As Nas says "There's only one mic" and you gotta grab it while you can.
The last Open-Mic event was a mixture of nostalgia and beautiful talent right here in Skakah, Al Jawf, Saudi Arabia.
One of the teachers who performed the most amazing poems said something that stuck to my mind, "it is gatherings like these that often keeps one sane". When he said that, I felt that someone could understand the emotional roller coaster that one can go through if you are in the Middle east...well, in Saudi Arabia.
As much as we are embracing this new culture that we work in and live in, we often feel displaced and trying to find every bit of memory from our previous lives to get a bit of normality in our daily lives in the desert.
The Open Mic nights was a piece of memory from one of the teacher's previous life in USA, and he brought it here in Skakah to share a night of talent and togetherness.
The last open Mic night was my first night of performing for my co-workers and it was bittersweet. The bitterness of it being a little too late for me, and the sweetness of showing the people I work with a bit of me.
I love singing, singing is one of the things that I often keep really private and in my bedroom. However, I come from a deep entertainment world, although it should make me a bit more outspoken and open about my singing, it did the very opposite. I freak out when I perform in front of people, especially people I know. This night was no different. Me and Liz have been practicing "Angel" by Sarah Mclahlan, and it was easy and comfortable. The moment I had to sit in front of all the familiar faces, my stomach was playing roller-coaster and my mind went blank. However, we sang our song, and we sang it well.
In my heart I actually dedicated that song to Liz, because she was the one who approached me about singing together.
Since it was the last open Mic night, it was not only the last open mic night. It was the last open Mic night with some of the teachers that made life really bearable here in the desert. It was really emotional and I felt disappointed that it took me that long to come out of my shell and to share a bit of myself with them.
I decided to sing a song that will always remind me of who I am and where I come from.
Being a traveler, sometimes the only identity one carries is not the passport, but the memories of who are. I carry my name. My name is often the very thing that people notice and ask about it. It is the one thing that I am proud to explain my African heritage.
However, besides my name, I carry my language and thank God, I have not forgotten our language back home. In the memory of my culture and family back in South Africa, I decided to perform the "Click Song",which was originally performed by Mariam Makeba. What I love about that song is that it really gets deep into our language, which is the clicking, something that most people out of Africa won't understand.
I enjoy singing this song, because as a child my father was really fond of teaching us the best part of our language, which is the clicking.
I didn't know how the teachers will react to it, but I didn't really worry about it.
While I was singing it and in my head I remembered my childhood and sitting on the sofa on a Sunday afternoon hearing the radio playing this song.
I was happy to have performed this song and to have shared a bit of myself with these teachers. For the ones that are leaving Skakah, I want to say thank you for your lovely weekends, support and helping to keep us all sane. I wish you happiness and prosperity for the years ahead and may we not forget the great times we had together.
The last Open-Mic event was a mixture of nostalgia and beautiful talent right here in Skakah, Al Jawf, Saudi Arabia.
One of the teachers who performed the most amazing poems said something that stuck to my mind, "it is gatherings like these that often keeps one sane". When he said that, I felt that someone could understand the emotional roller coaster that one can go through if you are in the Middle east...well, in Saudi Arabia.
As much as we are embracing this new culture that we work in and live in, we often feel displaced and trying to find every bit of memory from our previous lives to get a bit of normality in our daily lives in the desert.
The Open Mic nights was a piece of memory from one of the teacher's previous life in USA, and he brought it here in Skakah to share a night of talent and togetherness.
The last open Mic night was my first night of performing for my co-workers and it was bittersweet. The bitterness of it being a little too late for me, and the sweetness of showing the people I work with a bit of me.
I love singing, singing is one of the things that I often keep really private and in my bedroom. However, I come from a deep entertainment world, although it should make me a bit more outspoken and open about my singing, it did the very opposite. I freak out when I perform in front of people, especially people I know. This night was no different. Me and Liz have been practicing "Angel" by Sarah Mclahlan, and it was easy and comfortable. The moment I had to sit in front of all the familiar faces, my stomach was playing roller-coaster and my mind went blank. However, we sang our song, and we sang it well.
In my heart I actually dedicated that song to Liz, because she was the one who approached me about singing together.
Since it was the last open Mic night, it was not only the last open mic night. It was the last open Mic night with some of the teachers that made life really bearable here in the desert. It was really emotional and I felt disappointed that it took me that long to come out of my shell and to share a bit of myself with them.
I decided to sing a song that will always remind me of who I am and where I come from.
Being a traveler, sometimes the only identity one carries is not the passport, but the memories of who are. I carry my name. My name is often the very thing that people notice and ask about it. It is the one thing that I am proud to explain my African heritage.
However, besides my name, I carry my language and thank God, I have not forgotten our language back home. In the memory of my culture and family back in South Africa, I decided to perform the "Click Song",which was originally performed by Mariam Makeba. What I love about that song is that it really gets deep into our language, which is the clicking, something that most people out of Africa won't understand.
I enjoy singing this song, because as a child my father was really fond of teaching us the best part of our language, which is the clicking.
I didn't know how the teachers will react to it, but I didn't really worry about it.
While I was singing it and in my head I remembered my childhood and sitting on the sofa on a Sunday afternoon hearing the radio playing this song.
I was happy to have performed this song and to have shared a bit of myself with these teachers. For the ones that are leaving Skakah, I want to say thank you for your lovely weekends, support and helping to keep us all sane. I wish you happiness and prosperity for the years ahead and may we not forget the great times we had together.
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