Fini EP - Nyasha Munashe

Deconstructing faith is a journey most of us have been on. First comes the discomfort, the disagreement, then the re-configuration, re-learning and finding a new way forward.

What does it mean to exist in the tension between real faith and the cultural perception of it. To care about your craft, to make things that metabolise this lived experience.

What would it look like to tear this faith down to its bare bones and ask yourself, “who and what is this really about?”

“I reached a crossroads
where I had to reconfigure everything
I believed in or give up on Jesus altogether.
I chose the former,
reading the
insights of Black theologians to understand the Christian
experience as it pertains to a racialised world and how I
am situated within it as a Black man.”

Fini is the debut EP by Zimbabwean-born rapper, Nyasha Munashe. The 5-track EP launches on November 5th. Find it on Spotify or Apple Music.

Calling not Duty. In Conversation with Ysabella Grace

Last month, I had the pleasure of talking to Ysabella Grace, a streamer, content creator and born and raised East Londoner about her journey so far. We spoke about the journey of navigating the streaming and entertainment industry as a woman and as someone who believes in God.

K: I think it’s beautiful to hear that it just started off with you playing games with your friends

YG: I think one of the biggest misconceptions that I hear is that people think that all these big AAA games are what makes you a gamer, when actually if you played Club Penguin and Habbo Hotel growing up, you’ve been gaming. If you played sims growing up you’ve been gaming.

One of my biggest regrets is not starting streaming during COVID. I met a couple of people through Call of Duty and one of my friends said to me “you should start gaming” and she showed me the ropes. I didn’t have a lot of expensive gear, I just connected everything to my Macbook and built a community from there. When I trusted myself to commit to this, that’s when I upgraded my gear.

K: Okay take me back to those early streams, what kind of stuff were you talking about?

YG: I love when I have to speak about my early journey. I would have to tell my friends, “Hey can you join my stream?” At the time I wasn’t making TikToks, I had just started and it wasn’t super oversaturated. I would have 2 viewers, one being my friend and the other being me on another device. After a year, I still wasn’t getting many viewers and that’s when it started to affect me more.

After that I started to average around 20 viewers thanks to Twitch Raids. I started to learn that streaming was really about showcasing your personality so I just had to be myself, but crank it up a notch. The difference between a great streamer and a streamer is really about taking the time to plan your streams and entertain your chat.

K: Do you feel like the community you are building are a reflection of who you are?

YG: I think so. A huge part of who I am is Jesus. It’s not a script. When you have a relationship with Him it naturally flows through your demeanor, your speech and what not. My community know that I’m a Christian and that I love God, so when I mention faith and flow from an entertaining space to a serious space to preaching it ends up naturally carving the community. The people who don’t want to hear it stop coming and the people who do keep coming. I would like to say that I have the same values as my community.

K: Have you ever felt a tension between your faith/values and the culture of the space that you’re in?

YG: The main conversation that I’ve been having with God and my inner circle recently is trying to figure out who I am in this industry. I made a post the other day saying that my blueprint isn’t everybody else’s blueprint. I can’t deny that we all want to be viral, but my goal is to really bring God into this space. The blueprint for virality that a lot of people follow is like a girl and a guy e-date situation, shipping people together or having to do rage bait. I can do that if I wanted to, but I don’t want to. It’s not true to who I am and it’s not true to who God called me to be. Ultimately, it would be me saying that I don’t trust God to position me. So in this moment there’s definitely a resistance between two cultures. I’m not selling my soul to get to that.

You can find @ysabellagrace_ on Instagram and TikTok

The Edit: Autumn 2

The evenings are getting shorter and the motives have moved inside, but the intention to style remains the same. Here are a few faith-led picks for the month ahead.

1. Kingdom Collective Hoodie. I can’t get this colour out of my head at the moment. I just feel like it’s going to feature throughout this winter. The weather might be grey but pops of colour will keep the dopamine up through the cold days.
   

2. Neaux Doubt Denim Shorts. I believe that the long shorts can make it though winter. Long coats and mid calf socks will get us through.
   

3. D7 Long Sleeve Top. This piece is from ‘Daily Seventh’ or ‘D7’, Seventh’s new sub-brand. D7 is a wearable daily collection at a lower price point, maintaining the same quality, design and silhouette as is always expected.

Stay warm friends, see you next time. ✌🏾

The first time you land on blackyachtrock.com (VIRGINIA’s url) you are met with two options: “sing” or “enter”.

The ‘sing’ option will take you to digital karaoke game, granting you access to exclusive events, new music, collaborations and more. Clicking ‘enter’, will bring you to the site's homepage — a giant scrollable cartoon of a beach scene, complete with both animals and humans kitted out in the brands inaugural collection.

VIRGINIA is Pharrell’s creativity unleashed. Fashion, music and community collide on this platform; an expression of multi-disciplinary craftsmanship.

The Multi-Hyphenate Creative

The word ‘creative’ (adjective) is used more like a noun; an easy way to identify people with an insatiable desire to create.

Once musicians, athletes and actors and actresses reach a certain level within their career they move on to pursue other side quests; e.g Snoop Dogg’s cooking career. But what’s the difference between a side-questing creative and someone considered a multi-hyphenate?

Multi-hyphenates are excellent in more than just the category they are known for.

• Pharrell: Musician turned Mogul

• Kendrick Lamar: Rapper turned Creative Director

• Childish Gambino: Actor turned Musician/Filmmaker

It’s likely that Pharrell, Kendrick Lamar and Childish Gambino have always had the ability to do all of the creative work we have seen them do. What makes these creatives multi-hyphenate is that they can execute their creativity with mastery in each different sphere.

Could Pharrell have launched VIRGINIA before being Men’s Creative Director at Louis Vuitton? Probably, but this is a playful introduction to his next era.

Is it a website? A new age sound-cloud? An online storefront? Or a community?
It’s all the above and none of the above individually.

Whatever it is, we’re sure it will set pace on what creativity unleashed looks like.

Her lineup also includes a feature from Global Gospel artist, Kirk Franklin. Let’s talk about it.

We’re not surprised that Kirk Franklin is playing a mainstream festival.

And we’re not surprised that he’s in a lineup that has Cleo Sol as the front runner.

Cleo Sol has been singing about faith and spirituality in her music since her debut. In her Apple Music interview with Zane Lowe, she discussed her faith describing how she sees herself and her artistry as a ‘vessel for God to speak through’, a thread that is very evident in her music.

While songs like ‘Butterfly’, ‘Spirit’, ‘Heart Full of Love’ and ‘Love will Lead You There’ make references to her faith and God directly, Cleo Sol’s music stays firmly in the Soul and Alt R&B category.

However, we’re surprised to Kirk Franklin in this lineup because of the way Christian music is — or isn’t — placed in the UK music scene.

As Glastonbury showed us this year, the only Christian artists that have made it out of church circles and into the wider culture in the UK are the people that wrote ‘Shine Jesus Shine’, ‘Give Me Oil in My Lamp’ and other primary-school-assembly smash hits.

We’d struggle to name any modern UK artists, in the Christian Category, that have the reach and influence into mainstream culture to match that of US Christian music artists. In the UK, “Christian” music is targeted for the insiders, “the church goers”.

Over here, Christian artists make songs for worship or for personal enjoyment, but either way it’s personal, private and spiritual, and therefore something that wouldn’t normally make it to mainstream music charts.

In the UK music scene, you’re more likely to see mainstream music artists cross over into Christian genres through singles or one-off albums.

Christian Music vs Worship

Music is music. It isn’t sacred or secular inherently. We’ve discussed before that sound and music are an artistic expression that can be used to reflect the journey, tensions, joys and beauty that its maker sees.

