nabihahiqbal

Alien Kulture were Britain's first Pakistani punk band, formed in South London in 1980. A few months back, I was flicking through Syd Shelton's "Rock Against Racism" book and I stumbled across some photos of a punk band made up of Asian faces, staring back at me and looking very cool. I was immediately intrigued... Alien Kulture. I'd never heard of them! Started doing some digging and turns out they were around in 1980-81, the sons of Pakistani immigrants, they loved punk and politics, and decided to form a band because of that. These trail-blazers carved out an important space for Asian kids in the UK punk scene and I couldn't believe I'd never heard of them before because I grew up listening to so much punk, and and they would have been much-needed role models for kids like me as I'm also the child of Pakistani immigrants and love alternative music 😎🤘🏽🇵🇰 I've put together a special radio show all about them, to mark International Migrants Day on @nts_radio and if you'd like to listen back, link in bio 🙏🏽 Let me know what you think! Maybe they're a new musical discovery for you too. This one goes out to all the Asian punks and grungers, from every generation! ✊🏽 (clip is from a show called "Something Else" from 1980)

18 months of solid touring around the world, performing my album DREAMER live in front of thousands of people - and it ended in a little room in a community centre in downtown Sao Paolo, Brazil, and it couldn't have been more perfect! 🥹 Of course I was so happy to sell out my first ever headline show in Brazil and to be greeted by such a warm and enthusiastic audience! Brazil wins for audience participation too 🥰 I loved how everyone was singing and clapping along and now I just hope at every gig, people sing the breakdown section of "Zone 1 to 6000" because I loved it haha!! 🤘🏽But there's more to why this show felt so special... As Shoko and I were getting ready in our dressing room, there was a capoeira class going on upstairs, an instrument-making class in the room next door, and a fitness class for elderly women down the hall... and to get to the room where we were performing, you had to walk through a canteen which actually just reminded me of school dinners 🤣 and it was filled with people from all walks of life! I felt happy to be performing in this space because one constant thought I've had whilst touring is that I am so thankful for the diversity of my audiences. I've met fans of all ages, of so many different ethnicities and back stories and I just feel so happy that my music appeals to so many people, and that my gigs are place for us all to converge! There are particular moments I'll never forget - in Lisbon there was a man who waiter right til the end, after I'd finished talking to everyone in the merch line. He had come to the show alone and he told me he was an uber driver and never usually went to gigs but he said he listened to my music when he was driving and it meant so much to him so he had to come and when he was telling me this, he was so emotional - almost crying - and so I just had to hug him because there was obviously a lot more to his story. I'll also never forget all the parent / child combos I met, especially at the European gigs - I love the fact that my music has inter-generational appeal and people can come together with their parents or kids to my gigs 😎 Thank you everyone!!! ❤️❤️❤️

My latest NTS Radio show is ready and waiting for your listening pleasure! Two hours of recent finds... lots of records I picked up on my travels - from a Costa Rican salsa cover of Billie Jean, to Indonesian prog rock, to 80s power pop from Brazil... and everything in between! Plus some interesting conversation about snacks, and a live reaction on air of me trying stale chocolate 🤣 hahahaha. The reason why will also be revealed... how can you resist tuning in?! Lolll. Link in biooooo ✌🏽

I grew up right next to Abbey Road Studios - I remember walking past it millions of times on the way to my karate lessons as a kid, reading all the messages from music lovers scrawled on the walls outside, and I always wondered about what it was like inside there... and I think it's probably been a secret pipe-dream of mine ever since I was 7 or 8 to go inside. Yesterday I finally made it! It really felt like an honour to be invited by @abbeyroadstudios to act as a mentor for an emerging artist as part of their Amplify programme. Music studios can sometimes feel daunting and give you a sense of impostor syndrome and so I was quite pleasantly surprised to find out that here was one of the world's most iconic music studios, acknowledging my own musical work and asking me to come in and share my expertise...! 🤓 Honestly, this is a personal milestone for me. I was really moved by the number of people who applied to spend the day in the studio with me, and there were so many good artists to choose from which made it a tough decision. In the end I picked @ecfeigen because of the potential I heard in her demo track, despite never having been in a music studio before. I wanted to give her that opportunity, and help her along as much as I could with musical guidance, and sharing advice based on my experiences so far. We were joined by the incredible engineer @sethrtaylor and we had a great day working all together 🤓 For Emily, it was her first time in a music studio, the first time she used guitar pedals, the first time she recorded her vocals, and the first time she played a synth. She made a whole track from scratch and played everything on it and it was so amazing to be there and witness the process from morning to evening. It made me think about all the people who've helped me along the way - friends and acquaintances in various studios that have taught me different things and given me motivation, and so I tried to impart as much of that as I could yesterday. It was an affirming experience and I enjoyed it as much as Emily did. Thank you @abbeyroadstudios for the opportunity! ❤️

