Nadia Marie Sasso
Nadia Marie Sasso

#13AlbumsTo31 

#BCuzSheSaidSo


"Because She Said So" is an immersive cultural exploration of the self as a multifaceted and intersectional woman of color.  It is also an experiential art activation that will also include Dr. Nadia Sasso's recent visual social campaign #13AlbumsTo31 and we are looking to stop in your city or college campus. 

#13AlbumsTo31 is an Instagram photo series that Sasso created to not only tell a story of her journey to 31 but what it means to be unapologetic about your identity. The installation depicts the black cultural experience and takes a deep dive into the participant’s own cultural experiences. According to Sasso, "Whatever we say as women to define who we need to be respected because whatever she says or said matters most."


One post caught the eye of Grammy Award winner, India Arie, who reposted Nadia’s remake of her 2006 album “Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship.

Underground artist Sammus and record producer, had a heartfelt response and  reposted the remake of her 2016 album "Pieces in Space."

LA rapper DSmoke shared with the world on Karen Civil TV that he wants to meet Dr. Nadia Sasso after viewing the exhibit.

Bring Dr. Nadia Sasso and the art exhibit #13AlbumsTo31 courtesy of a dynamic team of women of color to you!

 
 
 

 “Because She Said So, where art, narrative and theory come together to explore the complexities of being a Black woman in America. ”

— Dr. Nadia Marie Sasso

 
 
 
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the albums

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Rah Digga - Dirty Harriet 

Rah Digga’s album “Dirty Harriet” was released in 2000 when I was about 12 years old. My uncle would play this album all the time and be like “Rah is a genius” lol.

Y’all can call me Harriet Thugman when it comes to this album. Harriet Thugman was a ghetto fabulous chick that often went against protocol with the grittiest lingo while still being a little sweetheart. Being born in DC and raised in PG County, I always spoke with a little twang. When I got to college, people would whisper “she sounds so ghetto.” My Black peers wanted me out because I was deemed an embarrassment to them. Funny how sometimes we Black people police each other and become overseers on the plantation of life.

Let’s not forget to mention Harriet Thugman was also book educated with a whole lotta street smarts. As long as I’ve been in school, I think it's safe to say I’ve had book smarts, but I don’t know where I would be without my street smarts. Being street smart is like playing chess in the game of life. I’ve lived in various states and other countries and I’ve always had little to no time to understand my situation, environment, and the people around me. Each time I survived, it was not because it was a bad place or I assimilated, but because I adapted and had the willpower of an iron throne. I left the way I came in, with my dignity and reputation intact and often leaving a mark for my work and actions.

Harriet Thugman also had all types of friends, rich to poor, but still broke bread with them equally. I resonated most with this because I had friends that were drug dealers and some who were medical doctors. I saw them for who they were in all their multifaceted glory. They all had something to teach me, giving me a different perspective I needed in life. This is why I never judge a book by its cover.

All in all, this album was about leading her people by her actions, not just words, and treating others as she’d like to be treated. It was a coming of age album and we can never forget how gangsta Harriet Thugman was and how Rah Digga still is. 

 
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Yoyo - You Better Somebody

This album was released when I was five, but I have to say I loved Yo-Yo ever since her feature on Patra’s remix for Romantic Call. Don’t ask why I was a Patra fan at that age lol. Then again, I know why, I was obsessed with her authoritative presence as someone from the diaspora who said to hell with gender and sexual norms, not to mention she was just a boss.  So, when I saw the video, I knew who 2pac was and then developed an obsession with Yo-Yo. After practicing my whine, mimicking the attire, memorizing all the lyrics I started checking for Yoyo, the boss next to her. 

Yo-yo in her own right introduced me to the concept of standing up for yourself and she was the only in the video fully clothed and thick. I was a little thick at that age, so it made me rethink the crop top and shorts. 

She was like, “I'm gonna be androgynous and y’all niggas still gonna be checking for me. I’m from the ghetto and y’all still gonna ask about me.” 

