Diaspora Blues

Chido Mwat discusses her upcoming show 'She-Naningans', a multi-genre comedy extravaganza.She-Nanigans The Show is part of the Melbourne Comedy Festival and launches on April 4th.

Filmmaker Abdalla Omar shares his passion for movies and discusses his latest project - Shimbir.Shimbir is showing at the Immigration Museum for the event, Into the Night.

What do community development and performance art have in common? A lot if you were to ask Paulina Masika. Paulina chats to us about her group Nguvu Moja Theatre, casting for Once On This Island and much much more.For casting information email Paulina at [email protected]. MusicSongAnd I'm Telling You I'm Not GoingArtistJennifer HudsonSongI Want You BackArtistThe Jackson 5

Freelance journalist and community organiser Najma Sambul joins us this week.Najma looks at the story of Ismail Hussein, a young Somali man detained at Park Hotel, and how Novak's presence at the hotel was both a distraction & an opportunity to hear from the men. We also analyse the sexist tropes deployed against Grace Tame + other news headlines.MusicSongIsii Nafta (Love You More Than My Life)ArtistNimco HappySongBe AliveArtistBeyonceNajma Sambul is a freelance journalist based in Melbourne. Her reporting has been published by The Age, Agence-France Presse, MTV Australia and others

Welcome back to our first live episode of 2022! Our guest this week is the lovely Inez Trambas the founder of Negro Speaks of Books. Inez chats to us about bell hooks, Langston Hughes, her mother, and the impact bell hooks had on her life.Check out the Accent of Women special on Viv Malo.MusicSongLucky Country (features Viv Malo)ArtistProvocalzSongOne Sweet DayArtistMariah Carey, Boyz II Men

This is our final episode for 2021 and taking us out is a summer playlist created by Ayan's sister, Amal. We'll be back on January 17th, 2022.PLAYLIST SongIn2ArtistWSTRNSongNice To Meet YaArtistWes Nelson ft. Yxng BaneSongDjadja ArtistAya NakamuraSong163 För EvigtArtistCherrie ft. Z.ESongOjuelegbaArtistWizKidSongPeruArtistFireboy DMLSongHeadphonesArtistBaker Boy ft. Lara AndalloSongBreak It Off ArtistPink PantheressSongI Like ItArtistCardi B, Bad Bunny & J Balvin

The lovely Sogobri is our guest this week and she's created a playlist just for Diaspora Blues!Click here to listen to her gorgeous curation and follow them on Instagram at Sogobri.Support Blak Pearl Studio.

Kicking off the show is a man of many hats, Mr Congo. Mr Congo is a DJ, poet and mental health clinician based in Melbourne. Check out his music here.And later in the program Disability Justice advocate Pauline Vetuna discusses Disability Day 2021. She also outlines the labour that goes into creating a 12-hour program!Special track: Demonstration 2020 by PersecutorImage 1: Grounding Disability Justice (Renay Barker-Mulholland)Image 2: Mr Congo. Image supplied

Our guests this week are Betiel Beyin and Leigh Lule. They are both creatives and real-life best friends - just like their fictional characters Ruby and Zion from Lil CEEBS. And on today’s show, we’ll hear all about their IG series, test their entertainment tastes and hear about their future solo projects.

This week we're playing songs we've had on repeat. MusicSongDon't Let a Good Girl DownArtistThelma PlumSongEarthstrong ArtistPookieSong2000 n Somethin ArtistKaiitSongSelf CareArtistMiieshaSongEverything Is GreatArtistAlice Skye SongBetter thingsArtistKee'ahnSongI Am MeArtistSampa the GreatSongYouArtistJade