Feminist, Muslim rapper and activist Mona Haydar drops her stunning visual to her track LIFTED, taken off her upcoming debut EP, BARBARICAN out the 02nd of November

With the November 02nd release of her debut EP fast approaching, rapper/activist Mona Haydar opens her heart to fans once again with her latest offering, ‘Lifted’. The song is birthed out of a deeply personal experience and pushes the Flint-born/Brooklyn-based creative to reach out to empower and uplift others in times of struggle. The song exemplifies the bravery, honesty, support and love that Mona is trying to inspire in others. She tapped Miriam Thom and Hannah Berry George of Foxwolf Productions to transform the song into a stunning, emotion-steeped visual.

When asked about the inspiration behind ‘Lifted’, Mona shares, “I wrote this song and melody in a brief moment where my postpartum depression has subsided and I was like, ‘I want people to know’ we can get through it! We can do this. Especially together! I want people to feel seen, heard and loved. I want everyone to know that even if they feel alone, they’re not because all of our aloneness is in our minds. We’re so intricately interlocked with everyone and everything and aloneness is that a trick of the mind. It’s about fostering that world of togetherness where we can lift each other up in our times of sorrow and be there for each other in our times of joy”.

Challenged to adapt Haydar’s ideas into a visual story, director Hannah Berry George explains, “I think we all lose ourselves at some point in our lives. So I’ve created a film that’s based around the 5 stages of grief, but when losing yourself, not someone else. Each environment represents one of those emotional stages as we follow Mona on a journey from darkness to light and our amazing dancer Manatsu Tanaka reflects the emotional turmoil Mona is going through”.

Activist, public speaker, wife, and mother, who recently earned her Master’s Degree in Christian Ethics and Theology from Union Theological Seminary. Originally from Flint, MI, the Syrian-American rapper is a first generation American now residing in Brooklyn, NY with her husband and two sons. She first became known for her and her husband’s ‘Ask A Muslim’ booth in Cambridge, where she offered people an opportunity for conversation (with coffee and doughnuts).

Her fame hit critical mass in March 2017 with the release of her empowering debut single, ‘Hijabi‘. The song called out racism and colourism while celebrating culture and diversity of women around the world. Billboard named ‘Hijabi’ one of 2017’s top protest songs and one of the 25 top feminist anthems of all time. Mona’s second single, ‘Dog‘, features Jackie Cruz from ‘Orange is the New Black’ and takes on violence against women with lyrics which call out men in positions of religious authority who abuse their power.

Mona appeared on Katie Couric’s podcast LIVE: The Muslim Next Door at SXSW 2018 and on the accompanying TV series on National Geographic. She and her work have also been featured on Marie Claire, Glamour, BBC, CNN, NPR, BuzzFeed, AJ+, Mic, Refinery 29, The Huffington Post, and many others.

Mona Haydar is about to drop her debut EP, ‘Barbarican’ which is due to drop November 02nd via all major outlets.

www.monahaydar.com
www.facebook.com/monahaydar
https://twitter.com/mona_haydar
https://instagram.com/themostmona