Frida Marida

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Born Loud, The Art of Refusing Silence

Frida Marida is a Lebanese trans-disciplinary artist and trans woman based in Oslo, Norway. Born from the depths of displacement, silence, and the radical need to exist loudly, Frida is a performing artist, singer, songwriter, composer, speaker, and activist whose work moves fluidly between music, performance, fashion, choreography, and technology, refusing to be contained by any single discipline.

13 Languages, One Body, Every Revolution

Frida sings in 13 languages and composes through body, movement, and sound-producing costumes. As a performer, songwriter, and speaker, she uses humor, vulnerability, and spectacle to explore trans identity, migration, and queer life. Her shows are large-scale, multilingual, and deeply political, a fusion of Western and Middle Eastern musical traditions where every song carries a different message, and through the music and the performance, the audience faces difficult questions about our society.

The Steering Wheel, From the Road to the Stage

Among Frida's most significant artistic innovations is the Steering Wheel, a signature instrument created using electronic trigger technology that transforms a car steering wheel into a live drum. An object once meant to control direction becomes an instrument of rhythm that leads a band. It is the same steering wheel Frida once held as a teenager in Lebanon, composing dozens of songs while driving and using it as a favourite instrument. Today, it represents movement, migration, and choice, from that road to stages across Europe, where Frida stands as a woman, singing her own voice.

Nipples That Make Music, Fri Da Nipple

Six nipples. Six notes. One live instrument. Fri Da Nipple is a performance where electronic triggers transform bodies into sound. While dancing, the performers activate each nipple through touch and choreography, composing music in real time. It is a provocative, camp, and deeply political exploration of the Free the Nipple debate, delivered through original song and fearless physicality.

From Museums to Main Stages

Frida has performed at over 500 events across Norway and Europe, from the National Museum and Munchmuseet to Moldejazz, Oslo Pride Main Stage, and Festspillene i Nord-Norge. She has been a guest on Norske Talenter (Norway's Got Talent) and starred in DRAGS on TV2. From intimate gallery spaces to festival stages with thousands of people, Frida brings the same radical presence and artistic commitment to every platform.

Drag of the Year and the World Took Notice

In 2023, Frida Marida was crowned Drag of the Year in Norway, a recognition that affirmed years of groundbreaking work at the intersection of drag, music, technology, and activism. The award honoured not just the spectacle but the substance, an artist who has consistently pushed the boundaries of what drag performance can be, transforming it into a multi-sensory, politically charged art form that resonates far beyond the stage.

Fri Da Media and the Art of Centering Queer Middle Eastern Narratives

Through Fri Da Media, her production platform founded in 2018, Frida creates films, music videos, and visual content that centre queer Middle Eastern narratives. Her work with the Azan, the Islamic call to prayer reimagined through a queer, feminine lens, is an act of cultural reclamation. Every project is a confrontation with borders, between East and West, sacred and profane, tradition and transformation.

Supported by Leading Arts Institutions

Frida's work has received funding from some of Norway's and the region's most respected cultural institutions, including Kulturdirektoratet (Kulturradet), Fritt Ord, and Ettijahat. Grants from Kulturdirektoratet have supported the composition and production of The ReLOVution Show, the album production of Fri Da Mic, and the fonogram project I'm Not A Camel. Additional funding through the Skeivt kulturar programme, Fritt Ord's support for The Frida Marida Show 2, and an international grant from Ettijahat reflect the breadth and institutional recognition of her artistic practice.

Every Stage a Platform, Every Costume a Conversation

Frida's activism is inseparable from her art. She has been a powerful voice for LGBTQ+ rights, trans visibility, refugee narratives, and the Free the Nipple movement. Her projects are funded because they challenge the systems that silence and exclude. Whether she is singing in Arabic at a pride festival or performing in a costume made of steering wheels, Frida turns every appearance into an act of resistance and celebration.

A Movement, Not Just a Performance

Frida Marida is not a performer you watch, she is a force you experience. Every show is a ritual, every song is a manifesto, and every costume is a political statement wrapped in glitter and defiance. She does not ask for space, she creates it. For the displaced, the silenced, the too-loud, and the unapologetically alive. Frida Marida is a movement, and the movement has only just begun.