'time' is yours

'Time' is yours. I hope that this song will spark a movement… The whole idea of the song is dismantling the concept of ‘Time’ which keeps us all in what sometimes feels like a chokehold. It came from the concept of the ‘Strong Black Woman’ which forced me to confront what it means to be a Black woman, existing in the 21st century and intertwined with the legacy of slavery and colonialism… I realised that I had been suppressing my feelings for most of my life, carrying loads of trauma and emotional baggage which I’d never had an opportunity to offload and still having to show up and work hard to prove my worth. 

The more I unpacked this struggle to be strong, the more I realised that it was a global predicament for women and then for all marginalised people to withstand oppression. We all exist in a capitalist society which forces us to work ourselves to the bone and neglect ourselves; our health, our pasts, our present, our futures, our families, our communities, our identity… Self-care slips off the radar and we lose our sense of who we are. We exist to work to pay bills to live. We’re trapped in a constant fight for survival. 

This song, for me, feels like a call-to-action for people all over the world. We emerged from lock-down, anticipating a ‘New Normal’ and we were confronted with an even more brutal existence. I definitely feel like I am still trying to make up for lost time, and I’m sure I am not alone. This song calls everyone to take a moment to pause, to focus on our human needs, our feelings, our desires, our dreams and everything in between. This song is defiance. It marks a new beginning for anyone who is ready to take back their time, to reclaim their narrative and to focus on living a life that is full. This all sounds cliché, and it took me so long to find the headspace to really explain what this song is about, but I hope this makes sense!

Listen to 'Time' here.

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