But for those of us who grew up going to church, you might associate the word worship to the time of singing during a church meeting. Maybe you’ll go as far thinking of the slow songs as worship, and the fast songs as praise.

If you’re a music lover, you probably associate worship songs with the Christian Contemporary Music category (think Hillsong, Matt Redman, Elevation Worship, Jesus Culture, Planetshakers etc etc). Similarly, we often associate praise with the Gospel Music Category (think Commissioned, Mary Mary, Tasha Cobbs, Tye Tribbett, Yolanda Adams, The Walls Group and Kirk Franklin).

While these labels reference the cultural context that these worship expressions have come from, they are also terms used in the commercial music industry.

CCM giants, Maverick City Music, have faced some backlash, for existing in this exact grey area — somewhere between sacred and secular.

Following, Norman Gyamfi’s interview on The Isaac Carree Show, detailing the commercial strategy behind the group’s success, some supporters feel that Maverick City have undermined Gospel culture by treating Gospel vocals as a “marketable style”. Others feel like they’re commercialising worship for wider appeal, and in doing so have let go of its scared and spiritual roots.

The Commercialisation of Worship Music

Kirk Franklin is no stranger controversy around the commercialisation of his music how it’s marketed. Facing similar scrutiny in the 90s and early 00’s and more recently being featured on GloRilla’s self-titled studio album.

As the infamous intro into Kirk Franklin’s 1997 song “Stomp” goes:

“For those of you that think that gospel music has gone too far

You think we got too radical with our message

Well I got news for you

You ain't heard nothin yet

And if you don't know, now you know

Glory, glory”

In our opinion, the issue here lies less in what category people fit into, and more in the commercial pressure to be easily identifiable.

Here’s Why This Moment Is Significant

In the US, Christian music (whether it’s country, CCM, Gospel or something else) has had a much smoother integration into mainstream music culture. To see an artist from a distinctly christian category in the line-up of a mainstream UK festival signals a shift that could open doors for other faith-centered music artists.

Two things we know for sure are that:
a) Most gospel songs are repetitive, which make them easy to pick up
b) UK crowds have been primed for audience participation since primary school.

So if you go to All Points East not knowing Kirk Franklin, you might leave knowing one of his songs by heart.

A random thought triggered the memory of some dormant trauma and my attempt to pray about it turned into me shouting at God. I stopped mid prayer and stared into space, not ready to apologise or pray the anger away.

Trying to distract myself, I opened YouTube and saw a video about faith-based strategies that can help regulate your nervous system.

A kind-eyed, melanated stranger, began talking about how we often rely on exertion, instead of grace, to become more like Jesus. I felt seen and attacked all at once.

She offered an alternative — breathwork as prayer; a practical way to replace anger and anxiety for peace.

I finished watching the video and loaded up Bieber’s new album, getting ready to stress-clean. I was calming down now, but I could already anticipate the feelings coming back later that day. I inhaled for 4 and exhaled for 5, DAISIES playing in the background as I texted my friends to see what they were doing later.

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By now SWAG had reached track 4, GO BABY. I wasn’t in the mood to hear songs about love. I came here looking for solidarity in my anger and, judging by Justin’s instagram over the last month, I thought this is exactly where I would find it. Just before I hit skip, I listened a little harder.

SWAG confronts situations that we’ve seen Bieber be publicly pissed off about with a level of calm that I wasn’t expecting. Nonchalance. He’s responding, not reacting.

The album bounces across several genres; country, techno, house, RnB and pop —but nothing of the music feels particularly angry. At least, not in the way I was hoping to find.

Instead of clapping back at the constant criticism Justin and Hailey Bieber have faced around their marriage, GO BABY opens with the line,

‘That’s my baby,

She’s iconic.’

Not one bar spared for haters. He’s focussed on what is important, not what isn’t. The tone of the whole album gives “You can keep trying to provoke me, but I’m grown now”. I was checked once again, inspired by the maturity.

A little less angry now, I started paying more attention. SWAG is a look into Bieber’s life in this chapter of his story. It’s a window into his thoughts, processing and mindset. This is the kind of album you can listen to on shuffle only after you graduate from listening to it the whole way through, as intended.

The album arrives 4 years after the double release of albums “Justice” and “Freedom.” in 2021. Featuring 3 collaborations with Christian Contemporary Music artist, Chandler Moore as well as voiceovers from Bieber’s Pastor, Judah Smith, Freedom. places a distinct focus on Justin’s faith journey. Separate albums — I’ll come back to that.

Throughout SWAG, Bieber addresses his some of his online controversy through interludes with comedian Druski. The two talk about his social media presence, dealing with life in the public eye and the viral video of Justin telling paparazzi he’s “standing on business”.

These introspective interludes mixed with candid worship moments are what make this album a listening experience. It’s comes across something like a home video, audio-only.

Worship is scattered throughout this album in a way that’s too relatable; honest, unrehearsed but meaningful. A little messy, but not out of place. It isn’t sectioned off to a separate album like it was in 2021. It’s infused this time, right next to sexy love songs and euphoric techno tracks.

From teen star, to global sensation, to industry bad boy, to husband and now father, Justin Bieber has evolved. His discography is evidence of that continued journey.

He may not be seen singing on megachurch stages or hanging out with megachurch Pastors anymore, but faith is still a part of Bieber’s life and music.

I listened to the album’s last track, titled “FORGIVENESS”. I was far less angry now. I’d been reminded that sometimes faith and life are messy, but God will be there for the journey.

Have you listened to SWAG? Tell us what you thought ⬇️

The Unity Cup, hosted at Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium, brought together four teams to represent countries with deep diasporic roots in the UK: Ghana, Nigeria, Jamaica, and Trinidad & Tobago.

Football as a Diaspora Stage

Football is more than just sport, it reaches into culture through music, fashion and so much more. In the UK, football is also one of the loudest expressions of diasporic identity. For communities with roots in West Africa or the Caribbean, the game has always been a way to connect heritage with home, passion with pride.

For example, the match-up between Ghana and Nigeria wasn’t only about football. The “Jollof Rice Derby”, was about food, bragging rights, and a cultural rivalry that’s decades deep.

Influencers and culture lovers alike took to the stands to be part of the crowds. It was a mini Notting Hill Carnival with studs and shin guards.

Let’s talk kit sponsors—for a tournament so steeped in culture, we expected more from the fashion world

• Puma backed the Black Stars of Ghana
  

• Nike stood behind Nigeria’s Super Eagles
  

• Adidas sponsored Jamaica
  

• Capelli Sport supported Trinidad and Tobago

• Oyaactive were the official merch sponsors of the competition.

But where were the major collabs and cultural activations?

If we could do it again (and the tournament had nearly enough money or recognition for this to be worth it) here’s who we would sub in.

• Daily Paper – Amsterdam-based and Afro-diasporic to the core. Their past collabs with Ajax and Puma prove they know how to blend streetwear and sport. Plus they have a strong growing presence in the UK so 👀
  

• Free the Youth – Ghanaian-owned, youth-driven, and fresh off a major collab with Off-White. We’re not saying this collab would have saved The Jollof Derby, but it might have activated some more community spirit, you know?
  

• Labrum London – Okay to be fair, Labrum did just release their Africa Day Collection and recently redesigned the Arsenal kit. So they get a pass…
  

Each of these brands have built identities rooted in community, storytelling, and cultural pride— which is exactly what the Unity Cup stands for.

Admittedly, this was fun football, not the world cup. Considering that was the first time the tournament had been held since 2004, it was only ever going to be grassroots.

