A short stream of consciousness as to how I'm feeling on a Thursday evening when I have deadlines looming and thoughts rail my mind.

This episode questions the idea of ownership - centring around the kente cloth which is a symbolic piece of clothing worn by the Akan and Ewe people in Ghana, Ivory Coast and Togo. Using my fascination with visual artist Toyin Ojih Odutola as a springboard, I traverse through the connection between culture, art, and identity; how we redeem ourselves as diasporans looking for belonging and why it's time to protect the origins of who we are without being discriminatory.

Links for further information for anyone interested:

https://theconversation.com/ghanas-politics-has-strong-ties-with-performing-arts-this-is-how-it-started-148940

https://thevinylfactory.com/label-news/peter-adjaye-soundscape-toyin-ojih-odutola-a-countervailing-theory-ceremonies-within/

In this episode I speak about navigating the wins and losses of adulthood, debate the constructs and conventions of womanhood and decide different ways to practise self-care in the social media age - from drawing on radical collective politics to the simple practice of journalling. Briefly touching on some of the literature I've read - from Audre Lorde's "Use of the erotic", to Avna Doshi's "burnt sugar" and Tsitsi Dangarembga's "This mournable body", I talk about the duality of identity and how it is a fluid space I am constantly floating upon.

This episode touches on Harry and Meghan's interview with Oprah, the connotations of colourism, the institutional racism and white supremacy of the Royal Family and why we need a republic.

A short introduction into my thoughts and feelings of the concept of self and the topics I will be evaluating in further episodes.