OBUXUM: Creative and Emotional Transparency

Image Source: Medium.com

Somali-Canadian producer and beat-maker OBUXUM expresses a variety of emotions and messages through her lyric-less, intricately crafted beats. She released her EP H.E.R in April of this year, and her six-track, ten minute masterpiece touches upon themes of gender inequality, anger, loss, empowerment, and female resilience.

In an interview with Medium.com, OBUXUM articulated that music is much more than just her work behind the sound board; creating art is a “means of healing and survival.” The narrative told in her expressive EP exemplifies how OBUXUM interweaves her creative and personal expression. This project serves as a demand for female recognition in the music and sound industry, with the first and third tracks befittingly titled “HE(R)STORY” and “PU$$Y POWAH.”

Image Source: Medium.com

As a woman in a male-dominated sphere, OBUXUM expresses both her frustration with her lack of recognition and her courage to make visible her story — and the stories of other women — through her music.

OBUXUM’s live performances prove that she is a force to be reckoned with in music production. When she started producing music in 2011, she was most often found at beat showcases behind the sound board. Prior to 2015 OBUXUM had not released a complete, cohesive project. When crafting her first EP 2991, OBUXUM was determined to incorporate themes of transparency in the project. Not only did she want to make her identity as an artist and producer transparent in her first project, but she also wanted the EP to be saturated in personal and emotional transparency.

Image Source: Do NYC

OBUXUM meticulously thinks through every aspect of her creative expression; she is particularly fixated on flipping ideas, words, and sounds on their heads. Her first EP, 2991, is her birth year in reverse. Her producer name is her real name – Muxubo – in reverse. Many of her beats feature samples backwards. Every aspect of her music production tells a story, whether it be about her, about the loss of a close friend,  about the current gender inequalities in the music industry, or about losing herself in creating beats that can make people groove.

Connect with OBUXUM on Bandcamp, Facebook, Instagram, SoundCloud, YouTube, and on Twitter.