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Outlook: Songwriting, banjos and the bohemian city that cradled me

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Allison Russell

19/09/2023 GMT

Songwriting, banjos and the bohemian city that cradled me

BBC World Service - Outlook, Songwriting, banjos and the bohemian city that cradled me

Canadian Allison Russell went from sleeping in cemeteries to being a Grammy nominee

How Canadian singer-songwriter Allison Russell found refuge sleeping in the cemeteries of Montreal as a teenage runaway.

Music has always been a transformative power in the life of Canadian singer-songwriter Allison Russell. Allison had a traumatic childhood which she escaped by running away from home at the age of 15, finding refuge in the cemeteries and cafes of Montreal. Banjo became her main songwriting tool and put her at the heart of the iconic black women's banjo collective Our Native Daughters, but it was her solo album which earned her three Grammy nominations.    

If you need support relating to any of the issues raised in this interview, you can find more information at https://www.bbc.co.uk/actionline/ or at Befrienders.org

Saul "Cassandro" Armendáriz is one of the biggest stars of Mexican Lucha Libre wrestling. He's known as an exotico, which means he dresses in drag, wearing glamorous make up and sequin-covered costumes. A film about his life called Cassandro is out this month starring actor Gael Garcia Bernal. This interview was first broadcast in July 2017.

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(Photo: Singer-songwriter Allison Russell. Credit: Getty Images - Rob Kim/Stringer)

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