Calling yourself «bitch» and «hoe» is a characteristic of the self-determined woman in rap: sexist and misogynistic terms are given new connotations and reinterpreted as signs of female self-empowerment, the male gaze is de-contextualised and used for one’s own identities and interests. The Female Wave in hip-hop is just about to start in Switzerland. A wave of FINTA* is on the way, who position themselves as the antithesis to the dominating male power and energy in the scene, and AQUA:TOFANA is jumping right in. In response to the social movement of the gender shift and current gender discourses, she skilfully combines political activism with pop culture codes and uncompromising provocation. AQUA:TOFANA stuffs the sexists’ mouths with her huge clitoris. The vulgarity of the character’s statements is deliberately in contrast to her fluffy, glittering appearance. She plays with gender stereotypes as well as with the tiny egos of toxic «alpha males». Her motto: Stay fluid and fuck the patriarchy!
Julia Fässler starts her music career in impressive fashion with the song «Flüssig» («Fluid»). Combining a clear political objective with accomplished use of creative means, she positions herself courageously as a feminist Swiss rapper. She designs all the facets of the musical appearance, including song lyrics, performance, the music video as well as marketing and merchandising. SRF Bounce concludes it’s a «wicked song» (from min. 5:13). – Excerpt from the supporting statement of the Subject Area Trends & Identity
«My BA project intricately combines political activism with pop culture codes and uncompromising provocation. Through low-threshold knowledge dissemination using music, it helps raise awareness of queer-feminist concerns such as gender fluidity.» – Julia Fässler
«In future, I see myself continuing my work at the interface between music and design – and hopefully on many stages in Switzerland.» – Julia Fässler
