Described by Songlines magazine as ‘bold and poetic… beautiful and fearless’, we are delighted to share vocalist Amira Kheir’s Sunday morning listening for MailTape.
As a young singer, musician and composer, Amira draws from her own multicultural background to create music that explores themes of home, belonging, love, and unity. Within this soudscape, East African rhythms blend with North African ambience, through hints of Afro-Latin grooves and Neo-Soul, expressing themselves through a soulful explosion of jazz improvisation. Amira’s music possesses within it ancient musical traditions, yet is delivered with a contemporary vibrancy reflective of London’s multicultural music scene.
Amira Kheir’s selection
Sarah Vaughan – All of Me
Amira Kheir: ” Needless to say, she’s at the very top of my pyramid of wonderful vocalists of our time. I can listen to her any time, any day of the week. In this song especially, I love her playfulness and the feel she creates with her trio is just perfect. This totally sets the mood for my Sunday morning. “
Ali Farka Touré & Ry Cooder – Gomni
Amira Kheir: ” Collaborations of this kind are really hard to get right, but this one has created one of my favourite albums. What I love about this song, is the effortlessness. Both musicians leave so much space for one another and there is just no rush to get going. The communication is so natural and that’s what allows the spirit of the song to be conjured. It’s timeless — and I love getting in the zone with this on lazy Sunday mornings. “
A Tribe Called Quest – We Can Get Down
Amira Kheir: ” No Sunday morning playlist of mine would be complete without A Tribe Called Quest! I’m a child of the 80s, so 90s hiphop is part of the soundtrack to my childhood. In fact this is most of what I listen to on those Sundays when I’m able to start the day nice and slow, and it accompanies me throughout the day if I’m doing chores or lazing around with friends. “
MailTape’s selection
Amira Kheir — Habibi Ta’al
Sanjay: ” There’s so much to love about Amira’s music. Her arrangements and imaginative melodies are atmospheric, evoking open spaces. Although quite an impersonal space, her performance yesterday afternoon in Trafalgar Square, London, for Black History Month 2017 was a brief journey through her burgeoning discography. “
Arooj Aftab – Mohabbat (Live in Berlin)
Sanjay: ” I’ve worn Arooj’s EP down quite a bit since its release in 2015. Singing in a cool, hushed and nuanced mezzo-soprano, it feels perfect for a Sunday morning jam. I’m looking forward to an overdue performance in London…one day! “
Susheela Raman — Vinayaka
Sanjay: ” Susheela Raman sings her own individual take on Indian classical, traditional Tamil music and an array of so much more. This one was recorded in 2009 before her brilliant debut album, ‘Salt Rain’. For our friends in France, Susheela will be revisiting Salt Rain on tour at Saint-Raphaël, Saint-Jean-De-Védas and Sérignan in November. “
Lhasa de Sela — Rising
Sanjay: ” This was the first song I heard from Lhasa de Sela and her voice seems so intense throughout this album. To me, it’s a hopeful song on an otherwise sombre and reflective album, produced and released during her 21-month battle with breast cancer, which she lost on January 1st 2010. “
That’s all for today. Thanks so much for listening and love to Amira Kheir for being our guest this morning, and to William Girault for this episode’s beautiful illustration!