Next time, the right partnerships could make this era-defining. Hopefully we won’t have to wait another 21 years to find out.

The end of another month means it’s time for the next edition of The Monthly Drop.

ICYMI: this month we spoke about, the history of black tailoring, the tension between faith and creativity* and the new blueprint for Christian Hip-Hop.

Do

Seventh Circle. A business-accelerator for brands.

You want to build a brand that will last, but you don’t know where to start.
Step 1 is getting advice from people that do.

Culture giants, Seventh Stores, are running a 7-week course created to ‘equip emerging entrepreneurs with the real-world tools, knowledge, and systems needed to build a purposeful, long-lasting brand.’

The course includes live sessions with the brand’s CEO & Founder who has over 13 years experience brand building. Each session has a different focus walking through your product concept, brand identity, brand positioning and more.

Think fast. Applications are open until the 30th of May.

Full Details Here

See

SELAH - Gabriel Moses

180 Studios is currently hosting the largest exhibition of Gabriel Moses, British-Nigerian photographer and filmmaker. The exhibition includes more than 70 photographs and 10 films across fashion, music, and sport, and the premiere of his new film, The Last Hour.

Moses’ contribution to culture, fashion and music is undeniable and this exhibition isn’t something you want to miss.

Until 27 July 2025 | General Admission: £20

Book Tickets Here

We want to make sure there’s value in being part of the Soliquidas community. That’s why we’re working on events, workshops and more behind the scenes.

From June onwards, The Monthly Drop will be subscriber-only content — meaning it won’t be visible on our website anymore.

What else will Soliquidas subscribers get?

• Regular articles from Soliquidas

• Subscriber-only newsletters

• The Monthly Drop

• Priority access to Soliquidas event tickets.

If you’re not already a Soliquidas subscriber already, it’s a good time to become one.

*This month we also shared our first subscriber-only newsletter; a letter to creatives who feel caught in the tension between faith and creativity. We explored what that tension actually is and how to navigate it.

If you liked it, let us know and look out for more newsletters coming soon.

“There’s no Christ in Christian Hip-Hop”.

Whether it’s coming from inside the church or outside it, Christian Hip Hop (CCH) has never been immune to criticism.

If you’re a fan of CHH you might remember the vicious efforts of G. Craig Lewis to shut down the CHH movement in the early 2000s. More recently The Cross Movement and Shai Linne critiqued the genre claiming there was “a gradual straying in the focus on Jesus.”

Outside the church, CHH as a whole hasn’t been widely rated. The public perception is that it’s corny, preachy, gimmicky and that most tracks sound like sanitised, youth-group versions of wider hip hop culture. How do I know? Because I’m someone who’s said that.

Intricate rhyme schemes meshed with creative storytelling and immersive music production form the crux of what hip-hop is today. The street soliloquies and urban poetry of artists like Nas and Kendrick Lamar are clear examples of what that looks like.

These integral elements are sacred and anyone that steps forward to the mic must honour these traditions.

Hip-Hop is believed to have been born in the Bronx in the early 70’s, owing its origins to DJ Kool Herc’s innovative use of turntables and instrumentals at house parties. Going one step further, early Hip-Hop, and the literary processes that derive from it, have roots in African colonial resistance. So though Hip-Hop was ‘formally’ birthed in the Bronx, it’s the lovechild of African colonial resistance and forced migration.

Hip-Hop was used as a tool for marginalised American ethnic minorities, a polemic against the systems that subjugated them.

In Hip-Hop culture authenticity is capital and skill is your validity. Any attempt to take from, capitalise off of or trivialise hip-hop culture are instant triggers evoking decisive rejection (that’s why artists like Vanilla Ice couldn’t last). Gimmicks and corniness won’t run. Which brings us back to Christian Hip-Hop…

Let’s keep things fair, CHH’s inability to compete in wider Hip-Hop culture may be systemic; major labels and radio stations may not want to promote it. But, it could also be down to the fact that a lot of the genre tends to be uninspiring and lyrically bland.

Artists like Lecrae and Andy Mineo have been able to top Billboard charts within the CHH but very few others have been able to reach the same heights.

That may be about to change.

After the undelivered promises of secularism and new-atheism, a lot of Gen-Z have been searching for answers to their existential questions. We’re seeing a rise of freelance spiritualities, African spiritual practices and Bible sales amongst Gen Z. That’s the cultural climate that DC3’s music speaks into.

His music explores all too relatable topics like, pride, purpose and morality and how we often fail to meet our own moral standards. His music gathers the spiritually alive and seekers alike, as he charts a new path forward.

Whether it’s his genius and engaging visuals, or the clever and intricate rhyme rapped over classic Kendrick Lamar instrumentals, it’s evident that DC3 isn’t just a student of his faith but one of Hip-Hop culture.

The maturity, conviction and direction that stain the paper of DC3’s writing make it hard to believe he’s only 18.

Sonically and instrumentally his sound is like early 2010 Joey Bada$$’, incorporating soulful jazz and boom bap sound to underlay introspective lyrics.

A lot of artists are defining their sound on established trap or Tik-Tok friendly beats. Instead DC3 seamlessly weaves through a variety of styles, from introspective, free-flowing rhyme patterns on “I KNOW” or bouncy and nonchalant bops like “JUDGE”.

Earning him a spot on the Southbank Centre stage, following in the path of UK lyricists like Little Simz and Ghetts.

DC3 maintains consciousness in his music without trading in his commercial appeal and or his faith. He’s in rare company among people like Lecrae and maybe even Chance The Rapper.

Throughout its 50+ year history, America has held the monopoly on Hip-Hop media, culture and expression, but recent breakthroughs from rappers such as Dave, Skepta and Central Cee signal that Hip Hop might be going global.

Are we witnessing the beginning of a new era in Hip-Hop? One where authenticity is actualised in CHH and the genre is able to break through and make waves in wider culture.

No one man can change the entire trajectory of a generation of music, but DC3 may be the new blueprint.

written by

Nyasha is a writer, spoken word artist and emcee hailing from Zimbabwe.

His faith drives him beyond the surface, through words and music, to explore the furthest parts of culture.

IG: @nyasha.munashe

While the “Sunday Best” aesthetic isn’t something worn only by black church-goers, it has strong ties to African-American culture dating back to the 18th and 19th century. It’s also connected to the 2025 Met Gala theme — Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.

I remember the first time I realised that not everyone dressed up to go to church.

It was a Sunday morning and I was wearing one of those poofy dresses (you know the itchy ones with loads of layers of tuile underneath?). My mum had dressed my brother in smart trousers, a crisp, ironed-shirt and smart shoes. We looked blessed.

As always, my mum was wearing a matching satin dress and bolero combo with church appropriate heels. The purse matched the outfit. The outfit matched the earrings. The earrings matched the necklace. My Dad was wearing a suit. Always a suit.

As uncomfortable as it was to be stuffed into formal wear every Sunday, we were second generation british-ghanaians and this was our church uniform. I had grown up seeing people in formal wear every Sunday at our predominantly black church, but we were on our way to a new church this week.

We walked into the high school where the church was meeting to witness a sea of people of all races wearing jeans and casual t-shirts. There were kids running around in fairy wings and colourful tutus… at church… on Sunday?

I was sure we were in the wrong place.

Looking over at my brother, I could see faint lines of steam coming from his ears watching other kids play football after church in trainers. They didn’t have to worry about getting grass-stains on their good church trousers. Aside from the fact that this particular dress was insanely itchy, I liked dressing up on Sundays because I felt like a princess.

We ended up staying at that church and my brother and I were eventually allowed to start wearing casual clothes just like everyone else. My parents, however, continued to wear their best to church on Sundays.

