Amanda Black

"From My Soil to Yours has a lot to do with acceptance of myself — all the versions of me till now — and also opening up the space for versions that are yet to come and understanding that, as a human being, I am ever changing because, at some point, we think that this self-love and self-journey has a stop, whereas it does not"

"I struggled a lot with the separation because the industry calls for you to separate yourself from who you are and the art"

"I found myself in that dilemma of separating myself from Amanda Black and Amanda who are in essence me, they are one and there is no difference between them"

"I am lucky to have an audio diary that I literally go back to before I start a new project, and I listen to Amazulu, I listen to Power and I listen to Mnyama and it gets me to understand quite a lot"

"I have truly been called for this music. Over and above healing those that consume my music, I myself find healing in the messages in my music, I find healing even when I perform"

"I believe everyone has a voice and should always find courage to use it even when it’s not popular to do so. Every voice matters. Everyone has got a story to tell"

"I’ve learned that although there is no separation between myself as an artist and myself as a human, I value the ability to continue living my life outside of the limelight which allows me to still be able to be authentic in my artistry"

"The music is about falling in love with self, honouring yourself by self-acceptance. The theme and message is spiritual reconnection and trusting herself with her music"

"I’ve realised my need to talk, I’ve realised my power to talk. I only attributed it to the music for a while and allowed people to tell me it’s only in the music. Now, as I am unfolding, I’m finding my voice to speak for people who can’t speak for themselves, to speak out about things that are affecting me. I am black and I am a citizen of South Africa, that on its own is something to speak out on ... It's because I have found me again, I found my voice again and I am here to use it"

"We are in the system, and it's rigged. Better we get to know it if we are to survive, break out and thrive, at this moment its near impossible to live outside it. So we need to equip ourselves with the knowledge that will allow us to have more than a fighting chance"

"You don’t talk about how you become OK and how you went through it, and this is what this album is about ... I ignored my emotional, psychological because I was in the battle ... and I neglected me."

"I went through a break-up, and all my plans were in the trash. I kind of just shut down and I remember that there were so many things happening all at once ... I went through a mental block for two-to-three months, and I was at home ... it made me reconnect with myself."

"Going through the break-up within the lockdown, I was actually seeing what had actually happened, I had time to think about it and ask myself questions. I couldn’t really run away from myself any more, there was nothing to distract me ... Even being home, it reminded me of myself"

"I remember I was not able to express to people in the house that I don’t feel like getting up from bed, and not being able to give that a name, I just went through this darkness that I couldn’t explain"

"I feel that with this journey and just relating to the album ... I felt an awakening, I think I reminded myself of who I am ... ever since I started waking up understanding my blackness and my place in the world ... It started then opening my voice again. It shows on social media now"