Bel (2026), BBC Scotland, BBCiPlayer, Director Louise Lockwood.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m0032lrl/bel

I hadn’t heard of Bel (Beldina Odenyo) the Scots-Kenyan who performed under the title Heir of the Cursed. There’s no reason why I should. I don’t listen to music. Bel is hailed as a generational talent, in much the same way, and for many of the same reasons as Amy Winehouse.

Black and white. Defiance, anger and fear. A small presence in a small body with a big voice that demands to be heard.

Bel begins and ends in the same place. October, 2021 Scottish Album of the Year anniversary concert, Edinburgh’s Usher Hall. Heir of the Cursed takes the stage. Her rendition of The Bird, written by a friend and fellow songwriter Kathryn Joseph, blows everyone away.

She’s here to stay.

Beldina Odenyo  took her own life at just 31 at her home in Paisley.