For the next instalment, we’ve asked DJ, radio host and Brownswood label manager Valentine Comar to give us an insight into a special record from her collection.

As label manager at Gilles Peterson’s Brownswood Recordings, Valentine oversees the moving parts that bring releases to life. Alongside her label work, she leads artist management for ZENA and hosts the weekly Worldwide Breakfast Show on Worldwide FM every Wednesday 8-10am GMT, championing global underground music and spotlighting emerging talent. Weekly radio is no mean feat, requiring a collection and commitment to match, both of which Valentine clearly has in abundance. 

"It’s not rare nor expensive
and there is no crazy story about where and why i found it

But every time someone asks me what my most precious record in my collection is,
this cover appears in my head.

I remember the first time i heard it,
amongst my usual record pile to listen to
at flashback records on Essex road, LDN.

I let the first track run entirely,
a classic mbira tune called ‘Nhemamusasa’
performed by the Mhuri Ye Kwa Rwizi Ensemble.

I felt instantly at peace,
I wasn’t transported,
quite the opposite actually,
I felt safe and grounded,
like I was exactly where I was supposed to be at that exact time.
I found out later that the name of that track translates to “temporary shelter”.

This record feels quintessential to who I am and the way I approach music
not based on hype, price or rarity,
but on what it does to me,
the emotional weight.

That’s how I select and curate music,
and it’s how i play it too.
I follow the tunes that make me feel something
and hopefully pass that feeling on too."

Big thanks to Valentine for taking the time to tell us her story, be sure to give her a follow and keep uptodate on all her goings on.