Cherise meets Dave McTague, promoter, music and event marketing master and record label owner. They cover synergy between art forms, how Dave has grown up with the Africa Oyé festival community and the importance of taking a chance.

From astrophysics to the West End with a quick stop at a coffin manufacturers. Siobhán Roxburgh talks us through her life before and during LIPA, the beauty of difference, importance of cultural currency and championing access for people with disabilities.

Join us for a jam-packed episode with musician, actor, director (Coronation Street, Hollyoaks, Emmerdale, Death in Paradise, Midsomer Murders) and LIPA Black Ball supporter Leon Lopez. Leon talks channeling Kylie, distributing shorts on Netflix and Amazon Prime, learning by doing for a career pivot and how focussing on your limitations can actually make you a better actor.

Jo and Ava, also known as The Skylarks, join Cherise to talk about their emotional roller-coaster of a journey on The Voice, the value of pouring passion into playing, and juggling being an artist with running a business and raising children.  

Join us and delve into the world of one of our final-year Acting students, Tovah Zafrin, who is also one of the organisers of this year’s Black Ball Showcases which are inspiring celebrations of Black art, Black people, and Black culture. Tovah chats to Cherise about taking the leap into international study, being Black in LIPA and Liverpool, and the joy and importance of organising “the block party of the season”. There’s also a lesson of love for each other and growing into a ‘take a chance’ mindset.

Cherise is joined by artist, PhD candidate and MA Music Industry Management and BA Music lecturer Eva Petersen, who reflects on the importance of EDI when teaching Music. Recorded during Black history month, find out about the debt owed to Black musicians who pioneered and inspired moves and music still recognisable today, from Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s influence on Keith Richards and Elvis through to the movement styles of Tina Turner and Mick Jagger. Eva also talks about the perils and pleasure of PhD by practice as research and tells us why it’s OK to fail, as long as you keep challenging yourself.

Cherise discovers how Paul Duhaney fell in love with Liverpool’s club scene and his journey to director of Africa Oyé. Paul talks about the importance of knowing your audience, the benefits of international collaboration and how you can get involved with the biggest live celebration of African music in the UK.  Africa Oyé takes place on 17/18 June this year. Full line-up and more details at https://africaoye.com/

Seun Kuti, afrobeat ace, LIPA alum and this year’s Africa Oyé headline act, invites us to explore identity and the joys of finding independence and ourselves. In his powerful advice to artists and people going into the music industry he encourages artists to embrace the struggle involved in making art. He also tells us why we are not the centre of the world.    More about Seun at https://www.seunkuti.net/