On June 12 2019, Bumi Thomas received a letter from the UK Home Office. She was told she had just 14 days to leave the country or face deportation without further notice.  This was a place where she was born and has lived all her adult life. Exactly a year after, she released her “Broken Silence” where she documents this experience and touches on the many ways being used to frustrate, subjugate and oppress black people all across the world. 

According to Bumi, “these songs are borne from the spectrum of states I traversed on a personal yet public journey of belonging and displacement. My emotional landscape reflects brokenness, rediscovery,  rebirth, healing, agony, rejection, change,  hope, encouragement, solidarity and the transformative power of love. It captures the beauty and power of solidarity  in times of injustice and uncertainty 

“Music allowed me to process my thoughts and emotions, archive my history,  release the trauma and transmute it  through an empowering creative experience.”

Broken Silence is also about her journey to self-sovereignty. It is a celebration of the rich cultural diversity that is her heritage and informs her creative practice.

It’s lead single, ‘Black Child’ expresses her personal experience, echoing the revolutionary stance of her generation, a generation that understands the importance of Breaking the Silence, confronting adversity and standing up for their civil rights. A shift that has culminated in the #BlackLivesMatter movement.

Listen to the project above.