Music Life

Australian singer Gabriella Cilmi hosts Music Life, the show where some of the best musicians in the world come together to talk about creativity and living as a musician. She is joined by Portuguese singer Carmen Souza, France-based Algerian singer Soud Massi, and Egyptian-British singer Natacha Atlas.Carmen Souza is a jazz singer, pianist, and guitarist of Cape Verdean decent who sings in Portuguese, English, French and Creole. Soud has widely been touted as the most successful female singer-songwriter to emerge from the Arabic-speaking world. Natacha has collaborated with the likes of Nitin Sawhney, Peter Gabriel, and Jean-Michel Jarre, and her latest album Strange Days was released last year. Gabriella, whose platinum selling debut album Lessons to be Learned came out in 2008, talks to these other great singers about staying true to artistic visions, songwriting clichés, and the unsung people who have helped them in their careers.

Sudanese-American multi-instrumentalist and singer Sinkane hosts Music Life this week, the show where some the best musicians in the world come together to discuss their creative process and life as a musician.Sinkane is joined by New York's Cautious Clay, an estate agent turned pop-artist whose track Cold War was recently sampled by Taylor Swift, Filipino-American keyboardist and vocalist Elenna Canlas, who was a member of the world-renowned dub reggae collective Easy Star All-Stars, and Lea Lea, a singer from East London of Trinidadian and Italian descent, who has shared stages with the likes of Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Roots Manuva, and Amy Winehouse.Host Ahmed Gallab, AKA Sinkane, has collaborated with the likes of David Byrne, and was also a member of the Atomic Bomb Band, which celebrates the music of Nigerian musician William Onyeabor. He also recently released his seventh studio album Dépaysé. The artists discuss the ways in which they collaborate with musicians from different genres and cultures, along with talk of first gigs and life on the road.

Rebecca Lucy Taylor AKA Self Esteem hosts this week's Music Life - the show where some of the best musicians from all over the world get together to talk about how they make music, and their lives as musicians. Joining her are some other great pop musicians. Alex Cameron is a singer born and raised in Sydney who makes what has been described as “Australian sleaze pop”. He apparently is used to dressing up as an old man, and his most recent record is a love letter to his partner and a musing on masculinity. Also joining the group is Maisie Peters, a 19-year-old singer songwriter from Brighton in the south of England, who started writing songs aged 12 and cites the likes of Taylor Swift, Lily Allen, First Aid Kit, Kacey Musgraves and Kanye West among her biggest influences. She gained fame after releasing recordings of herself on Youtube, and the internet has decreed that she is making the “best observational pop of 2019”. Finally, Rakel Mjoll, lead singer of the band Dream Wife. She is a former art-school student and singer from Iceland who grew up in California. Dream Wife are a band who tackle subjects such as body image, gender roles, and the various faces of womanhood.Led by Rebecca, they discuss honesty in lyrics, musical pet hates, getting your hair caught in a violin, and trying to determine what’s cool.

This week, Oluseun Anikulapo Kuti AKA Seun Kuti – singer, saxophonist, Egypt ‘80 band leader and son of Fela Kuti from Lagos, Nigeria – hosts a very lively episode. He’s joined by trumpeter, vocalist and visual artist, the leader of the excellent Afrobeat band KOKOROKO (meaning 'be strong' in Nigerian language Urhobo) Sheila Maurice Grey. And lead vocalist from Ibibio Sound Machine, born in London but spending most of her childhood in Nigeria where her family speak Ibibio, the native language of the Ibibio people in Akwa Ibom Staten, Eno Williams. Led by Seun they’ll be discussing whether music should have a social responsibility, favourite songs to play live, dealing with heckles, and where the art form goes to next.

This week, we’re going into the holiday season with a bang. Trumpeter, composer, vocalist, and producer Leron Thomas (Pan Amsterdam, Iggy Pop) is joined at the world famous Maida Vale studios in London by: the godfather of punk, David Bowie collaborator, actor, singer, and all-round legend Iggy Pop; singer, composer, producer, three-time-Mercury-Music-Prize-nominated guitar shredder, and now a soundtrack artist for the hit TV show Peaky Blinders, Anna Calvi; and punk poet, and an all-round musical rebel from Nottinghamshire in the UK who writes and shouts about everything to do with 21st Century Britain, it’s Jason Williamson from the band Sleaford Mods.Led by Leron they’ll be discussing innovation in music, how they implant different genres into their work, and how it feels to be an artist in the current political and social climate.

This week, we’re joined by a who’s who of indie royalty. John Grant - American singer-songwriter, multi-linguist, former member of the Czars, and now an incredibly successful solo artist in his own right – guides us through this episode. He’s joined by Pulp founder and frontman Jarvis Cocker, one of the greatest voices in UK music; musician, producer, record label boss and former Cocteau Twins bassist and keyboard player, Simon Raymonde; and Gruff Rhys, Welsh musician, composer, producer, filmmaker, author, and man of many bands, including Super Furry Animals.Led by John, they’ll be discussing how your career changes your relationship with music, the strains of being a travelling musician, and how to perfect the art of the wedding DJ.

This week, we’re going truly global, taking in three continents. Lead singer and guitarist of the UK black feminist punk band Big Joanie, Stephanie Phillips, guides us through this bumper episode. Joining her is: one half of the duo Rodrigo y Gabriela, who’ve been playing together for almost 20 years and have been inspired by everything from Heavy Metal to Jazz, it’s Gabriela Quintero; a singer, composer and choir director from Cuba, she’s signed to Gilles Peterson’s Brownswood label and has been quoted as saying: “We want to make Cuban music universal again by mixing the traditional with our young spirits”, it’s Daymé Arocena; finally, a Cameroonian singer songwriter, one of 21 children and who started singing at the age of just 3. He mixes African, Latin and American influences, it’s Blick Bassy.Led by Stephanie, they’ll be discussing the expectations that are placed on their music from outside forces, how their various influences manifest themselves in the music, and whether or not politics can be a creative force.

The host this time is musician, engineer, and ambassador for all things South America, Will Holland aka Quantic. Will is joined by: British saxophonist, Acoustic Ladyland and Polar Bear founder, Pete Wareham; one of the busiest saxophonists in the business with her band Collocutor, Tamar Osborn; and British multi-instrumentalist, television, film, and theatre score composer Orphy Robinson MBE. Led by Quantic, they’ll be discussing the moment they realised they were a musicians, how important are their surroundings when they are creating music. Will aims to get to the bottom of how they all do what they do, and why they do it.

This week, Beyonce writer and pop star Raye is back in the presenter’s chair with a new round of musicians. This time she is joined by: the winner of the 2012 MOBO UnSung regional competition in Birmingham and ‘Unknown (To You)’ singer Jacob Banks; producer, radio host, and DJ on the up Melle Brown who’s also signed to Jamz Supernova’s label; and Californian poet and spoken word artist Tenesha the Wordsmith. Led by Raye they’ll be discussing how their careers affect the people around them, how women treat other women in music, and inequalities and race in the industry.

This week, born in Johannesburg and raised in Doncaster, UK, the multi-talented, young, and much hyped musician Skinny Pelembe is joined by: Mo Wax founder, UNKLE leader, and an artist who’s collaborated with everybody from Thom Yorke to Massive Attack, James Lavelle; on the other side of the sofa sits avant-garde electronic artist Elsa Hewitt who has been enjoying much success this year; and rounding off the group is a singer of Ethiopian heritage and leader of the band Hejira, Rahel Debebe Dessalegne.Led by Skinny, they’ll be discussing stealing from their heroes, whether or not they dance to the music whilst they make it, and whether video games have inspired what they do.