When you’re a speaker of a minority language, you become fairly used to that language and culture being ignored by the rest of the world. If you move away from home, encountering another speaker of that language can feel strangely exciting: moving, even. As you chat, your corner of the planet suddenly feels less small and insignificant, and long buried personality traits start to shine out – every multilingual person I have met says their character differs depending on the language they are speaking. These traits can spend months in hibernation, and then a fellow speaker comes along who truly sees and understands you.
Imagine my excitement, as a Welsh expat, when I read that two lads from down the road had produced the first Welsh song to hit 1m Spotify plays. The rock duo Alffa’s song Gwenwyn (meaning Poison) is being streamed as far away as Brazil, having been placed on influential rock playlists by the Welsh music distributor PYST.
Related: Huw Stephens: 'There are no limits to where Welsh language music can go'
Continue reading...
