Dr Monique Charles Interview
Dr Monique Charles is an assistant professor at Chapman University. She is the creator, curator, and editor of the forthcoming book Black Music in Britain in the 21st century. She’s also known as a “cultural sociologist, sound healer, and cardologer," but her research focuses heavily on Black British music, “an area I am actively working to establish as a rightful discipline in its own right.”
How did you get to where you are today, professionally?
Singing. That was where it all started. As a child I wrote songs, and performed them, getting my cousins involved. I became aware from a young age that the music that I listen to with my family and the music at school and in the mainstream charts, were different. I was also aware whilst growing up that I was different to the mainstream. I was aware that my Blackness was not considered the norm. This sparked my interest in race in particular. I already developed my own version of intersectionality by age eight, having learned fractions at school; with ‘quarters’ I now had a way to articulate the social world around me. I could divide people into Black and white, male and female and discerned my position in this dynamic in relation to how society valued these groups. I am also a naturally intellectually curious person (which in some senses made me feel like an outsider).
The singing and songwriting continued to be a passion throughout my childhood and teenage years, albeit informally. I excelled at school. My first degree was in Psychology with race and cultural studies as a minor subject, I wanted to understand the world I lived in. I wanted to understand people. After completing my first degree I began vocal tuition, taking it more seriously. Being mindful of stereotypes at that time, I felt I had earned the right to be more creative.