Cashavelly’s aim is to break up the patriarchy with upcoming album, ‘Meditation Through Gunfire’, out October 18. Meanwhile she’s released new single, ‘Rewrite’, to give listeners a taste of what’s to come.
Think Taylor Swift – no – think Chappell Roan, Patti Smith, Fiona Apple, Tori Smith, or even or Fleetwood Mac. Cashavelly is breaking free of the bounds of patriarchal society, showing that women can be who we want to be and who we should be. She’s fighting against those who want to eat all the cake without doing any of the work. Like the Little Red Hen in the children’s fable, who asks her friends and family to help out, but they don’t want to do anything until she’s done all the work – she’s had enough. She wants something for her labours.
Cashavelly should be crowned the queen of new feminist songwriting, if she hasn’t already. New single, ‘Rewrite’, sees the artist match her voice to her writing talent; her performance sets pace against quick fire words, amplifying their power, recognising their importance. The instrumentals are light and simple, providing a support for her vocals. Attention must also be drawn to the backing vocals: a seeming choir of women, echoing everything Cashavelly sings, every point she makes. Perfect for an America that’s looking forward to electing its first female president in Kamala Harris, Cashavelly’s album, ‘Meditation Through Gunfire’, out October 18 through UNCSA Media, calls fire on those narratives of society that normalise the misogyny that hides in the shadows, and look to lessen the contributions of women as they age – the time when they come into their own and realise their full power.
“Gunfire” takes many forms, and in the hands of Cashavelly it’s shown to be the shots women face on the regular: “lesser” ones, the ones that attack her emotionally and intellectually – belittling, diminishing her power, lessening her; and the ones which attack her physically. Cashavelly defies and provokes all listeners, drawing to her a sisterhood of women who know their true strength and position in the world.
Likewise, “Meditaton” takes the form of contemplating our strengths and value. Speaking about the album, Cashavelly says,
“It’s time to break up with patriarchy. Maybe our world and climate are so out of balance because women’s gifts have been predominantly silenced, ignored, or never even created because she’s too busy sustaining those around her and enabling their dreams. Just like the earth, we use women as an endless resource. It hurts me to think of all the gifts women have wanted to create but couldn’t, that would have been unique medicine for all of us and that we truly need. We are each meant to be fully expressed – it’s a human ecosystem. Women have sacrificed themselves to keep the peace and survive, but we are waking up to how this has made us co-conspirators with our own oppression and destruction. It hurts everyone.”
Don’t think ‘Mediation Through Gunfire’ is anti-men however. Cashavelly wants to benevolently embrace men, recognising that they too are victims of the status quo of society. As she explains,
“I think patriarchy infantilizes men, robbing them too. Men grow old to find out that all those external conquests they’ve spent a lifetime chasing actually meant nothing. I think this belief keeps men co-dependent on women and distracted from what it is they long to do. There is so much repression of their passions because it is also unsafe for men to be outside these very limiting definitions of manhood.”
Before you think that this is all there is to know about Cashavelly – and surely being a superb singer songwriter should be enough – she’s also an activist, and lives up to what she sings about. She gathers women locally and globally through The Cashavelly Collective, where they are encouraged to amplify their voices, and trust in their abilities. Additionally, she hosts a performance series every month, while leading a global collective of women to create their dreams. Cashavelly has also written a comprehensive manifesto to go alongside this, which is set to be published in 2025.Â
Find out more about the incredible Cashavelly and her music online on her official website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
