In our quest to highlight moments of artistic excellence, we revisit the uncompromisingly honest Studio 5 Live session recorded by Mo’Ju on Homebrew back in August 2018. This was shortly following the release of her celebrated album Native Tongue but preceded her name change to Mo’Ju.
Both of these events reveal the character of this considerate artist. With a title track that’s nothing short of anthemic, the album as a whole speaks truth to power about how difference is excluded but made visible at the same time. She interrogates her identity as a queer woman, pays tribute to her Filipino and Wiradjuri roots, and invites us to think about what it means to be Australian and how that relates to indigeneity, to migration, to ideas of home and displacement.
She finds strength in these questions and shares that strength with us through her music. Likewise, her recent name change from Mojo Juju to Mo’Ju reflects her thoughtfulness and sensitivity. After a period of research and reading, Mo’Ju increasingly understood the many layers of meaning to Juju and consequently decided to abandon it as a sign of respect. This is of course evident in her authentic performance in Studio 5, which is precisely why you don’t want to miss listening to it again on Homebrew on June 1.
Mo'Ju's Studio 5 Live session was originally broadcast on Homebrew on August 6, 2018.
