On Sat before Christmas, in Enfield Town, Enfield Solidarity with Palestine presented poetry music excerpts from Gaza monologues and children's kite making. This podcast documents the day.

We are all Palestinians -Enfield

The date for a UK referendum to decide whether they want to leave the European Union has been set for June and residents of Gibraltar -  the British overseas territory on the tip of Spain - will also have the right to cast a vote.  Tensions between Spain and Gibraltar led to the border's closure from 1969 to 1985 and people were forced to journey to and from the territory by sea.  It's a memory that casts a shadow over the population of 30,000 Gibraltarians. The BBC's Leana Hosea reports

Gibraltar Brexit

Preview of my new Album out NOW!
Download or order your CD's at https://www.somaye.info
Somaye: Vocals (and piano on No-one Ever Tells You)
Andrew Mills: Piano (except for No-one Ever Tells You)
Music on Welcome To A Hum by Slovo www.randallmusic.net Remixed by Somaye
Translation of Li Beirut by Tarek by Tarek Chemaly
Preview mixed by Somaye

Hamra Spring Preview

An original song written and performed by Hamra (Somaye and Andrew Mills)

Dont Call Me Babe

A poem about revolution

Welcome to a hum
The revolution has begun 
Listen, it’s a slow stirring from below
Welcome to the show
 
Greetings from the oppressed
Globalised unrest
What comes next is the latest craze
These are revolutionary days
This is history along class lines
These are political times
 
Classes about to collide
Dictators will be defied 
Step aside, for the anti-war 
Like you've never seen it before
What's more, we’re inclined to revolt
And bring the system to a grinding halt
 
Step up step back
I do believe you’re under attack
Watch empires in demise
Fat cats brought down to size
A message from the deprived
The revolution has arrived
 
Production has run aground
Word gets around
The crowd is jumping
The mood is pumping
A sudden thumping sound
Dragging you to the dumping ground
 
Welcome to liberation 
An altogether new sensation 
The liquidation of capitalist crime 
Welcome to a socialist time

Welcome To A Hum

A version of the classic, Strange Fruit for our times

Strange Fruit - Billie Holiday

The words for this song were basically written years ago for a singer-songwriter friend whose father was dying of brain cancer. She didn't feel she could sing the song as it was too sad.  I adjusted the words recently to fit a backing track. I will record a complete version soon, with live musicians. Let me know what you think. 

No Time To Say Goodbye (Rough)

A sound installation I produced for Amnesty International's Brave campaign.

Brave Sound Installation

Welcome back to The Rebel Beat's monthly podcast for January, 2018. And happy new year!

We have an amazing show to get to today, we’re gonna bring you a people’s history of music à la Howard Zinn with Dror. Dror is grassroots music journalist, a blogger, and a community organizer with the BDS movement in solidarity with Palestine. Check out his blog, Entre Les Oreilles ("Between the Ears") here:
entrelesoreilles.blogspot.ca

Like the Rebel Beat podcast? Wanna keep us going strong? Support us!
www.patreon.com/rebelbeatradio

Also on the show, we reflect on the one-year anniversary of the mosque shooting in Quebec City, when a white supremacist killed six Muslim men as they were praying. It was just one week after Trump was inaugurated as President of the USA. If you're on Facebook, check out this beautiful collection of tributes here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/RememberJan29

We also reflect on a year of inspiring resistance against the white supremacist, sexist, ecocidal, and transphobic policies of the Trump regime. There are many frontlines of the struggle, but one in particular you can support are the J20 Defendants:
www.defendj20resistance.org

Finally, in our Turn it Up segment, we honour not one, but TWO groundbreaking musicians:

* Jackie Shane, a pioneering transgendered soul singer. Check out her recently re-released album here:
http://www.numerogroup.com/products/jackie-shane-any-other-way

* Hugh Masekela, the god-father of South African jazz, and anti-apartheid icon, who died this month at the age of 78. Rest in Power!

** Playlist **

The Narcicyst feat. Shadia Mansour - Hamdulillah
Oshun - Not my President
Entrance - Not gonna say your name
James Brown - Say it Loud (I’m Black and I’m proud)
Rachid Taha - Ya rayah
Rim Banna - Fares Odeh
Prince - Baltimore
Victor Jara - Venceremos
Miriam Makeba - Beware Verwoerd
Fela Kuti - Colonial mentality
N.W.A. - Fuck tha police
Zone d’Expression Populaire - Nique la France
Pussy Riot - Mother of god, drive Putin away
Roger Waters - Is this the life we really want?
Jackie Shane - Sticks and stones
Hugh Masekela - Stimela

The Rebel Beat is a proud member of the Channel Zero Network of anarchist podcasts:
www.channelzeronetwork.com

The Rebel Beat 081: A People's History Through Song

A remix by Deckerpark of We Are All Refugees, a song about a refugee child which originally appeared in the podcast We Are All Refugees by Somaye about the refugee crisis in Europe: https://www.mixcloud.com/applesandsnakes/we-are-all-refugees-home-cooking/
Somaye says: "The podcast contains a version of Wade in The Water/Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Chile which as pointed out in one review was an anti-slavery song. However it was also a song that was used by civil rights activists in their struggles in the 1960s. In other words it is an anti-racism song with a rich history.
It is this and the current racism against refugees that I had in mind when I mixed it with the title track of the podcast, We Are All Refugees."

We Are All Refugees by Ms Defiance feat. Somaye (Deckerpark REMIX)

A song about a refugee child which originally appeared in the podcast We Are All Refugees by Somaye about the refugee crisis in Europe: https://www.mixcloud.com/applesandsnakes/we-are-all-refugees-home-cooking/
This is a version of Wade in The Water/Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Chile which as pointed out in one review was an anti-slavery song. However it was also a song that was used by civil rights activists in their struggles in the 1960s. In other words it is an anti-racism song with a rich history. It is this and the current racism against refugees that I had in mind when I mixed it with the title track of the podcast, We Are All Refugees.

We Are All Refugees

With a voice that has been known to bring audiences to tears and extraordinary versatility on the tombak (Persian drum), Somaye’s music represents the fresh sound of the Iranian Diaspora, fusing East and West.  Her powerful and emotive voice which conveys the spirit and meaning of the songs of Billie Holiday and Nina Simone like no other is complemented by the heartfelt poetry penned by herself.

Somaye's unique arrangements of jazz standards on the tombak create a captivating sound that can only emerge from London's cultural melting pot and as a skilled producer her soulful voice blends seamlessly with the beautiful instruments of the East to create unique soundscapes that stand out within London’s urban musical jungle.

Born to Iranian parents in London, Somaye spent three years living in Iran before fleeing and returning to London.   She found solace in music and initially trained on the piano before discovering her true talent as a singer. She pursued her passion for music by studying and gaining a BA Hons in Music and MA in Ethnomusicology.  She returned to her Iranian roots by learning to play the tombak.  Her musical blend is the expression of a life torn between two cultures.   

Hamra Spring Preview

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