In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji sits down with Devi Mambouka, the artist and music producer who performs as Masma Dream World, to explore the deeply spiritual and emotionally raw process behind the making of her art.
Unlike traditional songwriting, Devi's process is entirely intuitive—a sonic ritual guided by the goddess Kali, whose presence she channels through daily meditation, field recordings, and unplanned studio improvisation. She describes the act not as writing, but as receiving: “I just do what she asks me to do.”
Alongside longtime collaborator and engineer Chris Weiss, she crafts in real time—often without speaking—communicating through a shared, cultivated intuition. Devi shares how the trust between them allows her to stay fully immersed in the ritual while Chris captures and translates the message into form.
But the hardest part didn’t happen in the studio. Devi opens up about the spiritual crisis that led her to the brink of suicide—and the moment of divine intervention that brought her back. What began as an attempt to make a dub record became a vessel for transformation—guided by light, grief, and the persistence of the spirit.
Artist: Masma Dream World (Devi Mambouka)
Host and Executive Producer: Kieron Banerji
Recording Engineer: Max Walker
Creative: Callum Baker
Recording Location: Thin White Duke Studios, London
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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