In the third episode of Norient’s podcast Long Take: Life as an Artist, we meet Mohamed Rai, a session drummer, handpan musician, and former scuba dive instructor from the Maldives. He tells me what it means to work as a musician in the many tourist resorts, and he talks about his love for water, waves and silence. His friend Hanan drops by and leaves to catch the ferry. Listen to this episode on Spotify or on YouTube.

Mohamed Rai started drumming when he was three years old, encouraged by the musicians in his family: his grandfather Ibrahim Ahmed (Molhudhoo Thuthu), and his uncle Nashid, front man of the well-known band Zero Degree Atoll, who passed away in 2016. Mohamed studied graphic design in Sri Lanka. He left the dense capital Malé and today lives on Thulusdhoo island, where he runs an Airbnb (that I recommend) and recently opened the music venue/restaurant The Shore Shack. We talk about the lack of respect artists receive within the community and how important people like his physics teacher Shifaz aka doctor, who became a session musician were, to give him the courage to pursuit his own path. And Mohamed talk about his love for the silence, the waves, the birds of Thulusdhoo, and the changing soundscape of Malé.

Find all outtakes in this playlist.

Credits

Host: Thomas Burkhalter
Sound: Daniel Jakob, Melodies In My Head
Mix and Mastering: Daniel Jakob
Graphic Design (Cover): Pamuditha Zen Anjana
Editorial support: The Norient team and Rebecca Favale