Iman Adams

This event is open to the public and free of charge, just note that it is only half an hour long (swipe for teaser). This recital explores sacred sound in Islamic and African traditions and practices, reflecting the existing and new ways they meet one another. In Islam, dhikr is the remembrance of God. One can engage in dhikr individually or in a group, silently or aloud. The melodies, prayers and the inclusion/exclusion of instruments in a dhikr, differ all around the world. The purpose of dhikr is to bring one closer to God, to empty the heart and mind of worldly distractions that may keep one from union with the Divine. Dhikr can take the form of repeating one of God’s names in prayer, praise or gratitude and it can also take the form of devotional poetry. Greetings, thanks and praise for the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is also part of dhikr practice. In many regions in Africa, dhikr has been integrated with local African musical styles and practices. For example, in Morocco there is the Gnawa music. In Zanzibar, there is the ‘maulidi ya homu’, a maulid (biography of the Prophet) litany associated with the Rifa’iyya sufi order. These are just two out of many examples of this type of integration. In South Africa however, there has been little if no integration between African musical culture and dhikr practice. Part of the exploration of this recital is imagining what dhikr might have sounded like had it integrated with Xhosa musical styles. It also presents contemporary manifestations of dhikr with African music (or music inspired by dhikr/Islam). It is important to clarify that this is not a dhikr ceremony. Rather, it is inspired by dhikr and makes use of the musical elements of dhikr practice such as: rhythmic chanting, tempo and dynamic control, breath control, melody and improvisation. Performers: @ajamisse - backing vocal, light percussion @ntyinkalaasiphe - backing vocal, light percussion @nkosenathikoela - kora, percussion, backing vocal @espirrinhocdo - percussion, backing vocal

Encountering the Tankwa desert, I also encountered its history. A history of violence, genocide. Violence upon the land, and violence upon the people of the land. The attempted erasure of a people and its culture, its language, its spiritual teachings. An echo of the current nightmare people are experiencing every single day in Palestine, Congo and Sudan. The work brings together Islamic ideas and practices, with |xam ideas and concepts, in relation to sound, prayer and the dead. This is to honour, grieve and remember the people that the colonial oppressor would rather we forget. My aim was to do so in a way that felt authentic to who I am, where I come from, while paying homage to the culture and teachings of those for whom the work was intended. I was inspired by the Islamic concept of thikr. Thikr is the remembrance of God. You can gather in thikr in the name of someone, alive or dead. One engages in thikr through prayer and praise, individually or in a group. In a group, there’s an element of call and response. The melodies and prayers in a thikr, differ all around the world. Although I did not perform an actual thikr, it is with this intention of gathering in remembrance and prayer on behalf of someone or many people, that this work was created. In Islam, remembering and praying for, and on behalf of, the dead is very important. This is to assist them (and us) as they further their journey in the afterlife. In my readings about the |xam and their relationship to sound and the dead, I learned about the significance of sound and its association with !khwa ka xoro - the rain bull - and the underworld/spirit world. I learned of sound as the connection between earth and sky, or this world and the supernatural world. Here are some excerpts from the book Claim to the Country: The Archive of Wilhelm Bleek and Lucy Lloyd’, compiled by Pippa Skotnes, about !khwa ka xoro in relation to rain and the dead: [continued in the comments]

Haqq(truth) - on the 8th of June, @cdoafrica hosted me for a small gathering to share some sound. I spent some time writing and producing these songs, reflecting on truth, what it means to me and all the ways i seek it, cherish it, curse it and know it. They are certainly a wip and an experiment. I hope to figure out how to play these songs live, for now i just let the track play and give a live vocal performance. Swipe for snippets. 1. Endless mother 2. Battle of the nafs pt.1 3. Cover: Kelsey Lu - Liar 4. Battle of the nafs pt.2 5. 🇵🇸 6. Fear is the mind-killer (working title?) 7. Yaaaaay 8. 👁️ 9. In the studio

