The Battle of Narratives – Decolonising Electronic Music

This article has been powered by We are Europe*.

Moderation: Khyam Allami

Speakers: Deena Abdelwahed, Katarzyna Kwiatkowska, Bruno Trigo Gonçalves & Herlander

Photo Credit: Brice Robert

Developed for the most part in Europe, North America and Japan, the tools and software used to produce electronic music continue to play a central role in the construction of Western-dominated narratives and imaginaries—even though the popular electronic music that came out of the United States in the 1970s and 1980s was predominantly the work of African-American artists.

The development of alternatives to standard methods of production has therefore become a major focus for today’s music scene. And this is exactly what certain artists and activists, such as Khyam Allami, intend to achieve by creating new production software to fight back against Western hegemony in the field and, in doing so, release electronic music from the shackles of its colonial past.

We also took this opportunity to record interviews with Sarah Gamrani, creator of poetry book "Au-Delà du Cl...