I got to college and implemented this mantra. I was always the rebel doing my own thing but guess what they were asking about me. I left a legacy everywhere I went no matter what they thought of me. At Bucknell, I sold out events and organizations that are still around, uplifting communities of color. At Lehigh, I helped garner a 1-million-dollar grant and continued to build the community around me, not to mention bringing the likes of Issa Rae to campus. At Cornell, I not only made history but challenged and advocated for the way graduate students of color were treated and supported.  I may not be packaged properly but shiiiiit, you betta ask about me!

 
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Eve - Scorpion

Who’s That Girl? You thought Eve but it’s me, Nadia! Gotcha, but we do have a lot in common because we happen to be some natural-born hustling bitches.

When this album came out, I was 13 and just entered middle school. My dad had this rule that he would never spend over $50 for shoes and Jordan’s were double that. I grew up with my Godmother Amina who did hair and she taught me a skill that always kept money in my pockets. I did hair from Friday - Sunday from cornrows to box braids. I also worked at a salon on Saturday mornings and eventually quit because I made more money working from home and I was able to control my schedule.

In school, I had a new pair of shoes every week and back then, I thought I was the shit! It was like Who’s That Girl?

Over time I expanded my ventures and started using my grandmother’s vendor license to purchase jewelry wholesale and started selling that jewelry out my locker. You know the jewelry everyone wore from the beauty supply store? I made it fifty cents to a dollar cheaper to maintain customers. There was also the convenience of people needing to get their fit together before class.

So there you have it, I’ve been hustling and been on, and will always know how to make $1 out of .15¢.

Remember, I am a Scorpio and we will always blow ya mind because we are strategic, competitive, driven by success, overly ambitious, yet full of life. 

 
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Lauryn Hill - Unplugged

This album was everything and like other great works, I found new meanings in its thematic layers over time. It’s like when you reread a book and find something you missed.

At 14 I saw the rawness and realness. I saw someone struggling with fame, family, and the media. Trying to discover who they are but then realizing that by being real, it’ll all come together.

I wasn’t famous at 14, but I did always stand out amongst my peers and my family. That year I had an honor roll ceremony and I didn’t want to go. I just rebranded myself as “Who’s that Girl” with the Jordans and other trendy things. So being the smart girl wasn’t going to help my situation.

I wanted to be known for other things than that because at the time being smart made others uncomfortable and at 14 it was taboo to be cool and smart lol. (Now, I could care less if I make you uncomfortable!)

So, at this ceremony, I think I took home the most awards, and each time they called my name I would slide down the seat and debate about whether I should get up or not.

When folks would come up to me afterward sarcastically asking me to help them, I would shrug it off to change the subject. I got home and my siblings were like “there she goes again.” However, I always questioned if we lived in the same house because I didn’t know who wanted the wrath of Abdul Sasso. I didn’t and at that point, I was plotting my way out of his house, a scholarship to college where I could fully develop into my own person.

As I got older I kept going back to this album whether it was “I Gotta Find Peace of Mind,” “Mystery of Iniquity,” or “I Get Out” and I started hearing relationship advice, spiritual advice and just what protecting one’s energy means and does.

This album was so underrated, and if you go back to listen, you too will find something that hits your core and challenges you to grow and pursue freedom. Who doesn’t want to be free? 

 
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India Arie - Testimony Vol. 1, Life & Relationship

This album was released as I was about to graduate from High School. My parents had moved to the suburbs for the first time in an attempt to give my sister another chance at being great. As “bad” as they say Suitland High School was, I was determined to stay. So, I had a little Toyota Corolla and commuted for about an hour to an hour and a half to school each way and another 30 minutes on the days I worked at the airport. I played this album 80% time.

Like India, I wanted to go where the wind would call my name. I was excited to be leaving my family behind for Bucknell University.

I was always an adventurous and outgoing kid, and I knew I needed to explore the world on my own terms. I am the product of immigrant parents who traveled to America by way of West Africa, leaving behind their Sierra Leonean roots for a better life in the U.S.  Instead they found a dream deferred. I wasn’t in search of a particular dream but a way to change our trajectory in ways that extended beyond the financial.

I am also the oldest of about 11 grandchildren and was raised to be concerned for everyone and now I could try to live for me. I knew that once I left, I would work on choosing me, being the best that I could be, and being authentic in everything that I do.