Africa se Uniu 2026 Deep gratitude for capoeira, my group @cdoafrica , my masters @espirrinhocdo @camilamordacacdo . Grateful to carry this rich art and history of capoeira in my body and soul - the learning never stops. After 12 years of capoeira, graduating to instrutora is bittersweet as there are many hopes and dreams i had for when i reached this stage, many of them now gone. However, it is a renewal of my commitment and a reminder of my responsibility as a practicing member of this community, no matter how life may move or intervene, grateful to have the faith of my masters. The spirit of capoeira is alive and we keep it alive! So beautiful to have Angola, Mozambique, Tanzania, Egypt all in one house Awe my bru, awe generation azul😛 Slide 1:post-batizado with our guest mestres from Brasil @mestregeraldinho mestregeraldinho @lucas.capoeira.cdo @mestreandrezinho Slide 2: singing nana at the show Slide 3: after opening roda vibes! Just fun and games Slide 4: @lucas.capoeira.cdo puxada de rede class Slide 5: at the show again Slide 6: my grading! Slide 7: my brothers! Slide 8: singing lala e la Slide 9: generation azul! Slide 10: brothers again Slide 11: @mestregeraldinho class Slide 12: nossos mestres💕🫂🥰🥳 Slide 13: tudo mundo (Sorry for bad quality videos🤷🏽‍♀️)

Some brief moments from the wolfkop weekender and a private event. Thank you @embo.ethongweni @nkosenathikoela on kora, Ngoni & mbira @umm.ankabut on voice and Djembe @keketso_bolofo on marimba and percussion @ntyinkalaasiphe on vocals @jonno_sweetman on drums @reza.khota on guitar. 📸 @the_dancing_herbalist

Moments with the magnificent ocean that is @umm.ankabut Sending prayers into the sea and land at the @ellermanhousehotel - grateful for Nicola Harris for opening up the opportunity to pray together. Do the medicine work but also be in joy. Watching the whales, hearing the land say we are thirsty for these chats theses sounds and that drum. One can only imagine the stitches we connected during this vibrations !!! Blessings also to @maxremingtonhobbs @drjennyrh For advocating for our work and presence ! Sharing some of the powerful and beautiful prayers we have been part of in 2025 🌊

Alghamdulilah! Camagu! Kai Gangans! Deep gratitude reflecting on the past year! A year of being ripped open and moving into purpose! A year filled with beautiful people and beautiful music! Praying for liberation, abundance, sovereignty for all! Slide 1: bridging ifriqiya 📸 @vuyo_mthetho Slide 2: becoming acquainted with uhadi Slide 3: pre-Alok V. Menon selfie Slide 4: sanyangoma Slide 5: songs for freedom 📸:Tiffany Schultz Slide 6: meeting amadinda with keke Slide 7: map of africa with |num collective Slide 8: lalaela anniversary Slide 9: sharing songs at Tara’s birthday Slide 10: al-Jumuah mosque Slide 11: pre-Vusi Mahlasela selfie Slide 12: dhikr:masiyembo Slide 13: ingqweji activation 📸Southern Guild Slide 14: post-ingqweji celebration Slide 15: breath of belonging 📸Daniel Stevenson Slide 16: farewell rituals with Adri Slide 17: post new year offering shenanigans at thrive Slide 18: landing in the new year at Tanya’s Haux house

Breath of Belonging was the first offering of Living Ancestors: a field of remembrance and a return to original belonging. Kate Austin is the heart behind Living Ancestors, an initiative rooted in South Africa calling for a sacred redefinition of legacy and inheritance - one that reaches beyond family wealth and bloodlines to include our responsibility to humanity, to future generations, and to Mother Earth herself. We gathered at Morgenhof in Stellenbosch in sacred space to honour the land, to breathe together, to be moved by the sonic, and to return to the rhythm of something ancient. We opened our hearts with cacao and through breath and sound, we remembered what it feels like to belong - to self, to each other, to the Earth. Because when we live from right relationship, we remember: The future of our children is inseparable from the future of all children. The wellness of our bodies is inseparable from the wellness of the soil beneath our feet. There is no peace in personal abundance if it exists in a sea of collective despair. And when the whole is well, we are well. This is the work of Living Ancestors. Remembering a future worth inheriting. Thank you to @samowamo_sa and @morgenhofestate for hosting us. For more information contact Kate [email protected] @living.ancestors.ubuntu @nkosenathikoela @umm.ankabut @talithakotze @drleilasadien_clinic @lucie_mcgregor_aer @kailash.kokopelli @morgenhofestate Cacao by Madeleen @foodforjoy_m 📸 @stevensonstudio With much gratitude to everyone who attended. ✨