COMPETITION TIME!! Do you want to spend a day at the iconic Abbey Road Studios, working on your music and with me as your mentor? Well then here's your chance! 🤓 As part of their Amplify series, Abbey Road have asked me to be a studio mentor to work with an upcoming artist, and if you want to apply for this opportunity, all you have to do is submit a link to an example of your music (link in my bio). If you want to send any additional information about yourself, then feel free to email me at info@nabihahiqbal.com 🤘🏽The session will take place on Friday 22 Nov and we can spend the day working on whatever you like. The competition is open now and will close on Monday 18 Nov at 10am UK time. After that, I'll go through all the entries and pick a winner. This is an opportunity for someone who's an emerging artist, and maybe they've never even been in a professional studio before... so don't be shy about the audio examples you submit - I'm not looking for anything especially slick... it's more about the vibe and feeling and potential!!!!! Yeahhhh. GOOD LUCK to everyone applying and feel free to spread the word if you know someone who might be suited to this ❤️ Thank you @abbeyroadstudios for asking me to be a part of this mentorship programme 🙏🏽 P. S. I've specified London / UK artists... anyone can apply but no expenses are covered hence why I thought it makes more sense to keep it local. But if you're from further away and willing to make the trip, then feel free to apply as well!

OBRIGADA BRAZIL! 🇧🇷❤️🇧🇷 Just got back from a whirlwind trip to Sao Paolo - my first time in Latin America - and it was completely soul-enhancing!!! So many friends have told me about how amazing Brazil is and they always speak with so much enthusiasm, but only now that I've experienced it myself, I can begin to understand!!!! Wow. The biggest thing for me, as a music lover, was to feel the music energy of this city / country. It's EVERYWHERE! The only other place where I got this feeling was in Istanbul, where it feels like music is the blood of the city. Everyone loves and appreciates it, everyone sings and dances, and there is so much to discover. I loved to experience the samba bars where the musicians (who are all so skilled) sit around a table and play together all day / evening and everyone gathers around them... it brings you closer to the essence of what music is and what it gives us. I loved exploring all the record stores and spending all my money lol 🙈 My next NTS Show is going to be a Brazil SPECIAL no doubt! Been back in London one day and already missing the fresh fruit and delicious seafood stew 😩 and just the PURE VIBES! Everyone was so welcoming and friendly and I just felt like people in Sao Paolo have a lust for life that is unmatched in other places. I appreciated my time there soooooo much and now I just wanna go back asap to explore more. Would love to see other parts of the country 🤓 Inshallah will make it back for another tour soon 🙏🏽 Thank you to everyone who helped make this trip a trip of a lifetime! It was the perfect place to end the DREAMER WORLD TOUR and I'm still processing that fact and need to do a whole separate post about that lol... another essay incoming!

🪩 TERÇA (12) – NABIHAH IQBAL: COLEÇÃO DŌMO Estamos muito felizes em receber @nabihahiqbal aqui no Dōmo! A artista e produtora musical britânico-paquistanesa aproveita sua passagem por São Paulo para assumir nossos toca-discos nesta terça, com uma seleção musical feita a partir da coleção de vinis da casa ✨ Ela começa a noite na @veneno.live, com o pessoal do @balancoefuria, e chega no Dōmo no segundo turno. Vem! :) ——— Trabalhamos com dois turnos de serviço, principalmente de quinta a sábado: das 19h às 21h15 e e das 21h30 às 24h. Como nosso salão é pequeno, é uma forma de evitar filas na rua, receber mais gente e garantir uma noite bacana para todo mundo Não é preciso pagar para entrar no Dōmo, mas sugerimos uma contribuição de R$ 15 para o DJ da noite Dúvidas? Vem de DM!

