The Glasshouse

Neo-Jazz Singer-Songwriter Ni Maxine performs ‘Justice’ which captures a dialogue between herself, a black woman, and her partner, Keeks, in 2020 as they navigate the murder of Breonna Taylor and the protests that followed the murder of Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd, followed by The Lekki Shooting in Nigeria where young people standing up against police brutality were killed in the SARS massacre on the 20th October 2020, which also happens to be Ni Maxine’s birthday.

“On a day that I was supposed to be celebrating another year of life, I was mourning the lives of my people. I was confronted with the realisation that my people are still not free, which is the root of so much of my pain and the reason why I sing these songs.” – Ni Maxine

For Ni Maxine, the incidents which sparked the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020 were a catalyst for her creative expression as a means of processing the emotional trauma of seeing black people being murdered by the police, from her phone, for no other reason than because they were black. It caused her to question the systems of oppression which affect black people all over the world which she challenges through her music, in the best way she knows how.

‘Justice’ was recorded live from Sage Gateshead as part of our 2021 Summer Studios – a free, week-long residency at Sage Gateshead during August for 20 musicians, producers, artists, rappers and singers of all genres to be able to create new work, develop their practice or prepare for a performance.

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