BOTSWANA QUEENS
meet the female metal fans resisting societal prejudice to rep the music they love. they are the Botswana Queens, and there’s nothing that will stop them throwing the horns
Meet the female metal fans defying prejudice to celebrate the music they love.
n the years since the internet first cracked open the transcontinental networks once hidden beneath piles of demo tapes and faded letters, it’s become common knowledge that metal is nothing if not a global obsession. there are currently 119,945 bands from 47 countries catalogued in virtual heavy metal bible the encyclopedia metallum, as well as an indeterminate number who’ve escaped its all-seeing eye (or fallen too closely on the -core side of things to warrant inclusion). out of the six continents surveyed, africa represents one of the smallest (as well as youngest) continent-wide metal scenes, but makes a strong showing thanks to hotspots such as South africa, egypt, and particularly Botswana.
the sub-Saharan country is still best known for its stable democracy, diamond mines, safari-based tourism, and proximity to the mighty Kalahari desert, but Botswana has also emerged as a leader in the overall african metal scene. thanks to a plethora of local Batswana bands and its remarkably committed, welldocumented metal community, the landlocked country is now famous (at least in the metal realm) for its intensely devoted headbangers and their apocalyptic biker-chic style. Several years ago, photos of Batswana metalhead men and women decked out in elaborate black leather outfits began making the rounds online, stirring up international interest in their homegrown metal community – the rockers are known as ‘marok’ or ‘marocko’.
Images of the women, who refer to themselves as Queens, proved particularly arresting – the visual juxtaposition of proud black women with their cannibal corpse shirts, leather pants and cowboy hats was striking in and of itself, and even more so when one considers that black women are still so underrepresented in many aspects of the global metal scene. they cut a powerful figure, and South african photographer Paul Shiakallis was hooked. Following an earlier trip to Botswana in which he’d met a few male marocko, he set out to find out more about their female counterparts, and the Queens’ burning passion for heavy metal.
clad in leathers, boots and patches, their faces stern and bearing stately expressions, the marocko Queens embrace their feminist
Mad Max aesthetic to the hilt. they give one another nicknames such as Queen Bone, Boogie Doll and ami Stommper, blast Iron maiden and cannibal corpse alongside local bands like Wrust and Skinflint, and hold their heads high even when their communities look askance. like every other metalhead, they turn to metal for many reasons – for fun, for relaxation, for help dealing with the pressures of living their truth under a religious, patriarchal society.
In the Western world, metal is often regarded as a youth culture, but in Botswana, the scene is ruled by middle-aged metalheads, many of whom have children the same age as the average Download attendee. Paul points to the area’s patriarchal culture, explaining, “the Botswana people in the lower income bracket groups are very family orientated. they follow the ideals of the family until they are ready to leave home and sustain themselves, either via getting married or landing a stable job. the general age for this is about 25. the man is the head of the household and his rules dominate; if the man is not a rocker or does not like rock, then the rest of the family will be expected to follow his views.”
Gender also becomes an issue. according to Paul, the Queens sometimes face opposition from society, while marocko men are generally left to their own devices, as it’s understood that men do not need ‘permission’ to live as they like. “Women are expected to care for children, cook, clean, look pretty, smell good, not swear, dress responsibly,” he explains. “the rocker lifestyle debunks all these norms, and puts women on an equal basis to the men. I have heard of scenarios where the family, friends, church groups and even the children of some of the Queens have reprimanded or tried to convince them to leave the metalhead lifestyle. they just don’t consider it ladylike for a woman to be a rocker.”
“In our community, they just look at us and think we are mad or something!” Phoenix, a 42-year-old Queen, tells Metal Hammer. “they are always criticising us. It takes a lot of courage to be a lady rocker here, you see. they say, ‘What are you doing, why are you wearing this?’ But it doesn’t matter at all. We just keep quiet and we walk bold and tall. We don’t care about them.”
botswana’s metal Queens face myriad societal roadblocks for dressing and acting the way they want – but, in true rebellious heavy metal rebel fashion, they do it anyway. (are you clocking the parallels between Batswana metal culture and Western metal culture yet? the song remains the same regardless of geography.) Phoenix and her metal-loving sisters are expected to be demure, gentle and submissive, but would rather spend their time watching bands, drinking, and singing along to manowar, which is probably why everyday Batswana are so terrified of them – or, more likely, of the fierce, unapologetic, liberated womanhood that they represent.
In a country where men still enjoy more structural power than women and 90% of the television channels are religious, anything that swims against the current is liable to be labelled ‘Satanic’, and our leather-clad Queens are no exception.
“to me, metal is like any other music,” Phoenix, who is no fan of some rockers’ affinity for “demonic stuff”, explains. “the lyrics are more independent, or sometimes they’re more into politics. It’s bold, and it’s about pride and free will. I don’t see anything Satanic about it. they just interpret it the way they want. they have the wrong idea about it.”
Some marocko Queens, like Phoenix, are devoutly christian; others embrace the devilish imagery, swapping Satanic memes on Batawana metal Facebook groups and adding bones and dead animals to their outfits. however,
Paul explains, “if anyone was acting or saying blasphemous things, they were only joking. If there was any sort of Satanism within marok, they would pretty quickly be evicted by other members”.
Phoenix, who is a mum and works as a caterer and hairdresser, says she was introduced to rock music in high school thanks to her dad’s classic rock collection, and moved on to ac/Dc and Bon Jovi from there (she’s more