The Soulful Nasim

Establishing an illustrious career in the music industry is a daunting task. Necessary prerequisites include sleepless nights, self-esteem fluctuations and an insatiable penchant for self-criticism which ultimately leads down the road of existential crisis.A career in music takes guts.

One artist that has taken this leap of faith is Nasim Tekie, a singer and former medical student with an ardent passion for music. Impelled to dive into the waters after constricting her talent in small circles for years. Her name, which means ‘scented breeze’ in Arabic, promises to sift her noticeable it factor from the rest and offer a breath of new air in the Namibian music game.

“I have been in love with music ever since I can remember. My dad would play classics ranging from artists like Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone, Louis Armstrong and Smokey Robinson. My mom would play traditional farsi music which gave the concoction of influences a balance in my opinion.”

Nasim was born and raised in Namibia, to an Eritrean father and Ethiopian/Middle Eastern mother. Her father is an architect and her mother is a civil engineer.

“My mother and her family came to the country years ago. While my dad was studying in Canada, he proposed that she move to Canada but my mother declined because she doesn’t like snow.”

Growing up, her music talent was always exercised, which brought her to the school stage at Windhoek International School on several occasions. It was only when she enrolled at the University of Namibia’s School of Medicine that she became noticed in the public eye.

“I remember in 2015, when Slickartie brought me up on stage to perform at the Warehouse Theatre for the first time, people took notice of my voice. I got to meet Ashwyn Mberi, who became a frequent collaborator, and other artists who gained respect for my singing.”

Since then she has performed alongside artists such as Sean K, Lize Ehlers, Tapz of Savannah Afros, The Ell’s and many more. She also took part in the Windhoek International Jazz Festival as a supporting act. Nasim admits to being disillusioned with her studies, after five year in the medicine faculty.

“I was genuinely taken over the idea of helping people but at some point I realised that there are a lot of personal things doctors go through that make you lose your passion. You don’t get to sleep and you are working all the time. At some point you find yourself lashing out at people you’re trying to help because of your personal frustrations. It was not healthy for me.”

This year Nasim plans on getting out of her comfort zone and adding wealth to her versatility. She talked about being inspired to write more songs and giving acting a try.

Catch her performing at the Night Under The Stars at Goethe-Institute Namibia tonight at 19h00.