August 2023

I am so excited to report on my interview with Ms. Rhita Nattah! Ms. Rhita is a Moroccan musician with a gorgeous soulful voice that stays with you long after the track is done. When she was younger, Ms. Rhita would come home from school and get right on her computer to listen to music, just as I do today! If you haven’t heard her music yet, I recommend you start with ‘Old Flame’.

What was the moment that you knew you wanted to pursue a career in music?

I’ve always wanted to do music. The exact moment I felt like “I have to do this” was after I got my master’s degree. I did a job interview and I got the job. When I came back home, I started crying. I felt like this was not something I wanted to do for the rest of my life… and that was the moment. On Monday, I called and said “No thank you, I don’t want the job.”

What is your favorite part of being in the music industry?

Doing what I feel like I should be doing with my life. When I’m working, composing, and writing, I just feel happy. Music has always been my savior. I grew up listening to music to feel free, to feel liberated and to be myself. I grew up listening to people like Amy Winehouse, Dianna Washington, and a lot of rock too - I really liked Led Zeppelin. They were like my friends when I was young. When I’m sad, when I feel a certain way, I go back to music. When I’m giving a song to the world, if someone in the world feels like he’s not alone or that he has someone, that’s what I make music for.

You’ve mentioned how being a woman, and your geographical location impacted your musical journey. What were some challenges you faced to establish yourself as a self-trained musician?

When I was 15 or 16, I really wanted to make and study music. I always loved music, but I had no way to pursue it. People used to tell me about a private music school in Casablanca but my mom couldn’t afford it, and in general she didn’t want me to study music. I studied French literature, but I never stopped listening to and playing music. My mom told me that after my 3rd year in university, I could get a guitar. I waited until my 3rd year, and then I began learning guitar from YouTube.

The problem here is you have no place where you can perform or record, it is very rare. We can’t even call it an industry. We don’t have a proper system to pay musicians royalties.

Another challenge is that I’m singing in English. In Morocco, people are interested in music in Arabic or in French. English is a third language.

Finally, what is one piece of advice you would give to female-identifying creatives in the music industry?

Be 100% yourself. Your ideas, the things that matter to you. If you have something to say, say it out loud. Make the music you like, not the music that is commercial or that we’re ‘supposed’ to make. Do the things you love and relate to, and feel the vibrations. I grew up watching Amy Winehouse. I always loved her, not only her music but also her personality, the fact that she says what she thinks out loud. I love that vibe.