Tracks From Abroad

In the fall I met a first year student named Ali on the soccer field as we were trying out for a campus team. For months afterward I didn't see him, but from our short conversation it was clear that our interests overlapped. He liked soccer, he knew all kinds of music, and he wanted to come on Tracks From Abroad to talk about Morocco! This week TFA travels to Morocco to hear music from the country...

It has been 12 episodes since we featured Lebanon on Tracks From Abroad, and this week's show  includes a Syrian twist with an interview from the band Kazdoura. Band members Leen and Johnny talk about their Arabic-fusion music, the challenge of making art during war, and their plans for future projects. Also on the show is my economics TA, Suzanna, who describes her life in Lebanon--a city that ne...

Tracks From Abroad returns to Africa for episode 15 on Ghana, and for the second time we have a double student interview with Maame and Enam. Also on the show is Zamani, an artist from Nova Scotia who talks about her creative process and a music video she filmed in Ghana for the song Outside. Thanks so much for listening, and happy reading week to all you students out there.

I surprise myself every week with just how much I can pack into one hour of Tracks From Abroad. This week on St. Lucia has two interviews, one with U of T student Charran Auguste, and a second with U of T professor Kevin Edmonds. The small island of St. Lucia is revealed to be a beautiful and dynamic community under which political conflict and the drug trade exist.   I discovered the genre Denner...

TFA Dominican Republic is another stacked episode with Caribbean music, a student interview, and an interview with Néstor E. Rodríguez, the director of Caribbean Studies at the University of Toronto. In this episode we discuss Dominican slang, corruption, baseball, and we touch on the country's African heritage derived from the slave trade. Rodríguez himself immigrated from DR to Georgia, USA befo...

This week, Tracks From Abroad had Andrej Askovic in the 'studio' to talk all things Serbia. I don't think Serbia was mentioned during the entirety of my education in the US of A, and Andrej helps fill in the gaps. The show has some great music from late 70s to the present day, and we threw in some Canadian tracks by the Lemon Bucket Orchestra and Rush to give Toronto some props. You can listen to...

We've now begun season 2 of Tracks From Abroad, and this episode on Haiti is a perfect show to start with. It features interviews with Mathis Roy Vigne as well as Professor Skye of Professor Skye's Record Reviews. You can find all of the songs on this episode through our instagram page @TFA.radio, and listen live on CIUT 89.5 FM, Saturdays at 8am. Next week we've got a show on Serbia, and the trac...

On the 10th and final episode of season 1 for Tracks From Abroad we visit Latvia with Anna. Did you know Latvia is known for its historical folk songs? Or that the University of Toronto music department had a Latvian professor teaching for 32 years? Take a listen and learn about the eastern European country that has everybody talking. TFA will be taking a break next week, and the next episode on H...

This week Tracks From Abroad visits Mexico with a playlist from Isai Gutierrez. Isaí tells us about learning English in Toronto, seeing homeless youth in Mexico City, and the experiences that contributed to his cultural identity. The Canadian music this week comes from Nelly Furtado with her 2009 Spanish-Language album, Mi Plan, and there's lots of good Latin music throughout.   Next week will mar...

Tracks From Abroad visits Africa for the first time on episode 8 -- Nigeria. We interview Ehiko, an arts student from Nigeria, and talk about Nigerian patois, Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) protests, and as always we get recommendations on Nigerian food in Toronto. This week TFA is happy to have Shopé on the show to spread some wisdom about the music industry and introduce some of his new music...

For this episode of TFA we go to Iran with Kiyan to talk about the Farsi language, Iranian tourism, and the best places in Toronto for Persian food. Kiyan’s music spans many genres, and we even fit in two Persian-Canadian artists, Hossein Behroozinia and Sina Bathaie. TFA’s 8th episode is going to be a big one! The show will focus on Nigeria, marking our first visit to Africa. A highlight of the s...

This week I interviewed my Spanish professor, Manuel, in his office here at U of T. We talked about Salvadoran rock, guerrilla warfare, and I got an interview with rising Latin artist Melly Queen who is based in Toronto. In the future I'll continue to interview local musicians and maybe get some field interviews at shows across the city. We'll see you next week for a show on Iran--all the best. -J...

In the fifth episode of Tracks From Abroad we have two guests at once (both French guys who live in my house). They talk about French protests, the OM soccer team, and they laugh at Canadians for being rule-followers. You can listen to our show on CIUT FM 89.5 or stream it at your leisure on Mixcloud/Spotify. So give the episode a listen, a share, and go eat a God damn croissant.

TFA is back and we're actually a radio show now! CIUT 89.5 FM is broadcasting our show from downtown Toronto Saturdays at 8am. You can always find the new shows here or on Spotify by searching Tracks From Abroad. This week I talked with Bassel about coming from Lebanon to Canada for his PhD, and we found some fatiastic music to play as well. You can also support and grow the show by following TFA...

This episode Ananmay gives us a rundown on India with a fantastic playlist featuring all genres. He’s certainly got the magic touch, and you can hear more of his sought-after playlists here on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/ananmaysharan?si=74dc210ea32148ce

Listen to the second episode of the show that's rocking the collective consciousness. It's TFA, bringing you Russian music with my friend, Vera.

The first episode of a recurring series featuring international University of Toronto students who share music from their corner of the world while discussing whatever comes to mind.