Artist
Malaika Mfalme
he/they
Malaika Mfalme is a Tanzanian–Australian singer, songwriter, guitarist, and community facilitator creating on Gadigal Land (Sydney). Their name, Malaika, means Angel in Swahili, and Mfalme means King, a reminder that tenderness and leadership can coexist.
Rooted in East African ancestral traditions, Malaika’s practice centres call and response, embodied rhythm, collective voice, and music as a communal resource rather than a performance commodity. Their work is deeply influenced by Tanzanian and broader African diasporic approaches to music-making, where sound lives first in the body, learning is shared through repetition and imitation, and everyone is invited into the circle.
As a Black, trans, and queer artist, Malaika creates trauma-aware, culturally grounded spaces that honour music as a tool for healing, remembrance, resistance, and joy. Across workshops, performances, and community gatherings, they invite participants to return to the knowing that sisi sote tuna muziki, we all carry music within us.
See Malaika at Trans Book Festival 2026:
Photo credit: @minouriuedaphoto