🌍✨ BRIDGING  - IFRIQIYA ✨🌍 A confluence where South and North Africa meet, where desert  meets ocean, and the ancient river lines of the continent flow as one. This sound ceremony  invites you into a rare dialogue weaving together intercontinental traditions of African healing, introducing both Ngoma and Sufi practices, merging into a deeply rooted  healing portal. The Umnombo Institute, led by Dr. Nkosenathi E. Koela, warmly welcomes our dear brother Kerim Melik Becker (aka Kechou) from Germany, alongside the Embo Ethongweni Ensemble featuring Iman Adams, for a series of sonic and cultural gatherings this Weekend 8th November at the Hollow Tree. 🎶🌿 Journey through slides to meet our facilitators: Slide 1 — Meet Iman Adams Iman Adams is a sound artist, vocalist, percussionist and capoeirista. In her practice, she seeks truth-telling, authenticity, and confrontation with the wounds we carry individually and collectively for the purpose of integration and alchemy. She is currently doing her masters in African music at UCT researching Islamic dhikr practice in Cape Town. Slide 2 — Meet Dr. Nkosenathi E. Koela (@mntana_wexhwele ) An initiated healer, artist, instrument maker, and Ph.D. scholar specializing in Indigenous Music Therapies at UCT. Koela’s transdisciplinary practice merges sound, spirituality, and technology to reimagine indigenous epistemologies. 🌐 Learn more: umonombo-institute.com Slide 3 — Meet Kerim Melik Becker (Kechou) A Berlin-based somatic healer, multi-instrumentalist, and producer. Working with live loops, North African instruments, and electronic soundscapes, Kechou’s music speaks of love, origins, migration, and belonging. His evolving healing practice integrates sonic journeys, massage, and energy work to realign the nervous system and awaken presence. Join us for this immersive meeting of rhythms, rituals, and remembrance. 🌀 Ifriqiya – Bridging is not just an event, it is a re-membering of the continent’s shared heartlines. 🌿 Event link in bio #BridgingIfriqiya #UmnomboInstitute #IndigenousFrequencyCast #SoundHealing #Ngoma #SufiHealing #AfricanMusic #CulturalExchange #SonicJourney #Kechou #ImanAdams #NkosenathiKoela

Iman, you’re grown. (Growing up in the moulood at Azzawia) 1. Grandmother pinning my scarf 2. With my sister and cousins at the children’s moulood 3. With my mom and aunt this year 4. Azzawia jamaah 2025 (I still can’t pin my own scarf)

[date of show: 26/27.11.2024] Snippets of the artistic installation built as part of my (@ajamisse ‘s) MA thesis project: Loku nzi wa hi nyanyane, nzi wa ta haha. Concept & installation: @ajamisse Video: @sara.m.carneiro Performance: @umm.ankabut @juliadances___ @ajamisse Light&sound: @namhlablou @chidocreates We give thanks to our grandmothers whose voices and memories resound in our bodies.

بِرُوحْ بِدَمّ نَفْدِيْكَ يَا أَقْصَى (Bi ruh bi dam nafdika ya Aqsa) “By our souls, by our blood, we will sacrifice for you, O Aqsa” Ya Maani, Ya Muqsit ( two of Allahs 99 names) The Hinderer, the one who averts harm from His creation The Just, the one who acts and distributes in justice and fairness Palestine, Congo, Sudan, BIPOC people everywhere, my heart cries out in prayer, in sacred rage These cycles of coloniality, the corporate machine must be destroyed. May we hold onto each other in love, in compassion, in hope for the future! We cannot despair now!