African Americans in their hair,
if they had it like braided, if it was like afro,
it'd be like unprofessional.
Speaker 4 (42:57):
That was like a big thing. It's not the as
much anymore.
Speaker 6 (43:01):
I think I could be wrong, but I've seen a
lot of progress in that in the representation and also
like just like standing ground on it and I respect
that so much. That was like, hey, like my hair
is like so curly, and where I'm from, people keep
saying straight it and to do this, and that the
song isn't about my hair. It just mentions my hair.
(43:25):
And it's the whole point of people telling you to
be something or to present a certain way that's not
the way that you were molded and shaped you know,
by I like to say by God. And for example,
my hair, I mean that shows my heritage, It shows
(43:45):
my ancestory, shows my roots, So why wouldn't I be.
Speaker 4 (43:48):
Proud of it?
Speaker 6 (43:49):
And when I do blow dry it like now, and
it's still the pearls are like coming out. But when
I do blow dry it, it's not because I'm trying
to hide it. Now, it's just well, I'm playing dress
up and I I enjoy it. It's a different look,
but it's not anything I'm trying to hide, so the
intention is different. And yeah, it just it means a
lot that people resonated with that because it often feels
(44:10):
very isolated or isolating when you get bullied or when
you go through things like people questioning your identity twenty
four to seven and you don't really have anyone to
talk to about it.
Speaker 4 (44:23):
And so you think you're going to these things alone.
Speaker 6 (44:26):
And I've learned that being frustrated with it is not
going to make any progress, and so I choose to
put it into my music so that I can renew
that energy into something positive. So Kisha, for example, talks
about Yes, it talks about my hair, that talks about
how much I love, It talks about my skin, It
talks about my mother, my father, talks about my heritage,
(44:49):
talks about everything that is me and that I don't
have to choose who to be, I can just be,
and that everybody is deserving of that.
Speaker 2 (45:01):
And so.
Speaker 6 (45:03):
We speak the same when we're dancing, or the different
tongues we speak speak the same. What we're dancing. Has
to do with that is that we all know a
ways to communicate with each other. And it might not
be through language per se, but there are all things
that we relate to.
Speaker 4 (45:19):
And it goes across the board.
Speaker 2 (45:20):
It's universal.
Speaker 4 (45:21):
So I just want to show that in that piece.
Speaker 1 (45:24):
Of work, synthesizing all of that. In your music, there's
an ancient feeling to it that I absolutely adore in
a modern production, but the things that you do with
your voice bring this this really ancient feeling that it's
super unique and captivating, and I know that's you blending
(45:45):
all of your different identities into the music. Can you
talk about discovering that sound?
Speaker 2 (45:52):
Yeah?
Speaker 6 (45:53):
No, This is funny because when I went to New York,
I think that was the first time I was looking
out for my culture and for a wider sense of
just like the Arab culture, and I felt kind of
the diaspora of it all when I was alone in
my program and in my school, because usually when I
(46:16):
went to these programs, there would be other Arabs there.
It wouldn't be necessarily for my country, but there would
be other Arabs there, so there was some some like similarities.
And also there would be Latinos too, so I had
like both all the time, and I would just like
go between them and back and forth and we all
have like a fun time. And I was getting my
doses of both, and I was learning from both, and
(46:37):
it was beautiful to be a verse and all that.
But when I went to New York to do my
masters at school, that wasn't the case, and so I
was seeking it and I did find, you know, the
communities in New York. New York was so big and
there's very like big Arab and Latino communities. But I
had to be completely separated from it to realize how
(46:58):
much it was influencing me. So because I didn't I
didn't grow up listening to a lot of Arabic music.
I did listen to the music that was mainstream and
that was like playing on TV.
Speaker 4 (47:10):
So I do know like the classics, and I sang
the when I was a kid.
Speaker 6 (47:14):
But then there was also in the reciting of Uran,
and there's there's kind of like this melodic thing about
it too, which I find very very beautiful, And so
that all of that experience has to do with it,
and then blending in what I grew up on, which
was Eta James and Christina Aguilera and you know, Amy Winehouse,
(47:39):
So blending all of that together and then whatever else
it is that I'm feeling.
Speaker 4 (47:43):
I guess I.
Speaker 1 (47:45):
Feel like the core of the message is the sense
of empowerment, the sense of love of your own self discovery.
It feels like an invitation for the listener to also
do that within themselves and to celebrate the power of
femininity masculinity. But there's I feel a real big emphasis
on feminity. And can you share more about how you
(48:08):
connected to your intuition, your creativity and this feminine sense
of birthing new ideas.