OBRIGADA Sao Paolo! Wowwww I feel so happy after playing my first ever live show in Brazil last night 🥹🥰🙏🏽🇧🇷 It was so fun and I was blown away by everyone singing along! I was feeling quite nervous because the music energy of this city is so deep and I can feel it and I really appreciate the opportunity to make my tiny musical contribution... Thank you everyone who came to see me and @shoko_yoshida play last night at @balaclavarecords festival and it's not over yet!!!! Because we do it again tonight! I'm playing a headline show at @sesccarmo and I can't believe it but all the advance tickets have already SOLD OUT! 🙈 Also tonight is extra special because after 17 months of touring my album all around the world, tonight is the FINAL SHOW of the DREAMER TOUR! I could never have imagined it would be in Brazil ❤️🤘🏽🎶 Honestly thank you so much to everyone who's supported me on this journey so far. Tonight is gonna be emotional 🙇🏻‍♀️ thank u @morganaludwig for the B&W pic and also to @leticialucenas for the videos :)

TIME FOR BRAZIL!!! En route to Sao Paolo and I CANNOT WAIT because it's my first time in the country, first time in South America and I'm just so excited to share my music but also to soak up as much local music as possible! On Sunday 10 Nov I'll be performing live at @balaclavarecords festival, on Monday 11 Nov I'm doing another live show at @sesccarmo and on Tuesday 12 Nov I'll be doing a little talk / DJ set at @balancoefuria exploring my album DREAMER and the inspirations behind it. Hope to see you at one of these events?! Let me know if you're coming and please send me any tourist / food / music tips 🙏🏽 Will be in town for a few days so I'm ready to explore 🤓 thank u @argirisliosis for this pic from my Athens show in Sep 💖

My humble opinion as an outsider just passing through... toured around the USA four times over the past 18 months, saw loads of new places, met so many people, learnt a lot and each trip really made me feel more and more like Trump was going to win the election. I realised that the edges of the USA are really different to the middle, and the middle is incomprehensibly VAST - something that I've only begun to fathom since doing so much of the touring by driving. I felt that whilst my experience of the USA had been confined to the big cities like NYC, LA, Chicago, it gave me quite a warped sense of what America is and the more I've explored, the more my perspective has shifted. Every time we stopped at a gas station, we'd look at the "America merch" that was being sold in these seemingly remote "in the middle of nowhere" places and we'd be half-shocked, half-amused by the garish, aggressive slogans on baseball caps, key rings, water bottles... At first, I honestly felt these were kinda niche and I couldn't really imagine who would want to buy these things. But then I just kept seeing it everywhere - from Iowa to Texas - and I'd notice billboards on the freeway and placards outside people's houses and bumper stickers on people's cars... There's a very distinctive sense of what "freedom" means out in these places, and to me it seems intrinsically linked to a sense of territorial patriotism (reinforced by religion) that's so profound that it can't help but come across as aggressive to an outsider, and no doubt it stems out of the colonial history of the USA. It seems so deep in the psyche of America and Trump has managed to tap into it and he knows that if he makes himself the symbol for all of this, it basically makes him unstoppable. It's an energy and a loyalty that supersedes politics and law and humanity - it's all about the power and "freedom" of the individual and I guess that's actually always been a motif in American history since the Europeans first got there.

In the presence of ICONS!!! With Jerry Dammers from The Specials and Paul Simonon from The Clash ✊🏽🥹❤️🎶 What an honour it was to share the bill with so many musical legends last night at the (SOLD OUT! 🙏🏽) Palestine Fundraiser in London. From @oxmanreggae to @gillespeterson to @beirutgroovecollective to Jerry and Paul... wow all the DJ sets were amazing and the crowd had the best energy. It was inspiring to be with lots of musicians and revellers from a different generation whose lived experiences are full of fights for justice, whether it was the race riots and clashes with the BNP in 1980s London, or campaigning for the release of Nelson Mandela from prison and the end of apartheid in South Africa. All of these artists / people aren't afraid to speak up for what they believe in and I salute them for that! 🫡 Thank you @cjp_sullivan @artistsforgaza1 for organizing the event and bringing all of us together 🖤💚🤍❤️

London tomorrow ❤️🖤🤍💚 Come through if you can ✊🏽 Glad to be part of such a legendary line-up but I wish I felt more hopeful about the situation in Gaza. So many people around the world trying to do what little they can... 😔 But seems like it's never going to be enough.