July 2020

Dear Music,

I have been in love with you, music, since I could remember.

You have always been part of my life from a very young age. To be honest, you have helped me through the toughest times in my life. However, since pursuing you as a career, you have opened up many doors and criticism for me. You have made me question myself, my views, and how me being an artist has an effect on how people perceive me.

You, along with my ambition, fearlessness, and the spirit of challenging the status quo gave me a voice. You see music you have made me resilient. You have forced me to achieve beyond limitations. I was determined to be the best in my own lane with myself as my only competition. I mean you can’t run a race if you constantly watch others in their lanes, you’ll get distracted and derailed. I worked so hard and smart to be a success story so other female upcoming musicians and following generations can feel inspired, ‘if I can do it, so can you’, to the point where I now believe I am thriving on uncharted ground as a female Malawian musician. There is a list of many achievements and firsts. I am making history but there is nothing that makes me prouder than seeing other women in this awfully male dominated industry fight for their own seat at the table. There can be multiple seats at the table for multiple women, not just that one seat that is only reserved for one woman. Seeing diverse versions of Malawian women is so inspiring; from modest and traditional, to care-free and bold ‘in your face’ type of Malawian female musicians. We are no longer looking for validation or respect from our male counterparts who try to pit us against each other. In our unique ways, we are all building our own Queendom table with seats for those that only wish to empower, encourage, educate, learn, advocate, and challenge the status quo. Put gender and male privilege aside, women will not compete for the respect of men in any industry including yours, music; even if they try to glorify one of us at the expense of vilifying and disrespecting the rest of us. That will not pit us against each other, no.

You see the thing is, music, you have really played a major role in opening my eyes to the realities of all the factors that hold the socio-economic progression of women; factors that are perpetuated by men and women. The one thing that has constantly hounded a particular group of us female artists is the talk of apparently being naked all the time, lmaoo! Embracing our own version of femininity has been such a big taboo. Why do they want us women to shy away from being confident about our sexuality and femininity? Why don’t they want us to embrace our bodies unapologetically? I mean modesty is a choice, each to their own. I see his and hear this all the time. They won’t talk about how I made history as the first and only female artist that won an Afirma in 2018 or how Zani Challe was the first Malawian female artist to have hiad a hit record ‘Single for Tonight’, a collaboration with international artist Patoranking. They won’t talk about the fact that Temwa has one of the biggest records ‘Mudya basi’. Because we are women they want to say we don’t deserve our respect simply because toxic male masculinity deems the way we dress to be inappropriate. Not sorry, but who died and made them the gate keeper of respect! Has it not occurred to them that we are not in the 1500s, we are in 2020. We are Malawian women that are in your industry, music. We are ambitious and bold enough to live and be as we see fit. Our work, our creativity, our brand, our image, our attitude will see us sharing stages with some of the biggest artists on the planet. THEY WON’T LIMIT US!

This is what you mean to me, music; the freedom to be unapologetic, successful, and happy. Whether I dress “inappropriately” or not, I am not sorry that my boldness offends them!

Having said this, I would like to thank you, music, for making me the unapologetic badass that I am. I hope this letter unleashes the unapologetic badass in a girl somewhere out there.

All my love,

That Liyaya Girl.