Statistics say I should have two kids, be living on welfare, and without a high school education, but because I chose to explore and break out of the mold my environment handed me, I am here and living my truth for me.

So, every day in my car to create a calm mental space I would have a private party with my angels celebrating how far I had come and the woman I was becoming without ego or vanity. In these rides, I had conversations with myself, healed my disconnections, and just learned how to love me.

 
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Nicki Minaj - Pink Friday

2010 was the first year I felt like I was finally soaring at Bucknell. I had come from Suitland maintaining above a 4.0 GPA and here I was barely making 3.0 and dropping classes to avoid D’s and F’s lol. I laugh because it was a humbling experience, I went from being in the top 1% of my class to being just average.

I had figured out the game though, I started working smarter instead of harder. I took classes with my friends so we could not only study together but split up the work. For some reason, Blacks kids at PWI’s think that they have to study 24/7 to make it when they already come in disadvantaged and lacking resources. The majority of my peers went to prep schools, were in fraternal organizations that had systems and guides to exams papers, and Adderall. The playing field was never even, and it won’t be, so I had to find a way.

I grew up semi-sheltered. I understood class, race, and gender, but now I saw first-hand how it would impact my life academically, mentally, and socially. I now knew what it meant to have social and economic capital.

I sat in front of my class & went to office hours so my teachers would know me. I didn’t have diverse friends so I started organizations and events that would introduce me to people that would elevate my social capital. I met with every Dean, gave them feedback & offered my services to create an environment that would work for me & others like me. I worked in the Alumni office so that I could have access to all the successful alums.

You may be wondering by now, how that worked out for me… Well, I was always able to get a job! Fortunately, and unfortunately, my family being immigrants didn't have the connections or network to get me a job at MTV, Disney ,or even the UN, but because I worked for those relationships, I was able to land those jobs and more.

When I moved to LA in 2011, I stayed with an Alum that I had never met & they never asked me to pay rent & my neighbor was Steven Spielberg!

I am not giving these testaments of moments in my life to brag, but like this album, it's to tell you how I got this far. It’s a very short synopsis of my pink print. 

 
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Rihanna - Unapologetic

Sheesh, 2012 was crazy! I was in a situationship that should have been in a relationship, but I fumbled.

You’re probably asking why? Well, I never grew up seeing that you could not be a Boss and have a family or necessarily have it all. When I saw a bossed-up woman, men used it as an excuse to highlight their shortcomings or overburden them. So, I only saw and chose my career and I was unapologetic AF about it. I honestly felt like a relationship was a waste of my time and would hold me back. Unlike Rihanna, I couldn’t afford to deal with life and then whatever came with a Nigga. I had my own shit and I’m sure it would have been a bit much for him as well.

Looking back, I probably needed the support of a partner, you know some Love and Affection, but in true Nadia fashion when stuff gets hard, I isolate myself. We had just found out my mom was sick, and I was actually spending a lot of money on flights between DC and LA. We had also lost Juju earlier that year and that burden doubled a year later when my 4 yr. old nephew was murdered.

On the up and up though, I won the Posse Ainslie Award for my community service efforts, and the funds were right on time because, at this point, we needed a lawyer for Juju.

I’m not sure how I was getting by, but I just felt like I had to do it on my own. I had to put my energy into what I believed in, what felt right, and what mattered most to me. Now, almost 7 years later, I'm in a different place, I have a different outlook on relationships and I’m being creative about having it all. I have learned from all the pain and I left it where it needed to be.

I give Rihanna props for sharing her shortcomings and that she isn’t packaged neatly into a perfect narrative. None of us are, and we should embrace it because that is how you get your story. Like they say pressure burst pipes or makes Diamonds so shine bright. 

 
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Beyonce - Lemonade

I could talk about so many things on this album from the importance of self-care and finding the freedom to break generational curses and womanhood. However, one thing that stood out to me was the fact that I was always saying Sorry. Sorry for shining bright, sorry for someone else’s shortcomings, sorry I am where I am and doing what I am doing or just being me.

