Zahra has led Young Women’s Music Project (YWMP) since 2009, an Oxford-based educational charity offering free, inclusive workshops for young people aged 14–25. The project provides a safe and supportive space for young women, trans, and non-binary people to make music, build skills, express themselves, and grow in confidence.
Her journey with YWMP spans over two decades - beginning as a participant, then training under the mentorship of the late Kate Garrett at the age of 16, and ultimately stepping into the role of director. This deep, evolving relationship with the organisation has shaped her commitment to accessible, community-driven creative spaces.
Zahra’s work extends beyond YWMP into a broader practice of youth and community engagement. From 2010 to 2015, she ran BG Records, a grassroots label amplifying the voices of emerging artists - primarily rappers - from underrepresented areas of Oxford. She has facilitated songwriting, performance, and production workshops in schools, hospitals, and shelters, including regular work with Crisis (2012–2015).
Growing up in a multicultural, working-class community in Oxford, Zahra witnessed the barriers many young people face in accessing music - not just in formal education, but in spaces to experiment and create. Her practice is rooted in the belief that music can be a gateway: a tool for recovery, discovery, and empowerment. It nurtures confidence, trust, and a sense of agency - especially for those from marginalised or vulnerable backgrounds.
Zahra continues to collaborate with youth groups, museums, and social spaces, allowing her music practice to be shaped by community work - and vice versa.
Selected Projects
Sounds of Home (2024) – A field recording and lyric-writing workshop hosted at Common Knowledge, County Clare, as part of Queer Sheds.
Ikhtiar / Choice (2021) – A youth-led sound and moving image project exploring heritage and identity, delivered with the Mosaic Rooms, IntoUniversity, and New Citizen’s Gateway.
Changing Herstory (2018) – YWMP put together a training programme with the intention to demonstrate the barriers that are faced by women in music in Oxfordshire, to show how YWMP's methodology combats this issue with a step by step guide for institutions and individuals to implement changes in their practice to create a more inclusive music scene.
“After watching your performance - Big Joanie - I’ve started incorporating more spoken word. I didn’t know you could do that, but hearing you play opened out a new genre for me, and something that I was really interested in doing. It’s not something I had thought about before, and it’s inspired me to make spoken word and poetry part of my music.”
Featured in Tom Tom Magazine, read more here
“We previously worked with Zahra and YWMP as part of our Queer Sheds project, where Zahra ran a sound recording workshop, exploring the idea of home. The partnership going forwards with Zahra and YWMP through Hālā feels like a good, exciting and important fit. We all share aims of sharing space, skills and solidarity with LGBTQ+ people and other marginalised groups, which in turn has a huge impact in tackling social isolation and challenging inequalities.”