Speaker 6 (48:14):
Oh so, it's really interesting that you bring up like
the femininity, because I feel like I struggled with that
for a really really long time. I would, I mean,
and it's not just like in my appearance or anything,
or it was just kind of like the way that
I felt like I felt very masculine, because it was
just like hyper independent, I'm always gonna like I can
(48:37):
get everything done by myself, I don't need anybody's help,
and just not being able to trust or depend or
feel safe or secure with anybody. And so it put
me into this hyper masculine mode. And so my music
at the time as well wasn't wasn't or was reflecting that.
Speaker 4 (48:55):
It was reflecting that sense of hypermusculinity.
Speaker 6 (48:57):
And also like the vulnerability that I was sharing wasn't
as vulnerable as I could have been. And I listened
back to those songs and I'm like, this is like
a cry for help, Like it's more of a cry
for help. It's not that the songs weren't good, it's
just they were barely touching the surface of what could
have been. And it's because I was clinging on to
(49:19):
that masculine side to protect myself. It took a really
long time, I'll be honest, a lot of meditating, a
lot of therapy to.
Speaker 4 (49:33):
Really hone into like why I was so scared.
Speaker 6 (49:35):
Of being in my feminine And I think a lot
of that had to do with the feeling of safety
and security through like past traumas and experiences that when
I felt safe, it would turn out not to be safe,
and so like my brain was confused and it was
and it got rewired to the sense of living in chaos.
Speaker 4 (49:58):
And so that happened for about like ten years and
then coming out of that.
Speaker 6 (50:04):
Through therapy and through meditation and to really asking myself
what it is that I'm scared of, like really truly,
what is it that I'm scared of? Why am I
scared of it? And what can I do to be
safe again? And not just like why am I not safe?
Like I know why, I know I know the reason why,
(50:25):
But how can I get to a place where I
feel safe again? And when I feel safe and I
feel secure, then I think that's when my femininity is
allowed to flourish.
Speaker 4 (50:34):
And that is when I'm allowed to create and.
Speaker 6 (50:38):
Be free in that creation without judgment, without shame, without fear,
without any of those negative attachments. Yeah, and so I
think that's like how I I don't know if any
of that made sense.
Speaker 1 (50:54):
That made total sense. I think it's really telling that
the feminine isn't safe for a lot of our life,
like you know, and in varying degrees of people, but
that you know resonates with me, and it resonates with
a lot of women, just that part of us isn't
safe in this world that we've made. And I really
(51:16):
appreciate artists and writers and creators that are putting that
energy out in the world to try and counteract some
of this feelings of.
Speaker 6 (51:28):
Right And I think, yeah, and I think part of
it has come from conditioning of what feminine is. And
I've asked myself this a lot in the past, of
like what is it to be feminine?
Speaker 4 (51:41):
Because of the examples that I.
Speaker 6 (51:43):
Was shown and the experiences that I've had, wasn't like
a reflection of what I thought. It was not like
you know, mythology or like in even the religious text,
so how they portray women as these very strong and
like the nurture and the and their caregivers and and
(52:03):
like the ones that give life right and essentially like
women make a lot of decisions too, And my experience
and what I've seen is the opposite. It's like it's
a it's an imbalance of responsibility. Maybe is the word.
Speaker 4 (52:28):
I'm not sure.
Speaker 6 (52:30):
I don't, I don't, I don't know, I don't know
what I don't know word I'm looking for right now.
But there is some sort of imbalance between what it
is to be masculine what it is to be feminine.
Speaker 4 (52:38):
There's like stereotypes attached to that.
Speaker 6 (52:41):
And I think it could lead to toxic on both ends,
where Like, if you're feminine, you don't feel safe and secure,
so you lean on this ideal of what it is
to be masculine because that's going to be protective. Whereas
if you are safe and secure in your femininity, you
(53:01):
are so much stronger and so much powerful and you
won't end up in situations where you feel unsafe and
where you feel insecure. So it's kind of it's very
interesting and I'm rambling now, but.
Speaker 1 (53:14):
I mean the reframing that that is necessary, and music
and art acts as a portal to I think it's
a really interesting conversation, both for men and women. We
all need to connect to our healthy feminine and are masculine.
And so what advice would you give your younger self?
Speaker 4 (53:37):
Feel your feet grass?
Speaker 6 (53:43):
No, it literally it's like yo, Like literally, feel your
feet is not that deep, like everything and your exist
and you're living like you're grounded, you're good and like
you know that you will be fine.