About

Since the establishment of the colonial protectorate British Somaliland in the 19th century, Somali migration to Britain has consisted of multiple journeys and waves. Remnants of Somali heritage, culture and sounds can be found in the hidden corners of British port cities such as London and Cardiff, however, this presence is largely absent from the British public sphere. Beginning with the Somali Civil War of 1989, which increased the rate of migration, this doctoral research project explores the sounds of the past, present and futures of the Somali diaspora in Britain. I will use sound to retrace my ancestral journey from London to Hargeisa, the capital of present-day Somaliland, and to develop a narrative-driven sonic autobiography that will document the sounds and discourses that forge Somali identities in Britain today. To do this, I will explore the sites of everyday living: home life, traditional Somali Music, urban soundscapes, audio digital cultures, and the practice of Somali and African diasporic musicians and sound artists in Britain. I will contextualise the sounds and samples from my field recordings and utilise my practice as a DJ to place these sounds within the context of a series of club nights as part of a residency at the ICA. I will create a series of audio pieces borrowed from sound techniques in black diasporic club cultures, such as sampling, sound design, and vocal edits. Using practice-based research methods I will bring a new approach to sonic art practices that are embodied in DJ culture and the sounds embodied in lived cultures in the African diaspora. This doctoral project in conjunction with my residency at the ICA will bring forth a new way of analysing the lived experiences and cultures of migrant communities by centring on knowledge production found in orality and sound in African diasporas.