I come from a culture where you cover your yams whether they are white or black. Basically, you keep everything to yourself whether good or bad. You keep the good away, so no one puts eyes on you or tries to come for what you have. You keep the bad away because it ain’t nobody's business.

But we live in a space where closed mouths don’t get fed. Not only that but if folks don’t know what you’re doing or what you can do, how can you get other opportunities, etc. If folks don’t understand the plight, rather than ask, they curate stories. Lol, so it's hard to win and no longer a need to apologize.

Just this week someone told me they wanted my life because it seemed so perfect, and to me, that was a dangerous thing to say. You never know what you’re asking for. Living my life is closest to walking in a pair of Louboutin’s that look nice and all, but after a while, one's feet may start burning because of all that it takes to walk in them.

I say this to say, I see it all and none of it phases me, as what is for me will always be for me by the Almighty.

But know that I am Nadia, a powerful product of passion and professionalism. A proud Jill of all trades who’s on a mission that needs no permission. I am learning daily to love, honor, and trust myself and my decisions. I did not come this far to only come this far. I am done with overthinking and under-living. For the time is not now, It was yesterday. I am who I am, take it, or leave it. But I suggest you hold on tight…. The question isn’t who is going to let me, but who is going to stop me? I am majestic, I am magnetic, I am magnificent. I am Nadia motherfuckin’ Marie and I ain’t sorry!

 
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Sammus – Pieces in Space

I was gifted this album by my academic chair at Cornell. I think she felt my energy because listening to the album on the ride home was like seeing my world in 1080p. I was constantly mighty morphing in this stage of my life from a black girl nerd to #momty & various other identities.

It was my 2nd year of Cornell and I had Juju living with me on campus. I was at Cornell on a full-ride but what people don’t tell you is that being a non-traditional student feels more like a setup at these Ivy League institutions. You can see your future, for me the first Doctor in my family, but the road was full of obstacle courses. Situations that I coin academic hazing which starts mentally and evolves into the physical.

I struggled with balancing life and when I realized I needed more money to sustain and asked for it, I was told to find a partner to share expenses with. I was also told that I was lying about raising my niece. To make matters worse, I had signed a contract where I had to focus on my research and therefore forbidden to have extra jobs.

So, I got creative and became a graduate fellow/ RA. Although I had to engage 400 students in a living and learning space, it provided free housing & food which freed up some of my expenses.

After one crazy advisor, I seemed to have attracted another before landing the perfect one. I had to drop her class one semester because it conflicted with Juju’s after school pick-up and she demanded that I should be fired from my RA job for not taking school seriously. This started a bit of an uproar where my intellect was often questioned, and I kept having to do extra work to prove myself. As God would have it though, my RA supervisor was like how can I support you because I can’t let you go.

At this point, I was scared of the academy and trying to make sense of a group of educated people who preach mental health, black power, and blah blah blah but when it came to practicing what they preached, they fell short.

Be careful as you climb your chosen ladder. Get a tribe. Ask for help. Put your mental & physical health first because ain’t nobody gonna love you like you. Most importantly you’re not alone.

 
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SZA – Ctrl

Ctrl is an entire mood and was my summer anthem in 2017. I was 29 and experiencing the last year of my 20 somethings.

As I looked at my life, I was always on the move and never really took the time to process things. I thought I had my life together, but I didn’t.

I was so consumed in school, work, and everyone else. I was raised by my dad to be tough and thus lacked expressing emotional vulnerability. If I cried about something or had hard times, he would let me cry, ask me if I was done, and then be like what’s next? That way of coping was a gift and a curse. I was able to move on faster than most, but I was unable to process things in a healthy way.

So, once I stopped to take a step back and I saw that I could be less uptight, vulnerable, and more intentional about how I connected with others. I also had to reevaluate how I valued myself. There are way more things that make me worthy outside of my career, my credentials, and the accolades.

However, I did not make it through this process alone. I had a therapist to give me coping mechanisms and break down my walls. I got a life coach to help me hear myself when making life decisions, rather than living for others. And I got a trainer to help me workout. Working out isn’t one of my strong suits but I looked at my journey into my next decade as a marathon and I needed to be mentally and physically prepared. ⠀

Ctrl was definitely the soundtrack to prep me for my 30’s and allowed me to pray for friends to survive their 20 somethings as well.