In fact, my parents wore their best to church on Sundays, to the airport and even to Tesco’s (I think they found it harder to dress down than to dress up).

Though they occasionally struggled to understand the casual dress code, when it came to formal wear my parents could out-dress anyone without breaking a sweat.

Dressing “well” or “dressing up” was always about more than vanity, it was a symbol of dignity, pride and self-love.

During African-American Enslavement in the US, some enslaved people were given Sunday’s off to go to church. On Sundays, churchgoers wore their finest clothing, as an act of reverence to God, wanting to wear their “best” to worship.

These clothes were often hand-me-downs from the families they were owned by, or garments that they made themselves. Dressing well on Sundays gave enslaved people the opportunity to reclaim a sense of dignity that had been robbed of them.

The clothes they worked in during the rest of the week were nothing to be admired, covering bodies that had been mutilated through the undeserved violence committed towards them.

Fashion gave them the opportunity to create a new narrative about themselves, one that could go a small way in restoring their own sense of dignity and worth.

In the early 18th century, while slavery was still legal in the south, a new movement was burgeoning amongst free black men in the north of the United States. Activists, writers and poets and regular people began emulating the style of European Dandies.

Black Dandyism was the secularised expression of a similar phenomenon happening in the newly forming African-American church. As Monica L. Miller (guest curator of this year’s Met Gala) writes in her book Slaves to Fashion,

"The church outfit and the dandy suit come from the same impulse—to elevate the self through dress in a society that tries to strip you of humanity."

The adoption of Dandyism wasn’t just a vanity game. By wearing classic tailoring and formal wear often worn by white upper classes, African-American’s subverted ideas of racial hierarchy and supremacy, restoring a sense of identity and dignity to a people whose bodies had for so long been seen as undesirable.

Whilst Black Dandyism was on the rise in the US, Congolese Dandyism, particularly La Sape culture, was growing in Africa. Congolese men adopted fine tailoring styles in bold colours to challenge the enforced racial superiority of their colonial oppressors.

The dandyism movement in the US and beyond was a force of resistance against segregation, re-establishing pride and dignity amongst people who it had been taken from. Black dandyism was a way to love and to celebrate black bodies — by dressing them well.

That’s why this year’s Met Gala Theme was so iconic; it’s a long overdue celebration of the contribution of black style to modern fashion, and yet another example of how black people have used their oppression as fuel for culture-shifting creativity.

Pioneers of modern Black Dandyism, like Dapper Dan and Ozwald Boateng, have emulated the pioneering spirit of dandies before them in the tailoring and streetwear industries, having both reshaped the course of luxury fashion.

Brands like Labrum London, Nicholas Daley and Frère keep the essence black tailoring alive. While style icons like A$AP Rocky, Jidenna, Coleman Domingo, Andre Leon Talley and others pay homage to the black dandy aesthetic beyond a red carpet moment.

As we’ve said before, fashion is more than just style, it's an expression of values. In the case of Black Dandyism, fashion is an expression of the inherent value of all people.

In the age-old tradition of wearing your Sunday Best to church, we can see a physical, political and spiritual interplay; we used fashion to reclaim our dignity and offered our ‘best’ appearances back to God as a form of worship. (I can hear my mum saying, “If I would wear my best to a wedding, why wouldn’t I wear it to church?” as I helped her put on her pearl bracelet).

The Sunday Best aesthetic isn’t gone, it’s different. Pride in style has made its way back to the pews through streetwear culture and with it comes a wave of faith-based clothing, placing an even more overt emphasis on style as a form of worship.

Wearing your best on Mondays, Sundays and any day in-between is a reminder that fashion is more than just what we put on our bodies; it’s a declaration of what we believe about ourselves and about the world around us. This year’s Met Gala Theme was a reminder that black bodies are beautiful and dignified, of inherent worth and value.

From the craftsmanship of 3Sixteen to the innovative resale model of Newless, and the radical repair activism of SoJo, these labels aren’t just creating clothes—they’re steering fashion culture towards a healthier more whole way of operating.

3Sixteen

Sustainability Principle: Buy Less, Buy Better

New York-born but globally respected, 3Sixteen is a brand that’s built a cult following through its unwavering dedication to quality and integrity. Known for its heavyweight raw denim, the brand takes a slow fashion approach that borders on meditative. Their jeans are designed not just to last, but to evolve with the wearer—breaking in over years, not months.

3Sixteen’s ethos rests on an appreciation for process, craft, and considered design. The founders speak openly about how their beliefs inform the business—centering ideas of stewardship, humility, and community as people of faith. There's a quiet reverence in their work: for the materials, the makers, and the people who wear their pieces into life.

Admittedly, 3Sixteen isn’t explicitly a sustainable brand, but their ethos — clothes designed to live in your wardrobe for a long time — speaks to the principle of slow consumption, which goes a long way in a world of fast fashion.

Brands like 3Sixteen reminds us that sustainability can also be practiced in the rhythm of slow things. By choosing fewer, better clothes and wearing what we believe.

Newless

Sustainability Principle: Upcycling

As we discussed in last week’s article, it’s unlikely that your wardrobe is going to be made of 100% sustainable, biodegradable materials. One of the next best solutions, is to the increase the shelf life of the clothes we already own.

Enter Newless the London-based brand, bringing resurrection to our wardrobes and flipping the fashion economy on its head.

Newless is an emerging platform that combines circular fashion with modern tech. This isn’t just another resale platform. Newless is building a culture around second-life fashion—creating a digital community where style is circular and sustainable.

What really makes Newless stand out to us, is their “Made-from-Yours” service. Customers purchase a style, then send in their own clothes to have them remade into that selected style.

We’ve all been at home getting a little bit too carried away with some kitchen scissors, hoping to restyle old fits. Instead consider sending your old favourite items to be upcycled and turned into something — better by a professional.

SoJo

Sustainability Principe: If it’s broke, repair it

SoJo —a quiet revolution in the form of a needle and thread. Founded by Josephine Philips, SoJo is a social enterprise that makes clothing repairs and alterations as simple as ordering a takeaway. Their app connects users with local seamsters (often women and immigrants underrepresented in the mainstream fashion system), offering a platform championing care over consumption.

SoJo is doing more than fixing broken zips. It’s restoring value to garments, to labour, and to overlooked hands in the fashion chain. Their message is spiritual in its simplicity: what’s broken isn’t disposable and it can be made whole again.

Dressing for More

Each of these brands reflect values we desire to live out: sustainability, faith, creativity, and care. They speak to the fact that clothing can be more than a form of self-expression.

The concept of mending, of choosing restoration over replacement, reflects a deeper cultural and even spiritual longing. One that asks us to slow down and acknowledge the power of resurrection.

Thank you for the responses to our last Monthly Drop!

Just like last time, hit reply and let us know about the brands you love that we should know about. If you shop or use any of these brands let us know what you think.

Until next month,

~ peace ~

Beyond the long-standing challenges in the fashion industry around sustainability and fair labour, new global tariffs imposed by Trump have disrupted brands across the spectrum — from household names to smaller, independent labels.

As companies scramble to navigate these shifts, an important question re-emerges: just how ethical — or even practical — are our current fashion models? Why do we shop the way we do? Why are there so many brands out there?

For we who view the world through a lens of faith, the questions cut deeper.

Are we over identifying with what we own to validate who we are? Have we overlooked the spiritual side of sustainable shopping?

Let’s be real. Deciding what to wear is hard enough without the added weight of eco-consciousness and morality behind every fit. But ignoring both of those things has left the planet in a volatile state.

God created the earth and we were given a responsibility to look after it. In recent years we’ve done more to exploit it than we have to care for it and the fashion industry plays a big role in that conversation.

