Alex Murillo,
singer-songwriter and poet, Brake Loose

As the frontman and singer-songwriter of an Irish rock and roll band, I always try to have an honest intention behind the lyrics, and especially behind the spoken word poetry that I tend to include in almost every song. As a unique and original five-piece, our message is: “Don’t live a life you don’t believe in, Brake Loose”.

With this rebellious statement, we encourage others to dig deep into self-expression and merge ourselves in self-discovery, to avoid being content with the status quo. Our poetry also has the intention of creating awareness of life’s preciousness and intensity, by embracing its uncertainty and accepting its madness through rock music. Each individual, each human being is a precious universe. It doesn’t matter who you are, where you come from or the colour of your skin, what matters is where you are going.

My experience as a Venezuelan musician and foreigner in Ireland has been a warm welcome so far. Honestly, I haven’t experienced any sort of discrimination or racism against me or my kin. But this doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist – this means I haven’t experienced it. One thing I must say is that I do love how open and supportive Irish society is with foreigners. I guess Irish history dictates how Irish people act today.

Still, we all need to take a stand on this, and avoid being silent. Especially as artists, we need to deliver awareness of the fight against racism, take action and hopefully eliminate it once and for all. Because in the end, with all of our beautiful differences, we’re all part of the same race, the human race.

This contribution featured in Part 1 of 100 Voices: #AllAgainstRacism. Read Part 2 in the current issue of Hot Press:

Special thanks to the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission for their support in this project.