Beckah Amani captures the chaos: ‘Growing up right now, we’re stuck in this whirlwind’

Beckah Amani: ‘Some of my earliest memories are of my mum and dad playing the guitar under the stars.’ Photograph: Maya Wanelik

Beckah Amani likes to say that she was “born out of a love of music”. The 23-year-old singer-songwriter was raised in Tanzania by Burundian parents, who first met at church as teenagers.

Amani’s father was the choir conductor – “the cool dude who played everything” – and her mother wanted to get to know him. Amani relays mum’s pick-up line with deep affection: “She was like: ‘Can you teach me how to play guitar?’”