Shopping sustainably is always suggested as a solution to the problem, but simply “shopping sustainably” is not as simple as it sounds. There are a lot of reasons why not all brands are sustainable (yet) and even more reasons why not everyone can or will shop sustainably.

Does this sound familiar?

You’re trying to shop more sustainably, you start browsing the “conscious” or “eco” range at your favourite high street store.

It’s going well — until you look a little closer at the label on that recycled shirt: 30% recycled plastic, 50% viscose, 20% acrylic.

No biggie. You move to certified sustainable brands instead — the PANGAIAs and TALAs of the world. Great, if athleisure is your vibe. But you’re not wearing that every day, and you probably need more than two outfits.

Next stop: Depop and Vinted. They have you covered for most pieces. But Corteiz are dropping their new Air Max 95 collab — and you’re trying to be the first, not the last to cop.

And what about those new faith-based brands coming up that you like? Brands like Not Yet Home or Agios. Most of them are in their infancy and don’t have the funds to control their supply chain to make it sustainable yet — they need higher revenue to grow into a company that can be sustainable. Alternatively, they can drive up their prices to cover the cost of sustainable production, but realistically — in this economy — that would slow down the rate of consumption, potentially resulting in mean slow to no growth.

The system is broken and trying to fix it in one shopping trip can all be too much. So we slowly go back to our old spending habits. Which was way less anxiety-inducing.

Fashion is more than just clothes on our bodies; it’s an expression of our identity and our values. If our values are based in biblical beliefs, then we have to think about more than just stereotypical sin and wrong-doing. We have a duty of care to look after the earth we live on and the people that live on it.

The truth is, we’ve become so detached from the effects of our consumption habits that we don’t think the issue is as severe as it is.

Remember those videos of piles of clothes washed up on beaches in Ghana? Or the fire that destroyed the livelihood of so many in Kantamanto Market, one of the world’s largest second-hand markets? If you don’t, that only further proves the point.

Shopping sustainably is a daisy-chain of choices that are out of our control. Plastic clothes outlive us. Cotton ones use too much water. Sustainable clothes are often too expensive to make up the majority of our wardrobe.

But placing full responsibility on consumers for the state of the fashion industry is futile. Real change at the industry level will have the most profound impact on the issues we face.

Companies have to be serious and intentional about their sustainability efforts, but that’s not an easy transition given our current consumer habits. Change also needs to take place at the cultural level.

We Need to Consume Less.

Buying less and buying better allows us to make choices that align with our deeper values, we can shift the demand signals companies respond to.

By slowing our rate of consumption, we reduce overproduction — meaning fewer clothes entering the market, and fewer that need to be resold, recycled, or (most often) landfilled.

We can still shop our favourite brands, without missing out on latest drops, and still take part in the growing circular fashion economy.

For that shift to take root two things need to happen:

1. Believe in your personal style — sorry kids, style doesn’t just mean buying whatever is new, real style means knowing how to work what you already own, extending the lifetime of the clothes in our wardrobe.

2. Get comfortable with lack — fashion is important and it says a lot about us, but thankfully our identity is rooted in something deeper than our outside appearance. Going without may be the best way for us to increase our sustainable habits and to align our consumption with our values.

1. North Sea Jazz Festival – Rotterdam, Netherlands

Dates: 11-13 July 2025
Genres: Jazz, Soul, Funk, Blues, Hip-Hop, R&B

Each year, this legendary event is held in an unassuming Dutch city pulling in an incredible lineup that features a blend of greats with across jazz, soul, pop, funk, and hip-hop.

Past performers have included Herbie Hancock, Erykah Badu, and D’Angelo. This year’s line up is no less iconic; Mary J Blige, Omah Lay, Blk Odyssy, Jacob Collier, Maxwell, Samara Joy, Diana Ross, Jorja Smith and so many more.

With multiple indoor stages and a super-organised setup, this festival is a music lover’s paradise. We’ll be watching for sure.

2. Fête de la Musique – Worldwide (Origin: France)

Date: 21 June 2025
Genres: All

Started in France in 1982, Fête de la Musique has become a global celebration of sound.

Fête de la Musique is a street party, similar to Notting Hill Carnival. Amateur and Professional musicians perform on street corners, in parks, and at pop-up venues. The music spans everything from classical to techno to folk.

There’s no tickets to buy for this one, just turn up and enjoy.

Word on the street is that despite discouragement from French locals, more Londoners are descending on the one day festival in Paris for the first time (link-up in Paris anyone?)

Though the festival started in France, it is also celebrated in over 120 countries across the world including Brazil, India and the US. We can only imagine the scenes of the street parties in New Orleans or Rio.

3. Big Church Festival - West Sussex, UK

Dates: 22 - 24 August
Genres: Christian Worship, Gospel, Pop, Afrobeat, Contemporary Christian Music

Europe’s largest Christian music festival, bringing together over 30,000 people from different denominations to worship, celebrate, and enjoy world-class performances.

Formerly held in May, the festival has made some changes moving to August Bank Holiday Weekend and adding an extra day to the program.

With five stages and a family-friendly atmosphere, this year’s lineup includes; Warehouse Worship, Israel Houghton + New Breed, Samm Henshaw, Still Shadey, DC3, Victory Boyd, Brandon Lake and more.

Wholesome summer enjoyment in the sun (maybe).

4. Notting Hill Carnival – London, UK

Dates: 24 + 25 August
Genres: Soca, Calypso, Reggae, Dancehall, Afrobeat, Hip-Hop

One of the world’s most vibrant and colourful street parties, Notting Hill Carnival is a celebration of the UK’s Caribbean diaspora with vibrant costumes, incredible food, and wall-to-wall sound systems.

Carnival is all about freedom, rhythm, and community. London is pretty reserved city in general but if you want to dance in the streets, this is the place to be. Follow a truck or pull up to one of the sound stages scattered around.

Prepare yourself for a long day of dancing, good food and good vibes. No tickets necessary, just arrive and try not to lose your friends. Only God’s strongest soldiers will do both days back to back.

5. Fuji Rock Festival – Niigata, Japan

Dates: 25 - 27 July
Genres: Rock, Indie, Electronic, Folk

Anyone else had a deep desire to visit Japan or is that just us? We missed out April’s Cherry Blossom Festival, but Fuji Rock is looking like a whole other reason to book that ticket.

This festival is as much about the experience as it is about the music. It’s an eco-conscious, beautifully organised camping experience. Think Glastonbury. But in Japan. On the side of a mountain.

This year’s line up features a mix of headliners including Ezra Collective and Jyoty.

Whether you’re dancing in the streets of London or Paris, soaking in jazz legends at North Sea, or worshipping at Big Church Festival, there’s a lot of good music moments to look forward to this summer.

Milan Design Week: More Than Just Aesthetic

This week the 63rd Edition of Milan Design Week began. The design festival features a week-long program of exhibitions, installations and showcases from world-leading designers.

Highsnobiety’s “Not in Milan” Collection features the return of their theme The Classic’s Reinvented - a bold celebration of design heritage viewed through the lens of contemporary culture.

The brand collaborated with Milan native brands The Attico and Bar Basso and international players like Fila and Ugg to produce a limited edition apparel and homeware collection, reflecting some of Milan’s iconic culture and heritage.

Highsnobiety describes the campaign, titled “Panoramic Vibes Only: Milan Rituals” , like this:

“the campaign captures everything we love about the fashion capital: from its legendary fashion stores and stylish aperitivo rituals, to cult bars like Bar Basso, and the new generation of creatives reshaping the city from the inside out.”

