Ɖ rapstar v C’raći: ‘Mî veil canot tec awe ɖ taḷnt I hv’
(Transcription of an article published in the Guardian on 13 February 2022)
Īva B, hu wz bròt p in a ntorịs slum, hz bcm Pacistan’z lêtist ḿzicsnseśn
Śa Mir Baloh in Liari, Súnde 13 Febrri 2022
Hr fon hz bn búzñ wɖ non-stop meṣjz n cōlz. Īva B, wns a litl-noun rapr fṛm ɖ C’raći ŕbn-slum setlmnt v Liari, hz bcm Pacistan’z nyist ḿzic snseśn, racñ p miłnz v vyz on YTyb.
Ś z nt jst ɖ frst fīmel rapr fṛm Pacistan, ś z ɖ frst veil-wẹrñ fīmel rapr fṛm Pacistan’z Baloh mnoṛti. Ś sz hr bruɖr hd tld hr f ś wontd t rap ś hd t wer a veil, bt ɖt it z nǎ a part v hr îdntti n prṣnaḷti az a ḿziśn.
“I d’nt fīl cumftbl or c’nt pform wel f I d’nt wer it. Ɖ veil jst cuvrz mî fes; it canot cuvr or tec awe ɖ taḷnt I hv.”
Qoṛntīn Baji bî Īva B tōcs abt ɖ vayḷns in hr hom eria v Liari
Hr big brec cem ẃn ɖ 22-yir-old wz pleyñ wɖ hr fon n tc a cōl fṛm ɖ ḿzicpṛdysr fr Cǒc Stydio, a webcast ɖt sins 2008 hz śǒcest ɖ cuntri’s bigist ḿzicl starz. “Sins I dd’nt gt az mni cōlz az I gt nǎ, I pict it p,” ćuclz Īva B, in ɖ frst inṭvy ś hz agrìd t sins ɖt cōl.
“H intṛdyst himslf n asct m f I wd lîc t sñ fr ɖ franćîz – I sd hu dz nt wont t wrc wɖ Cǒc Stydio?” Sn aftr cem ɖ trac Cana Yāri, ẃć bcem ɖ top-trendñ YTyb vidio in Pacistan, wɖ 3.2m vyz bî ɖ ʈrd de v its rlis.
Raitñ in Urdu n Balohi, ɖ yuñ rapr, hu sz hr nem cmz fṛm Īv, ɖ frst wmn, n B fr Baloh, tućz on a pleʈ̇ra v probḷmz fesñ ssayti. Hr soñz includ Qalam Bolega (Ɖ Pén Śl Spīc) n Tera Jism Meri Marzi (Mî Bodi, Yr Rîts).
Īva B’z ḿzicl jrni bgan ẃn ś got a cmpytr wɖ a foldr v soñz bî Eṃnem. Nt nwñ ẃt źãra ś wz liṣnñ t, a yuñ Īva B luvd ɖ stîl n riɖm v ɖ ḿzic.
Krịs, ś asct ppl ẃt ɖs amezñ stîl v ḿzic wz cōld. “It z rap, n y hv t rait yr lirics n sñ,” ś wz tld. Tīćñ hrslf ɖ besics ʈru ɖ inṭnet, Īva B startd rapñ in 2014.
“Ʈru mî rap I wontd ppl t hír mî stori n ɖ stori v wimin in Liari. I cm fṛm a ples ẃr onli a fy grlz got t wrc n mî ssayti dz’nt cnsidr a grl hu raps t b rspctbl – I wontd t ćalinj ɖt,” sz Īva B, ẃl pleyñ wɖ a ttu on hr rît hand ɖt rīdz “muɖr”.
Hr muɖr wz s’portiv bt hr bruɖr asct hr nt t rap, seyñ it wz nt aproprịt. Ś sd hiz frendz wd tīz him abt hiz sistr biyñ a rapr n evri tîm ś uplodd a frīstîl rapsoñ t hr YTyb ćanl, fîts wd irupt in ɖer hǎs.
“Nebrz wd cm n lisn az mî bruɖr scoldd n fòt m,” ś sz.
Az a consiqns v hr bruɖr’z dis’pruvl, Īva B stopt pformñ rap fṛm 2015 t 2019. Bt ś cept raitñ ny soñz. “I wz brnñ insd n raitñ abt ssaytl rstrix́nz on grlz, on Liari n mor,” ś sz.
In 2019, ś wz aproćt bî Patari, Pacistan’z larjist Pacistani ḿzic-strīmñ platform, t rait n pform a soñ. Ś dd nt hv ḿzicl or ōdio iqipmnt so ś rcordd it yzñ hr mobîl fon.
Oṿnît, ś startd biyñ noun az “Guli Grl”, nemd aftr ɖt trac – a rītelñ v ɖ 2019 Boliwŭd film Guli Bô, abt a bô fṛm a geto in Mumbai hu drīmz v mcñ it big in rap.
Guli Grlz bî Īva B tlz ɖ stori v yuñ wimin hu wont t mc it big in hip-hóp
Bt Īva B hd t g ʈru a lot v hardśps bfr hr tîm wz t cm.
“I wd hv t lî t mî bruɖr f I hd t g fr rcordñz. I wd se I wz gwñ t yṇvrṣti. Īvn ẃn I hd t rhrs fr Cana Yāri in Cǒc Stydio, I laid bac hom abt hvñ t atnd a frend’z wedñ. I wd asc evrwn t scedyl m bfr nîtfōl so I cd mc an xks at hom mor īẓli,” ś sz. Aftr rīsnt s’xes, hvr, hr bruɖr no longr dis’pruvz.
Liari, wɖ a yuñ popyleśn v 2.2 miłn, z bst noun t ɖ ǎtsd wrld fr its vayḷns, gañstrz n drugz. Ovr ɖ cors v a deced, hundṛdz v ppl wr cild n ʈǎzndz left ɖ tǎn; pīs rtrnd in 2017 aftr p’līs oṗreśnz. Ś sz Liari z olso feṃs fr its ftbōlrz, artists n ḿziśnz bt “ɖ vayḷns hd bcm ǎr îdntti, sadli”.
Wimin in Liari or acrs ɖ cuntri, ś sz, r talntd bt mni cnsidr ɖmslvz infirịr n dpndnt upn ɖer mel cǎnṭparts, ɖer îdntti rstrictd t biyñ smwn’z dōtr, sistr or wîf, wɖ ɖer evri muv scrūṭnîzd.
Az ś tōcs hr fon cīps búzñ n ś pts it on sîḷnt mod. “Wimin hv t wrc hard t clem ɖer spes in ssayti,” ś sz. “W hv t snać it f it z nt gvn.”
