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Editor-in-chief Simon Broughton Publisher & Managing Director Paul Geoghegan Editor Alexandra Petropoulos Assistant Editor & Reviews Editor Olivia Cheves Art Director Juliet Boucher Sub Editor & Online Content Writer Spencer Grady Advertisement Manager James Anderson-Hanney Online Content Editor James McCarthy News Editor Russ Slater Listings Editor Tatiana Rucinska World Cinema Editor John Atkinson Marketing Manager John Barnett Marketing Assistant Emma Coull Cover Image Camila Falquez Contributing Editors Jane Cornwell, Mark Ellingham & Nigel Williamson Subscriptions Director Sally Boettcher Editorial Director Martin Cullingford CEO Ben Allen Chairman Mark Allen SUBSCRIPTIONS UK: 0800 137 201 Overseas: +44 (0)1722 716997 subscriptions@markallengroup.com ADVERTISING +44 (0)20 7501 6683
Anthem of resistance
As I write, heart-breaking news continues to come out of Ukraine, but I am inspired to see music playing a small, but vital role – as it o en does in times of crisis. The Ukrainian national anthem, for example, has become a potent sign of resistance: protestors have joined voices in public squares across Europe; countless music concerts have opened with the anthem in solidari , and then there’s the moving video of Ukrainian baritone Yuriy Yurchuk singing the anthem outside 10 Downing Street – it’s amazing how powerful such a simple gesture can feel. It’s also heartening to see that musicians like DakhaBrakha and Gogol Bordello’s Eugene Hütz are still just as outspoken about the crisis (see p8).
According to the UN Refugee Agency, roughly four million Ukrainians have fled the country, adding to the world’s already overwhelming refugee crisis. It seems poignant, then, that several of the artists within these pages have had to overcome leaving their own homelands behind. On p26 cover star Lido Pimienta speaks about how her family was forced to flee Colombia when she was a teenager due to the country’s civil war. When she finally was able to follow them to Canada a few years later, she was met with racism and intolerance. But she’s finally having her welldeserved moment, a vindication for her trauma.
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Yungchen Lhamo has been using her experience of exile to help homeless and mentally ill people in her adopted home of New York (read more on p19), and qanun player Maya Youssef was also forced to redefine her concept of ‘home.’ Having fled Syria in 2012, she follows up her debut album, which was a direct response to the war, with Finding Home, a deeply moving meditation on the ideas of home. “Home is a space of healing,” she tells us on p36. “It’s that place where you’re completely held and completely found.”
It’s amazing how powerful such a simple gesture can feel
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CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE INCLUDE
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© MA Music Leisure & Travel Ltd, 2022. All rights reserved. No part of Songlines may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without prior written permission of the publishing director. The views expressed do not necessarily represent those of the editor or Songlines advertisements in the journal do not imply endorsement of the products or services advertised. Please read our privacy policy, by visiting privacypolicy.markallengroup.com. This will explain how we process, use and safeguard your data. ISSN 1464-8113. Printed by: Pensord Press Ltd, Blackwood, NP12 2A Record trade distribution Songlines 020 7738 5454 Newstrade distribution Marketforce 020 3787 9101
Russ Slater The editor of the website Sounds and Colours, Russ regularly writes about Latin American music. He’s also Songlines news editor. This issue he speaks to dynamic cover star Lido Pimienta on p26.
Fiona Talkington A BBC radio presenter, including 20 years with the award-winning show Late Junction, Fiona is also a curator and has worked extensively with Norwegian music. She catches up Annbjørg Lien (p72).
Nigel Williamson Previously a political correspondent and then news editor on The Times, Nigel has written for every issue of Songlines. This time round he introduces the nominees for the Songlines Music Awards 2022 (p22).
Songlines was launched in 1999 and is the definitive magazine for world music – music that has its roots in all parts of the globe, from Mali to Mexico, India to Iraq. Whether this music is defined as traditional, contemporary, folk or fusion, Songlines is the only magazine to truly represent and embrace it. However, Songlines is not just about music, but about how the music fits into the landscape; it’s about politics, history and identi . Delivered in both print and digital formats, Songlines, through its extensive articles and reviews, is your essential and independent guide to a world of music and culture, whether you are starting on your journey of discovery or are already a seasoned fan.
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M Y 2022 › SONGLINES 03