The campaign is centered around the theme of the Milanese Salotto; an intimate dining experience where “domestic nostalgia meets streetwear ease”.

‘Il Salotto’ directly translates to “The living room” but conceptually, it presents a picture of discourse, cultural exchange and social influence.

The newly released collection (now available to shop) features timeless silhouettes (think classic box tees, hoodies and 6-panel baseball caps) as well as reimagined Uggs and plant pots.

Bold typography blends with subtle iconography bearing reference to the neon signage and food culture synonymous with this Italian city.

“Blending heritage with contemporary culture, Classics Reinvented creates a dialogue between past and present – honoring the craftsmanship, materials, and stories that shape design legacies.”

Also at Milan Design Week, Vans partnered with designer Willo Perron to create an immersive frequency-focussed exhibition to unveil their Old Skool 36 FM release.

During the exhibition visitors were invited to witness “the physical manifestation of invisible elements like frequencies and waves”.

The score for the exhibition was created by experimental composer Tim Hecker, tasked with the job of “[turning] sonic energy into spatial rhythm.”

Perron isn’t a stranger to sonic stages having designed the set for Beyonce’s 2024 NFL Halftime show and Rihanna’s 2023 Superbowl Halftime show.

The exhibition used light, colour and sound to create a visual language via frequency, referencing Off The Wall’s iconic checkered design throughout the showcase.

This set up wouldn’t be out of place as the opening show at a certain creative church’s annual conference. Visitors lay on the metal structures observing the light and sound through a thin layer of smoke, creating a sense of anticipation and expectation.

We may debate the necessity of lights and stage in worship settings, but we can agree that sound and light create an atmosphere, with the power to move us both emotionally and spiritually. In a worship setting the Holy Spirit acts as the invisible element, turning sound into spiritual reality.

Their new release, the Old Skool 36 FM— is part of OTW’s latest offering and the first release in the upcoming Future Make platform.

Vans released a look at the new design via their Instagram. The shoe features a bubbly, exaggerated foam-like sole that moves away from their classic heritage sole towards modern high-fashion sneaker styles like Balenciaga Track, Yeezy 500s, or the Nike ISPA.

The layered upper and transparent overlays nod to performance-wear aesthetics, whilst the side stripe and low-top profile maintain the spirit of the original Old Skool shoe: a classic, re-invented.

Maintaining Heritage While Producing a New Sound

Earlier this week, Bad Bunny made an appearance on NPR’s Tiny Desk accompanied by his band Los Sobrinos to perform 5 tracks from his latest album, ‘Debí Tirar Más Fotos’.

The album highlights traditional Puerto Rican genres like plena, bomba, décima, and salsa.

His set design was simple; a band set up in NPR’s classic backdrop featuring a light blue Puerto Rican flag. The flag in this specific colour-way is a political symbol associated with the island's independence movement.

Between songs, Bad Bunny shared reflections on Puerto Rico's colonial status and the resilience of its culture. He introduced "La Mudanza," as ‘more than a song’, encouraging listeners to interpret its meaning individually.

The song features a short retelling of his family history, as well as reflections on his pride in being from Puerto Rico.

“I don't sing reggae, but I'm culture

From Borinquen, Puerto Rico, the Perfect Archipelago

The whole world already knows my dialect, my slang

I don't give a damn about what doesn't matter to you

Here, people were killed for raising the flag

That's why I carry it everywhere, man, what's up?”

The track rhetorically emphasises the importance of not only remembering but honouring your roots, maintaining integrity and heritage while bringing an updated sound to a new generation — a common theme through culture this week.

Music became both an escape and a means of resistance. The question is, does music still have that same effect today?

It’s the summer of 1988. Notting Hill Carnival.

Norman Jay drops “F** Tha Police” as part of his Good Times Set.

Carnival goes off.

I still remember the first time I heard that song. It was the summer of 1988 and I was driving through Brixton in a convertible Volkswagen Cabriolet. We’d just bought it on cassette and played it through analogue speakers.

N.W.A had verbalised something I wasn’t able to say at the time when the police were punching me in the face. I turned the volume up louder as we drove slowly past a police car.

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Every decade has had its share of explicit, derogatory music as well as quirky glossy pop (queue Madonna and Wham!), but in general the late 80s and 90s were largely defined by music that spoke to social injustice and the human condition.

Groups like Public Enemy and N.W.A. used hard-hitting lyrics to expose issues such as racial profiling and government neglect. Fight the Power (1989) became an anthem for resistance, while N.W.A.’s F** tha Police* (1988) directly criticised police violence. Tupac and Nas used storytelling to shed light on poverty, crime, and institutional oppression.

Though the US had - and continues - to be a dominant force in global music, UK artists have always created their own narratives. Over time, UK artists have been amongst those pushing back on US dominance in the industry, highlighting the similarities in our social and human conditions.

The music of this era didn’t just entertain; it dismantled social barriers. Either through the music itself, or in the culture that surrounded it.

It’s the summer of 1988. The rise of electronic dance music and the rave scene had created a culture of rebellion.

Anger and unrest simmer in society, and the rave scene emerges unexpectedly as a unifying force, bringing together people from all backgrounds.

What appears on the surface to be a mass of people dancing and gurning off their heads, is a collection of people standing up against a Conservative government that didn’t care about them.

People from all backgrounds dance to deep-house classics mixed with Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech in the same set. Skinheads who we heard chanting “No Black in the Union Jack” even became part of the scene. Somehow.. we found unity here.

The UK rave scene in the late ’80s and early ’90s became a countercultural movement, challenging government control and restrictive laws. The Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 aimed to curb illegal raves, a direct response to the underground dance scene’s rapid growth.

Rave culture, fueled by house and techno, symbolized freedom and resistance against authoritarian policies. Songs like A Guy Called Gerald’s Voodoo Ray (1988) and The Prodigy’s Their Law (1994) captured the scene’s defiant energy.

The rave movements of the ’80s and ’90s laid the foundation for much of modern British music. House, breakbeat, and techno evolved into jungle, garage, and grime.

But how much of the music we listen to today still speaks truth to power?

Amapiano’s fast BPMs and hypnotic rhythms signal the return of high-energy music, echoing the spirit of early jungle raves and drawing diverse crowds to sweaty dance floors. The emergence of this genre has helped shift the global music spotlight toward African creativity, challenging the dominance of Western pop and hip-hop narratives.

Artists across the world have embraced or fused their sound with amapiano, showing how music can transcend language and cultural borders. But is that the same as breaking a cultural divide?

Listening closely, we might be witnessing a different divide being broken in the music industry—the divide between faith and modern culture.

Chandler Moore and Kirk Franklin on Glorious—GloRilla’s debut studio album—Tobi Nwigwe’s catalogue, and artists like DC3 and Stormzy with Gang Signs & Prayer signal a shift in musical boundaries, welcoming those who might not usually venture into the gospel or worship genre.

Music is either a paintbrush we use to decorate time, or a letter we speak into time itself. What will the music of this decade say about us?

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Each month, we’ll be sharing “The Monthly Drop” a curated selection of things for you to do, see or shop related to the themes of that month’s content.

ICYMI, this month’s themes were launch day, wine tasting and black worlds.

Soliquidas was born in London, so it’s only right that our first drop is focused on brands and businesses that come from here.

Here’s your monthly drop for March:

Do

Black Wine Club | IG: @blackwine.club | London, UK

With the objective of bringing greater inclusivity into the world of wine, The Black Wine Club is a community for people of colour to experience and learn about wine while listening to good music.

Find out more here

See

Black Sound London: The Story of Black British Music

It’s not everyday spend money. If you’re looking for something different to do with your weekend, then head to this exhibition at the Barbican Centre.