 
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Rapsody - Laila’s Wisdom

When this album was released, I was having a hard time getting Juju to value herself and it provided me with a road map. Every black queen should know they are first and foremost powerful, beautiful, and intelligent.

At the time I was raising Juju in Ithaca, New York. She felt horrible about herself because she didn’t live in a home with both of her parents and Ithaca was pretty traditional and conservative. Hence, she started asking me about her parents, and with the support of her therapist, I told her the hard truth - that they were incarcerated. Even though she understood people make mistakes, it was something she felt slighted by. I had to remind her that she was still pretty lucky to have all the love from grandparents, great-grandparents, friends, and family.

She was also one of the few Black girls in her class, better yet... Black people in her school period so from every angle, she felt left out. However, as a Black woman raising a young queen, I couldn’t understand why she didn’t appreciate who she was. I had to realize I grew up in Black communities, so I saw and experienced enough, to love my people while she was having an entirely different outlook.

I had to really dig deep and figure out what I wanted her to know, appreciate about herself, and that she was special no matter how anyone made her feel. I started ordering books, changing out her dolls and I put up affirmations around the entire house that I would make her read daily.

I also felt it was important that she experienced all different types of people. I had her hang out with some of my students, took her on tour with me to various states/countries, and eventually to Sierra Leone where she did 2nd grade.

The biggest lesson I learned from this ordeal because we grew up so different, is that we constantly have to create spaces and experiences that empower our girls. This album is an ode to all the sassy and powerful girls of the world.

 
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Cardi B - Invasion of Privacy

I loved loved loved this album because each song follows the theory of the “underdog.” The underdog is the person everyone sleeps on, doesn’t want to align themselves with, and often taken advantage of. So many say this person has a competitive disadvantage, but I find that hard to believe.

See, I have always been the underdog, while many of you may be like how sway? Well, I have always pushed myself to new levels but at each level there were always folks questioning why I was there, how I got there, reminding me where I came from, and what I was lacking. You know the typical sneak dissing. From there, the imposter syndrome would manifest. Meaning I would tell myself, oh yea how did they let me in and asking myself if this was really for me. But in the words of Cardi:

I was in the field, man, I slaved for this

Had to talk to God, dropped down, and prayed for this⠀

To my surprise, He replied, said, "You made for this

I had to learn to ignore all the bullshit and I realized I was my own competition. I might fall 9 times, but I definitely get up 10.

Hence, the underdog is always motivated, and you should be careful with them. They will silently kill you with the greatness, the drip, the money bag, and bloody moves. Those on receiving end, be mad tight as a matter of fact, and they are still asking how sway?

So far through my posts, y’all have seen me invade my own privacy. You all have seen my personal struggles, you have seen my grind, and in December 2018’ many people saw me ask for help when I thought I was losing my mom. She is doing much better and takes each doctor visit daily like a G. That alone wasn’t easy, because it was admitting I had lost control but when the pressure feels like boulders you do what gotta do. Most importantly, I turned all my L’s into lessons and my dreams bout to be pulling up like “skirt.”

 
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Janelle Monae – Dirty Computer

This album affirmed the importance of being your true self in whatever that looks like. The album is based on the concept that people were known as dirty computers. You were dirty if you refused to live the way the government dictated, showed any opposition, and a host of other societal rules. And what do we do with dirty things, we clean them or dispose of them. So, people were disappearing left and right, lost and/or sleeping, and they didn’t remember anything at all.

I have had moments in my life where I felt dirty because I was Black, a Woman, a Muslim, a Sierra Leonean, an American, wasn’t a certain size, I didn’t follow the traditions, I don’t have a traditional 9-5, and the list goes on and on. Internalizing all this was stressful and I started feeling like I had defects.

I also realized that I never stopped to appreciate and celebrate myself or my tribe. I started rewarding myself in small ways for even the small wins. I also did this for my tribe because I am only as strong as the people in my circle. This also allowed for validation of dirty computers, in which the world needs more of.

