With a line-up of meditation experts and a specially curated classical soundtrack, NAO hosts The Music & Meditation Podcast: an eight-part series of guided meditations designed to combat the challenges of daily life and leave you refreshed and ready to take on the world.
Launching on the 9 May, singer and songwriter NAO will present The Music & Meditation Podcast, the ultimate new therapeutic podcast series, combining music and meditation to help listeners deal with the stresses and strains of everyday life. The series will cover themes relating to mental health and wellbeing and is designed to be a fresh and accessible gateway into meditation for young people.
Informed by NAO’s own personal wellness journey, the Mercury Prize-nominated musician will talk through her tips for wellbeing and bring together a host of guest meditation experts such as Megan Jayne Crabbe, Alex Elle, Michael James Wong, Dr Julie Smith, Jambo Truong, Emma Cannon, Kathryn McCusker and Jimmy Wightman.
Each will focus on a different theme – from burnout to body positivity, through to dealing with loneliness and trusting your instincts – and take listeners through a specially-created ten minute guided meditation.
The eight-part series, which will be available as a boxset on BBC Sounds and broadcast weekly on Radio 3, will be enhanced by a carefully curated classical soundtrack and feature new music from some of the UK’s most talented up-and-coming composers recorded especially for the podcast by the BBC Concert Orchestra and BBC Singers.
This includes the likes of composers and performers Kristina Arakelyan, Lucy Walker, Ben Ponniah, Belle Chen, Lloyd Coleman, Sarah Jenkins, Liam Taylor-West and Sam Rapley.
The ten-minute meditations from each episode will also be available separately on BBC Sounds as an easy-to-access mental health resource, allowing listeners to tune in whenever they need to.
NAO, singer, songwriter and presenter of The Music & Meditation podcast said:
“I discovered meditation a couple of years back having struggled with stress and chronic fatigue syndrome after years of touring. It switched a light on in my brain whilst also calming my nervous system and now I meditate every day. With more and more noise in our lives it’s just so key that we take some time for ourselves and find at least a few minutes every day to focus on our mental wellness. Finding the right guide and the right music is key to accessing the benefits of meditation so I hope this podcast helps people who don’t know where to start.”
Philip Raperport, Commissioning Executive for BBC Radio 3 & BBC Sounds said:
“We wanted to zone in on the immersive power and benefits of combining music and meditation and we are thrilled to have NAO lead on this important new commission. With such a dynamic range of experts focusing on the challenges facing so many young people, we hope that the podcast creates a space for listeners to reflect, find strength and feel inspired.”
The Music & Meditation Podcast launches on BBC Sounds on 9 May and will broadcast weekly on Radio 3.
The Music & Meditation Podcast is produced by Nick Taylor, Charlotte Parr and digital producer Rebecca Grisedale Sherry from BBC Radio 3 Production London for BBC Sounds.