“Black Sound London celebrates the DIY spirit of British Black music, spanning jazz, lovers’ rock, jungle, grime, and drill that has powered British Black music from the margins to the global stage.”

Until Jul 19, 2025 | Tickets: Free

Shop

Seventh Stores

A London-based clothing brand blending minimalism with old-school streetwear aesthetics. Seventh’s range features both men's and women's lines crafted from premium materials.

Two of our favourite pieces are the XL Moon Sac and the V2 Hoodie (recognised one of the '23 Best Hoodies and Hoodie Brands to Buy circa 2021)

Seventh's products are available online and through select stockists.

(Don’t worry American friends, you can now shop Seventh on Complex US)

If you know - or own - a brand or business you think is worth knowing about then hit reply and let us know.

See you next month.

✌🏾

I did my undergraduate degree at Cambridge University in the UK with its maze-like streets and jutting chimneys. The American Cambridge feels like a newer, pristine version of the other. And like Cambridge, England, the Massachusetts version has its own collection of art museums, which I found myself wandering into on the Saturday before my classes started .

I had seen online that a new exhibition was opening that day: ‘The Art of the Black World’. Being, well… Black, and interested in art, I felt an obligation to go. I’m glad I did.

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The exhibition has a huge range of pieces – from Ivorian sculpture of a Blolo Bla (Spirit Partner) to Barkley L Hendricks’ 2010 oil and acrylic painting of a Black woman in a stark white dress, engaging us from three angles titled, “Octobers gone… Goodnight.”

The exhibition complements a course offered at Harvard this year. The main point of the course asks the question “What would be lost without an understanding of art of the Black world?” But another question about that question was troubling me.

What exactly was the ‘Black world’ that they were referring to?

I guess the range of artefacts presented was its own lunge towards an answer. Each artist or object depicted seemed to share some ‘Blackness’, but what continuity in socially-constructed ideas of Blackness could there be between Dawoud Bey’s photo of A Man on The Way to the Cleaners and Edward Mitchell Bannister’s landscape of a Cove at Sunset?

Galleries rarely curate exhibitions on the ‘Art of the White World’. Or, actually, they do – all the time – but don’t explicitly say as much.

However, when it comes to Blackness, it is assumed that this must be a central component of our work. The Black artist’s art must be somehow connected to his ‘Blackness’; a connective tissue we don’t attribute to white artists, or at least not in the same way.

In Dipesh Chakrabarty’s work on ‘Postcolonial Thought and Historical Difference’ he calls it Provincializing Europe. Essentially he critiques the universalisation of narratives about the creation of modern capitalist Europe, highlighting the fact that the stories Europe tells about itself have made themselves globally normative.

Regions like Africa, Latin America and Asia are consistently required to reevaluate and identify themselves in relation to whiteness, Europeanness, and Western colonial-modernity.

The only reason we can talk about ‘the art of the Black world’ is because for so long the ‘art of the world’ was just that of the ‘white’ world, itself an exclusionary racial identity whose borders defined who was a part of civilisation, and who wasn’t.

This is not to condemn Harvard Art Museums and its work. I enjoyed the exhibition, in fact, I wish there had been more to see. But I didn’t enjoy picking apart the assumptions lying beneath the surface of the exhibition’s premise (and all ‘Western’ art, maybe?).

Near the end of the exhibition, you get to a photo by Malick Sidibé. It is untitled, of a young couple dancing. He is loose – framed in silhouette, head down and concentrated on the steps like there is a poem on his feet he has been asked to read. His right leg is lifted – suspended in dynamic motion.

She seems more reserved, her eyes captured mid-glance, as we too are caught in the glancing space between the camera’s gaze and the light it plays with.

I catch a breath as I look closer at the Black and white photo. The inner world of their dance together, the simplicity of the clothes. It reminds me of pictures I saw of my own parents growing up.

Seeing your parents, young, childfree, before they were married or had even met each other, can be a jarring experience. You reckon with the fact of their selfhood, that they had a self before you existed. I catch a breath and wonder at this photo – they could almost be my parents, too.

And then I think: maybe– and this is a big maybe– what unites Black people, what makes the ‘Black world’ – is a common understanding of potentiality, of possibility.

We could have been born into a different time, and different place and, because of the way the world is, and sees us, have had to suffer at the hands of another’s oppressors at any given moment.

Otherwise, why is it, looking at Trent Bozeman’s Heroes (Then and Now), depicting bastions of African American history, do I feel so deeply moved, so proud – a part of the struggle, as a Black-British woman raised in modern London?

Maybe it is because I know that in another life, through an accident of birth, I may have ended up in their position. If I was born in 1750, instead of 2002, my name might have ended up on a legacies of slavery report at Harvard, and not on the list of its incoming 2024 students.

There is a ‘Sarah’ listed in Harvard Divinity School’s Reckoning with Slavery exhibition. She had been owned by Lieutenant Governor Thomas Oliver, documented in 1783. My tongue swelled in my throat when I saw it.

To forge a life under struggle is to know its precarity. To know that this life could be another life just as easily, under better or worse conditions than these.

You never know where you might end up, in the Black world.

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Words by Sarah Adegbite. Sarah is a poet and emerging theologian. She is a Master of Theological Studies candidate at Harvard Divinity School, where she explores Christian theology, decolonial thought, and Black literary and religious traditions.

Then we all sniffed and were asked to say what smells came to mind. Dark red currants, blackberry, plum, leather, tobacco and all sorts of other things were mentioned. I kept my mouth shut because the only thing I could think of was, ‘This smells like wine to me.’

Years later, I’ve come to appreciate wine in a completely different way. Not because my palate has been refined or because I’ve taken wine courses on how to pick out scents like truffles or crushed gravel, but because I study the Bible.

The Bible has a lot to say about wine and how it relates to our lives together, our relationship to the earth and our relationship to God.

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In the ancient world, from the very earliest civilizations, wine was an important part of everyday life and religion. Whether in Egypt, Assyria, Babylonia, Persia, Greece or Rome, wine was a critical fixture in worship and making offerings to the gods. Stories of wine gods like Dionysus or Bacchus reveal a drink that was created to please both the gods and humanity. Tales are told of wild bacchanals or orgiastic feasts that likely ended with bad hangovers and much worse.

In many of these ancient cultures wine was seen as a gift from the gods so that human beings could enjoy themselves and it was offered back to the gods in all types of religious rituals that often involved drunken exploits. In the Bible, however, we find a very different story. It’s a story that goes back to the very beginnings of creation in the garden of Eden.

The first book of the Bible, Genesis, begins with a God who creates the heavens and the earth. This is not some distant god who is separated from his creation. God is depicted as a gardener who is not afraid to get his hands dirty in the soil.

God forms the first human from the dust of the earth and then breathes into him the breath of life. We usually call this person ‘Adam’, as if it’s a personal name, but it’s not. ‘Adam’ is a wordplay on the Hebrew word for soil adamah. The reason for the wordplay is to emphasize humanity’s connection to the soil.

We, as human beings, are inextricably bound to the life of the land. Our nourishment, our sustenance and our very existence is reliant on the earth beneath our feet.

Beyond our physical connection to the land, the story of Genesis (and the rest of the Bible) also assumes our spiritual connection to the land. When the first garden dwellers disobey God’s command and eat the forbidden fruit, the land becomes cursed. We witness a breakdown in what was originally meant to be a harmonious relationship between Adam and adamah.

Adam will now experience toil when he works the land and it will produce thorns and thistles. Here, in the garden, the moral world is bound up with a material world.

