London artist BODUR will release her debut album ‘MAQAM’ on March 21st via PACE.
BODUR first teased her bold new direction with a slew of boundary-pushing singles last year, including an ode to her familial history, ‘TAPESTRY [HIJAZ]’. When crafting her debut album, BODUR’s focus had been set on MAQAM, a traditional Arabic style of musical moods as signalled in square brackets beside each song title.
Today, with the album announce, comes new single ‘TONY MADONNA [DADA]’ – a deconstructed, trance-like take on Middle Eastern pop. Produced by Tokyo-based producer, Lapsung (645A4, Denzel Himself, Keyah/Blu), the number was inspired by the Dadaism art movement, playfully created as an “overt pop moment” in a experiment-meets-protest project that shirks convention.
“On almost every commercial album of the last couple decades, I can always pick up on which song is the ‘generic lead single’ the artist has been forced to include on their project. When creating the album I was intrigued by this formula and set out to do the same with ‘TONY MADONNA [DADA]’. It’s a satirical act of dada, as absurd and nonsensical in its nature as our current world politics. I’ve used an art movement born out of rage and rejection, grounded on the idea that anything can be art to make a point about the state of our world and the music industry … I’m glad the songs on this album, in various ways, represent resistance.”
On her debut album, BODUR embraces an alternative musical language delving into racism, islamophobia and the worthlessness it instils in young people. The conceptual project is a precise example of BODUR’s artistic and political potential; a counterpoint to whitewashed narratives, and a retelling of stories about the realities that the world is witnessing before them.
The accompanying video for ‘TONY MADONNA [DADA]’ was produced by BODUR’s visual director Furmaan Ahmed, who has collaborated with Travis Scott, SOPHIE, Shygirl and Eartheater. It’s part of a 35-minute album film to be released alongside the project.
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Photo Credit: Jesse May Fisher
