SHEHERAZAAD returns with new single ‘Gulukara’, ft Indian rapper Irfana, out now on Erased Tapes. New live dates announced.

SHEHERAZAAD - Returns with haunting new single "Gulukara"   featuring Indian rapper Irfana - More European live dates announced

Press photograph by Pedro Reis Lavrador Singer and storyteller Sheherazaad returns today with new single "Gulukara" (Songstress), featuring childhood friend and Kodaikanal-bred rapper Irfana. The song is a nocturnal hymn highlighting the historical confluence of sex work and women's artistry. It’s a lewd, yet wizened dialogue between two songstresses who converse in the belly of an urban underworld. Their gift for song is both exalted and profaned; their bells tarnished, and their harmonies veined with smoky fatigue. Hovering between carol and dirge, the piece unfolds with a spectral sparseness, a bare-boned brittle ingenuity. Against this fragile scaffolding, Sheherazaad’s voice emerges not as ornament but as apparition: ghostly, wounded, yet defiant. Sheherazaad comments: "For me, 'Gulukara' (Songstress), is an ominous carol filled with the ghosts of a hundred thousand women who were silenced or slaughtered in pursuit of artistic glory. When I sing this song, I feel these girls' fatigue, their street smarts. The lyrics taste of tobacco and blood and a fruit flavored condom. The sultry, clandestine activity of these desperate, feminine infiltrators who move through the world as elegant double agents - their ammunition being a lethal breed of ambitiousness. " Listen to "Gulukara" here: https://idol-io.ffm.to/Gulukara Sheherazaad’s first EP for Erased Tapes, 'Qasr', was released in spring 2024 to widespread acclaim, and has since been on the road, performing the songs and new compositions, working out arrangement and structure of the material whilst on stage with her band. This summer saw performances across Europe and UK this past summer, including notably performances at Fusion and Deershed festivals, and a sold out London headline. Sheher and her band will return to Europe for a run across theatres in Belgium in January, with much more in the pipeline for 2026. Live Shows: 28.01. Leuven (BE) - 30CC/Predikherenkerk 29.01. Brüges (BE) - Koninklijke Stadsschouwburg 30.01. Beveren (BE) - CC Ter Vesten 31.01. Eeklo (BE) - muziekelub N9 01.02. Roeselare (BE) - De Spil 05.02. Bornem (BE) - Cultuurcentrum Ter Dilft 06.02. Zottegem (BE) - CC Zoetegem 07.02. Lokeren (BE) - CC Lokeren Praise for Sheherazaad: “She uses her positioning between cultures to imagine and synthesize entirely new sounds”  - SPIN "A haunting commentary on displacement, immigration and imagined homelands… Sheherazaad sings to decolonise her tongue” - Vogue India “Microtonal South Asian vocal inflections, Minimalism and hints of flamenco” — New York Times “She sounds phenomenal whether whispering or pushing to the top of her falsetto.” - Stereogum “Every bit a match for peak Brian Wilson. Magical.” - MOJO “An enthralling debut that’s remarkable for its breadth.” - Uncut "A flawless blend of South Asian traditional music and Western folk-pop." — Loud & Quiet "Atmospheric Urdu vocals.” - The Guardian “An incredible, singular composer.” - CLASH Links: https://www.sheherazaad.com/ https://www.instagram.com/sheherazaadofficial/ facebook.com/sheherazaadofficial https://www.youtube.com/c/Sheherazaad https://www.erasedtapes.com/