Human disobedience to God’s command results in a broken relationship with God, with one another and with the land. We’ll discover, as the story continues, that wine is a gift that comes from the renewed earth through Noah to provide relief for humanity.

Most people are familiar with the story of Noah’s Ark, but not many people know the prediction made by his father, Lamech, when Noah was born. Lamech says,

‘Out of the ground that the Lord has cursed this one shall bring us relief from our work and from the toil of our hands’.

We are told that Noah found favour in the eyes of God, that he was righteous and blameless and that he walked with God. It’s through Noah’s moral purity that humanity’s relationship to the land is restored and the gift of the vine springs up to bring relief from our toil.

The Bible offers a picture of a world where the material and the spiritual are bound together within the intricate web of creation. The earthly and the heavenly are united.

Though we are made from the soil and tethered to the land, we are also spiritual creatures who share in the breath of God. We have the capacity to experience spiritual blessings from God, but we also experience his gifts through our senses, through our physical engagements in the world and through the gift of wine.

To taste a well-crafted wine is to drink in the sun, the rain, the wind, the soil and all the blessings of the earth.

When we are attentive to the wine we’re able to savour its complex flavours and aromas. We come to appreciate its multifaceted character and the reflections it offers on the land where it was grown and harvested. Wine, unlike any other food or drink, brings out the qualities and identity of a particular place.

There is a French word, terroir, that is often used to describe this connection to place that gives a wine its character and flavour. Wine experts understand that even the slightest change in weather, soil content, drainage or the lay of the land can have dramatic effects on the final product.

I don’t doubt that the biblical authors understood the same. They also understood that the gift of wine and the relief that came through Noah, was also connected to our moral lives, to how we love God and neighbour and to how we care for his creation.

The story of wine in the Bible is one that reminds us that we don’t live in this world as autonomous creatures completely disconnected from the land around us. In the Bible, human beings were instructed by God to care and keep the land as an act of service and partnership with the hope of encouraging fertility, abundance and life.

American conservationist, Aldo Leopold, sums this up when he writes about having a ‘land ethic’ that should govern how we live in the world. He argues that our ethical behaviour should take into account things like soils, water, plants and animals. He goes on to say that this, ‘changes the role of Homo sapiens from conqueror of the land-community to plain member and citizen of it.’

We live in an age where humanity is driven by the pursuit of power and control over the environment rather than creatively working with, and caring for, the natural world.

Advances in technology and the idea of limitless freedom have led to what Old Testament scholar Walter Brueggemann calls an ‘economy of extraction’. This is a system that strips the land without concern as if our resources are unlimited and are ours to do with as we please. These practices not only destroy the ecology and biodiversity of the land, but they can also deprive local economies and create greater gaps between rich and poor.

The beginnings of wine in the Bible tell a story that involves the whole of creation. It’s a story that emphasises our relationship to the land, to God and to one another. How we care for and keep the soil is a reflection of how we care for one another.

Other stories in the Bible imagine a world full of justice and mercy where there is peace and concern for the common good. In such a world the biblical authors also see the earth respond with its own fertility—fields that produce bumper crops, trees that bear abundant fruit and hills bursting with grapes and wine.

Wine is not just a drink in the Bible. It’s a sign and symbol of salvation, of life, joy, abundance and fertility. Wine is a gift that eases our toil and makes our hearts glad.

Wine reminds us of our deep connections to the soil and how we play our part within the community of creation.

So, as we lift our glasses to celebrate in our homes, at meals, at weddings, or wherever we are, let’s say a prayer of thanks for the gift God gives that eases the toil and gladdens the heart.

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Words By Mark W. Scarlata.

Mark is the Author of Wine, Soil, and Salvation in the Hebrew Bible and New Testament (2025). This piece was modified from it’s original. First featured on Seen & Unseen.

One of history’s greatest mavericks was Jesus Christ. His influence on human history is undeniable. He confronted religious and political authorities, redefined power by centering the marginalized, and introduced new social standards that continue to shape history.

Independent of Him being the Son of God, His subversion of convention and obedience to His purpose make Him one of the greatest mavericks of all time.

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To this day, Jesus’ teachings and the wisdom found in the Bible continue to ripple throughout culture and society. If you’re looking, through music, media, film, and fashion, we can see the faint outline of an invisible God.

It’s ironic, then, that while the pioneer of the Church disrupted the status quo, faith-fuelled spaces are often too afraid to step outside of what they know.

The Landscape

There is a hard line between what happens inside the Church and what happens outside of it.

At its best, the Church is a meeting place for people to learn more about the faith they profess, to be encouraged, to heal, and to serve each other. The world outside the church walls is often seen as a place of carnality and chaos—a dangerous, untamed wilderness.

But drawing that kind of boundary can be too simplistic. The landscape outside the Church is where most of us work, live, and connect with each other. It is home to the diverse communities that have also shaped who we are. Race, age, country of origin, political views, creative interests and abilities, and simply existing in this moment in history—these are things that unite us in deep ways.

Culture—the shared expression of our communities—allows us to be seen and to see others. Being part of these communities shapes who we are and how we understand the world.

The Role of Creativity in Culture

From fashion to music and food, the creative arts are an integral part of culture. Through creativity, we celebrate, critique, protect, and engage with the world around us.

The artists we celebrate are those who can articulate aspects of the human experience that we struggle to put into words. Think about the songs that remind you of the best summers of your life; your post-breakup, glow-up wardrobe; the movie quotes that live in your head rent-free—metaphors for entire chapters of your life.

Creative arts have the ability to speak to the soul of our existence.

The bold and sometimes lonely pursuit of creative expression throughout history has gifted the world with some of the most lasting and meaningful art.

At its best, creative expression brings us joy, discovery, meaning, and, most importantly, solidarity.

The Creative Christian Dilemma

Before we started Soliquidas, we spoke to a lot of creatives. Turns out a lot of us are going through the same struggles. One person we spoke to put it like this:

“You can end up feeling rejected by the Church because of your creativity, but at the same time, you know that God is the one who made you creative.”

Being a creative often requires you to engage with life’s complexity. That’s something Christians and creatives outside the Church have in common, but for some reason, we’ve given those outside the Church more freedom to wrestle with that journey in the open.

Creative Christians are often expected to have things figured out. We’re asked to represent a perfected image of faith through our craft, as if those outside the Church are the only ones on a journey of becoming.

But the Bible contains stories of people—not too different from us—who navigated life through the lens of faith. It is a gallery of their doubts, desires, fears, hopes, joys, struggles, failures, and passions, expressed through stories, songs, and poetry, curated by a creative God—one who makes, iterates, critiques, and marvels.

Examples of bold creativity run throughout the Bible, yet today, there is a rigid blueprint for what faith-based creativity is supposed to look like.

That is, until the mavericks break out of it.

About Soliquidas

Faith is the lens through which we see the world, but it’s not all that we see. Our belief in God is like a magnifying glass, turning all of our experiences into something more meaningful. For us, faith and modern culture aren’t two separate entities.

Soliquidas is where creatives positioned at the intersection of faith and modern culture can find belonging, inspiration, and freedom to create.

Our mission is to champion maverick creatives—those who don’t see their faith as a limitation, but as a lens that sharpens their vision of the world.

Here, we explore big questions, celebrate artistry, and discover the sacred in the everyday.

If you’ve ever felt too churched for the world and too unchurched for the Church, this space is for you.

Share Soliquidas

Okay, you get it. So what can you expect?

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be sharing more content and resources with you. In time, we’ll bring you events, workshops, retail experiences, and much more.

Expect authentic conversations, bold creativity, and access to a community of like-minded creatives.

Welcome to Soliquidas.

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