Moroccan-Yemeni artist, AŸA, is back with new music, new live tracks on vinyl, and new stories! This music is deeply personal to AŸA, as she navigates grief from the loss of a dear friend of hers and the ongoing horrors the world is witnessing in Palestine, where she has family and friends. She shares how music has helped her through this journey and how she believes music is the way to capture time and stories in history.
You might know Matt Edwards as your jack-of-all-trades actor/producer/writer and Doug Jones from one of your favourite franchises like Hocus Pocus, Hellboy 1 & 2, Star Trek, and Fantastic Four, but this budding Hollywood friendship will warm your hearts as they come together in their next project, Pretty Boys, a comedy short film about a washed up Hollywood Star, his estranged son, and the disastrous road trip that just might bring them back together.
They're baaaaack! On this episode of The Human Challenge, an Amazon Music x ACAST "Indie Podcast Amplifier 2023", Leanna Carriere and Timm Döbert are back to talk about their recent cycling trip across Canada to support the 30x30 initiative, a United Nations goal of protecting 30% of land and water by 2030.
You might remember them (how could you forget this dynamic duo, Canada's First Woman Decathlete and a Global Change Ecologist?) from previous episodes where they spoke about their Wings of Survival expedition to support restoration efforts of the Pacific Americas Flyway.
The Cross-Canada trek served as a warm-up to their Wings of Survival trip next year.
In this casual conversation, Leanna and Timm share the conservation sites they visited across the country, the animals they came across, and how they prepared for the 30 days trek.
Being plant-based athletes, they also highlight their partnership with University of Alberta to research the effects of a plant-based diet on a long-term extreme expedition.
Be welcome to support them directly at their GoFundMe here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/wings-of-survival-expedition
Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com
Poppy Mason-Watts, Chief Growth and Impact Officer of WaterBear shares all about WaterBear's impact in diversity, film, media, and technology from both their content and business operations; their first time at Sundance. She also gets personal, divulging the challenges of being a woman in tech, media, and impact; the project that inspired her to swim the English channel to bring awareness to refugees; and some of her other favourite female protagonists.
This week on The Human Challenge, an Amazon Music x ACAST "Indie Podcast Amplifier 2023", Vanessa Ferlaino sits down with JUNO nominee for "Reggae Recording of the Year 2024", Jah'Mila.
In this episode, Jah'Mila shares her journey from Kingston, Jamaica to Halifax, Nova Scotia, touching on her religious and cultural influences in all aspects of her life, from her music to her own personal philosophies. She also talks about balance between her artist world and corporate world, offering a unique perspective on how the two spheres are more blended than we realize.
Jah'Mila is a reggae singer originally from Kingston, Jamaica, now based in Atlantic Canada. She blends traditional Jamaican roots reggae with jazz and modern soul. She has shared the stages with renowned reggae musicians like The Wailers, Black Uhuru, and Groundation. Her award-winning debut album "Roots Girl" was released in November 2022, focusing on reggae soul with a message of social justice. She has worked with various institutions and special projects, including the National Arts Centre, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Symphony Nova Scotia, and more.
Tune in to the JUNO's on CBC Saturday March 23rd and Sunday March 24th to catch Jah'Mila live!
Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com or Jah'Mila at https://www.jahmilamusic.com/ or https://www.instagram.com/jahmilasings/?hl=en
"When you can live in the outer world,” says Grammy-nominated artist, Valerie June, “but also marry that with the inner world, than you're a new space, a new world." Touching on her new book, "Light Beams: A Workbook For Being Your Badass Self,” she shares how we can harness both softness and hardness in our light, the light of the spirit that we embody, and the lightness to just being a human, and standing and speaking in your truth, in your power.
AŸA's story is one unlike any other.
As a Moroccan/Yemeni "Arab&B" artist growing up in Israel-Palestine, AŸA, who describes her childhood like "being a nomad", faced family trauma, abuse, mandatory military service, and assault, all before the age of 20, when finally, she found herself the winner of a music competition.
In a true moment of synchronicity, after headlining a show for a shelter who once supported her, she was offered an opportunity in Berlin -- and has not look backed since! She shares how she found inner peace in Berlin, flourished as an artist, and continues to heal, including how, having served her mandatory time on the Israeli army as a singer to entertain the soldiers, the recent aggression since Oct 7th has allowed her to heal her own family trauma as she slowly learns of her own Palestinian roots. Being in the middle of both offers a balanced perspective; she believes healing on both sides is crucial for peace.
Vanessa is honoured to hold space with AŸA in this 90min special feature episode, learning in this authentic discussion how AŸA still copes with the long-term ramifications of abuse; how she finds peace with family friction; and how her artistry is influenced by her unfolding culture -- and of course how this all relates to her new single, "Greenlight".
Don't miss her upcoming PIANO + STRINGS show in Berlin on Feb 8th and 9th! RSVP at https://framed.berlin/events/framed-80-aya-einat-dan/
And her new single "Greenlight" drops Feb 9th on all major platforms!
The Human Challenge was an Amazon Music x ACAST "Indie Podcast Amplifier" in 2023.
Be invited to stay in touch with Vanessa on Instagram @vanessaferlaino or vanessaferlaino.com;
and AŸA at @aya.loveyou on Instagram or https://www.ayasmusic.com/