TIME OUT caught up with Ayesha Bontle Quraishi, a Botswana born entertainment entrepreneur who now resides in Sweden
Interview By: Thabiso Maretlwaneng on her recent visit to the country of her birth as part of a Swedish Embassy initiative.
Aisha is poster the poster child for ambition. Not content with just being an accomplished hip-hop artist with four albums under her belt, she also has her hand in fashion design, filmmaking, television presenting on Swedish TV1, motivational speaking, lecturing and she runs a fully fledged multimedia production company.
Gazette: Where and when were you born?
Ayesha: I was born in Ramotswa in 1981 and my mother comes from Manyana and my father is an Indian-Swede.
Gazette: How long have you lived in Sweden?
Ayesha: My father moved to Sweden when I was 6 years old, but he traveled a lot around the world. I lived in Tanzania for 4 years, Zimbabwe for 2 years and also in India. I came back to Botswana when I was 18 and worked for the Swedish Friendship Association in Gaborone for a year and went back to Sweden.
Gazette: How did you get into the music industry?
Ayesha: After I finished my Natural Science in A-levels, I decided not to go for university but instead get into the music industry. In 2003, I recorded a controversial demo tape and sold a copy to a well respected club and radio DJ. It got airplay on radio. I went to Universal Music and the CEO liked it but they wanted me do commercial music instead of political issues. I love politics.