Remember that, society wants you to fit neatly in a box and get rid of your layered identities, what makes you multifaceted and special, because it will make you right or easy to digest. Everyone is meant to be different and their paths are too. Dirty Computer affirms that we are never more naked than when we stand in our joy. The entire album is a testament to inclusivity and liberation.

 
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Megan Thee Stallion - Tina Snow

Now what they say about Scorpios is true, we’re going to do what we want when we want, and when it comes to sexuality, it’s no different. 

I own my shit! Growing up as a Black woman in a culture where men were the pimps, expressing any form of sexual awareness made you a hoe. If you made a come up then, you must have fucked your way up. I remember being in school and people assumed that I was sleeping with a professor due to my exemplary grades. Or that I must have a sugar daddy because I travel too much. Of course, they never considered the fact that I was a hard worker and that I mostly traveled for work due to my grants.

Which brings me to Tina Snow, an exceptionally vulgar, frosty-haired alter ego inspired by Pimp C. Tina, like Trina, provides plenty of freak anthems with quotable lyrics and an “I don’t give AF” attitude. I can relate to the slick attitude and trash-talking, and I love how she pays homage to a line of women that made her Cocky AF. Like Megan, “my momma told me to get ’em, I got ’em/my granny told me you goin’ to school/getting that degree and making it cool.”

Through it all, I just remember people are gonna talk and you just gotta do what you gotta do and remain unbothered. “If you don’t like it, tune the fuck out,” she raps. “And you must like it, cause you tuned the fuck in.”

 
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Ari Lennox- Shea Butter Baby

This album spoke to me in 2019 because I wanted to throw the whole year away. Yea I graduated and moved to LA but le struggle was real. 

First off, I started the year with my mom just coming out of a coma and she’s still recovering. Debts were high and funds were low. When I looked in my wallet and saw the Black Card right next to the EBT, the irony of the juxtaposition made me laugh. Laughter is sweeter than tears. 

Moving back from Sierra Leone to LA, having a kid, and my mom’s health taking a turn for the worse, hit me hard not only financially but physically. So, I had to get help, because working 24 hours a day wasn’t realistic when raising a kid and trying to finish a dissertation. So just like Ari, I decided to stay in my apartment. My home was a symbol of my individuality, my persona, and a place to live without concern for anyone’s criticism. But Ari also said you need people and support. My therapist reiterated the same sentiment. Friends that support where you are now and where you’re trying to go, is an essential ingredient in growth. And by the end of the year going into 2020, my life completely turned around for the better.

 
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Summer Walker - Over It 

Listen Summer speaks volumes to me because I see so many similar traits. Contrary to popular belief, I have become more of an introvert & an empath with every year of age. I am trying to embrace the positivity of it all, but it can be very crippling.

I am the person who not only can feel others’ emotions & problems but can do so without them telling me. Recently at Revolt, I almost passed out because there were so many people & I was suddenly filled with so much emotion that I had to find a private room to recalibrate.

I realized this was an issue when I started Cornell because it was always dark, gloomy, & almost everyone was full of anxiety. My colleagues would start talking about assignments & deadlines and I would feel so drained as if I just ran an entire marathon. I would have said it was a me thing, but the suicide rates were so high, I knew it had to be more. My depression & anxiety was at an all-time high & I even gained 50 pounds.

I have to admit that my intimate relationships can even overwhelm me because I can sense every little mood, irritation, & even lie. Positive emotions can also be overwhelming at times because I feel engulfed. Their “energy” being always around is amazing but then at times feels like an intrusion. However, I have learned and am still learning to adapt. I have realized I will always need a private space of my own in a home and just mutual respect for boundaries.

Hence, vibes are so important to me. My house is always a vibe and my sanctuary to get away from all the emotions. I am intentional about the colors, the words, the placement of furniture, plants, stones, you name it. With the help of a stylist, I created a space that is peaceful & calming so that I can internalize it & flourish.

So, I get Summer— the contradicting feelings, emotions, and hypersensitivity. I have learned to stay grounded in my identity, let go, let the alarming energy flow through, protect my space & aura, keep my energy stabilized & cleanse my energy with lots of light. Now y’all know why I love sunny spaces lol.