Hear Me Out

Today we have launched DIY Radio 3 in immigration detention centres across the UK. This is the third edition of our remote radio show for people held in immigration detention. This version of the show was produced with a group of young people in Hackney as part of our Voices to the World Project.

DIY Radio takes radio back to its original form, as a way of transferring information from one place to another without wires. For Hear Me Out, this meant creating a radio station for people held in immigration detention. We designed this concept in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic – a time when we are unable to deliver our music workshops in person. We wanted to continue bringing music to detention centres in any way that we could. So we created DIY Radio 1 and 2 – a radio show with a host and guests to provide uplifting music and stories.

Voices to the World

The third edition is a little different to the first and second. Even though we had resumed some of our in-person workshops after the UK’s lockdowns lifted, we continued DIY Radio by combining it with our Voices to the World project. Working with Generation Uncovered and Rising Tide, with funding from Youth Music, this project involved running free music workshops in Hackney with a group of people aged 18-25. The project aimed to provide young people the opportunity to learn music-making skills from experienced artists, gain access to paid Kickstart job placements in the creative and cultural industries, and perform at the Kickstart Job Fest at The National Youth Theatre. By combining the project with DIY Radio, the group also learned more about the UK’s immigration detention system and were enabled to directly send their music and messages of hope to people in detention. The group included young participants named Namugga, Peter, Michelle and Patrick. The music they created during the workshops features throughout DIY Radio 3 and Namugga is interviewed on the show.

DIY Radio 3

We sent 2,000 copies of DIY Radio 3 into immigration detention centres at Dungavel House near Glasgow, Yarl’s Wood in Bedford, Harmondsworth near Heathrow Airport, Brook House at Gatwick Airport, and Morton Hall in Lincolnshire.

Namugga, one of the participants, describes the inspiration and intention behind the music that the group created for the radio show.

"We wanted to create songs that are comforting, uplifting and informative, and I feel that we were able to achieve that. One of our songs explores the frustration of being heard but not understood or cared about and the monotony of everyday life. Another of our songs talks about the longing for a loved one whose distance doesn’t serve anything other than feeding the desire to see that person again. Fundamentally, we wanted to create songs that not only address their current circumstances but all the emotional turmoil that we as humans experience every day. We wanted the songs we created to be their form of outlet and comfort.

Hear Me Out allowed us to create a bond with each other through music. Collectively, it has armoured us with all the information required to spread awareness to our peers and loved ones."

Read more in Namugga’s blog about the project.

Listen to DIY Radio 3

1. Introduction

2. I Won't Let Go

3. Out Of My Mind

4. Rise and Tide

5. Locked Inside

6. What's That All About

7. Keep On Keeping On

DIY Radio 3 was presented by Russ Haynes, edited by Eb Jordan, and the jingle was developed by Simon Crab – which was created from phone alarms from around the world. The cover artwork is by Lisa Jones Studio and the CD was designed Kirsty Whittaker.