It’s about time Sudan Archives feeds her “Selfish Soul” — or, more accurately, that she embraces her natural beauty. Listen to the singer-songwriter’s new single, an empowering ode to Black hair, below.
“Selfish Soul” rumbles with a quiet bass line and Sudan Archives’ signature acrobatic violin. In the song, the artist, born Brittney Denise Parks, puts voice to the fears all Black women face as they navigate our Euro-centric society: “If I cut my hair, hope I grow it long/ Back long, back time like way before/ If I wear it straight will they like me more?/ Like those girls on front covers?” Later, she asks, “Am I good enough?”
“I feel like there’s an American standard of what beautiful hair is, and I wanted to show in this video that’s not what all beauty is; to showcase different hairstyles and different types of women and their hair,” Sudan Archives explained in a statement. “I was inspired by India Arie’s ‘I Am Not My Hair’, one of the first songs I heard about this subject. She talks about extensions and weaves and natural hair and nappy hair, and that she’s not her hair; she won’t conform to the comparisons that would come up if you had a weave or sew-in or natural hair or Afro — that doesn’t represent her.”
Sudan Archives dances with her girlfriends in the Trey Lyons-directed “Selfish Soul” music video, and as she sings “I don’t want no fears,” the clip offers the perfectly joyous visual to match the anthem’s message. Check it out below.
This summer, Sudan Archives will hit the festival circuit, performing at the likes of Boston Calling and Winnipeg Folk Festival. See the artist’s full tour itinerary below, and grab tickets via Ticketmaster.
Sudan Archives 2022 Tour Dates:
05/21 – 05/22 — Cincinnati, OH @ Still Smiling Festival
05/28 — Boston, MA @ Boston Calling
06/04 – 06/05 — Portland, OR @ Beloved Festival
06/17 — Brooklyn, NY @ BK Mag Fest
06/25 — Calgary, AB @ Sled Island Festival
07/07 – 07/10 — Winnipeg, MB @ Winnipeg Folk Festival
07/08 — Montreal, QC @ Montréal Jazz Festival
07/22 – 07/24 — Seattle, WA @ Capitol Hill Block Party
07/29 – 07/31 — Denver, CO @ Underground Music Showcase
07/30 — Omaha, NE @ Maha Festival
08/19 – 08/21 — Hamburg, DE @ MS Dockville Festival
08/23 — Leeds, UK @ Belgrave Music Hall
08/25 — London, UK @ All Points East
08/26 — Stockholm, SE @ Popaganda Festival
08/26 – 08/28 — Darmstadt, DE @ Golden Leaves Festival
08/28 — Edinburgh, UK @ Connect Festival
08/30 — Brighton, UK @ Patterns
09/01 – 09/04 — Salisbury, UK @ End of the Road Festival
09/03 — Bristol, UK @ FORWARDS Festival