The Red Bulletin June 2019 (UK)

B U L L E V A R D
B orn in Norway to
Somali parents, and raised in
Finland and Sweden on a diet
of Bollywood and American
R&B, Sherihan ‘Cherrie’
Hersi’s cultural frame of
reference is unsurprisingly
broad. Nowhere is this more
evident than on her second
album, 2018’s Araweelo, on
which she transforms R&B’s
contemporary sound aesthetics
into inspiring anthems sung
in Swedish for third-culture
kids (meaning those raised
in a culture different from
their parents’) like herself.
The album gained the
27-year-old a nomination at
this year’s Swedish Grammy
awards, and having already
worked with Stormzy – the
grime superstar contributed
English lyrics to her 2016
song Aldrig igen [må sådär]
– Cherrie’s global profile was
raised further thanks to props
from the likes of Rihanna,
SZA and Ariana Grande.
the red bulletin: Your
viral hit 163 För Evigt (‘163
Forever’) is an ode to your
home suburb of Rinkeby,
dubbed by conservative
media as a no-go area…
cherrie: As a kid, if someone
asked, “Hey, what part of
Stockholm do you live in?”
you’d lie and name an area
that’s pretty close to Rinkeby,
otherwise people would see
you as someone from the
ghetto. But I wouldn’t say
it’s a no-go area at all.
How would you describe it?
It’s a melting pot. I always
thought it was such a special
place, and that we’re the
coolest people. Growing up
with so many different
influences and cultures makes
you smart at understanding
the world and how you fit in.
To stay independent, you’ve
turned down several offers
from record labels. Why is
that so important to you?
It’s not an obvious thing for
artists to have ownership.
Cherrie
“SOMALI MUMS ARE
SUPERHEROES”
The Swedish-Somalian R&B singer lets
loose on the supposed ghetto she grew up
in, her kick-ass mum, and the importance
of being an independent artist
Most of these huge artists
we see, they don’t own their
music; they create art that
someone else takes from them
and makes money from. So,
for me to be independent
means a lot, because I create
security for myself and my
family. And it shows other
people who come from
nothing that you don’t need
to sign [a label contract]; that
you can just buy a computer
and learn how to make music
and then record yourself.
“WE RINKEBY
PEOPLE ARE
THE COOLEST”
So the desire to inspire
your peers forms part of
your creative drive?
Owning houses or becoming
CEOs… those are not things
that people [who live in
Rinkeby] dare to dream
about. For them, to see
someone like me – a black,
Muslim woman – release
my own music, tour around
the world or work with Vogue
[magazine] instils some hope
in them. And really and truly,
hope is the only thing that is
going to push us all forward
as a society.
Do you think your Somali
heritage has an impact on
your music?
Somalia is called the ‘land of
a thousand poets’, so for me
making music has never been
a weird thing, because music
is something that helps Somali
people cope during the worst
times. Also, Somali mums are
the strongest people I’ve ever
met. They are superheroes.
For me to come from a place
where women are so
dominant, it affirms my whole
essence – like me having my
own label, Araweelo.
What does Araweelo mean?
Araweelo was an ancient
queen who ruled over Somalia
and was super badass. [In
Somalia], even if there is
a dad in the family, women
are the man in the house. And
having that female energy has
given me the drive.
Is your mother a fan of
your music?
She has been to a couple
of my concerts. She’s the
sweetest. She knows Swedish,
but she doesn’t understand
a lot of my lyrics, so she
makes my little brother
play my music for her and
explain every single word.
Fashion brand AlphaTauri
visited Cherrie in Rinkeby
to talk about music and how
growing up there has shaped
her career. Watch the video
at win.gs/AlphaTauriCherrie;
alphatauri.com;
twitter.com/Chxrrie
CYPRIEN CLÉMENT-DELMAS FLORIAN OBKIRCHER
24 THE RED BULLETIN