Let me take you through various moments that have marked my life.
My tattoos will be your guide.
1985
I was born on October 1, 1985
I was born in Antwerp (Belgium) as the youngest of a family consisting of eight children. I am very grateful to my mom because of my name. My name (Jaouad) means ‘generous’.
My parents migrated in the 60’ from Morocco to Belgium. In a country that evolves rapidly, they gave me the values of their homeland.
I think I’m a girl. I fall in love with Jens, a classmate.
I win a singing competition at school. To this day, I still remember how proud my mother was. Before every performance, I still think of her and my father.
2000
'Oumi - my mother'
My first tattoo, in honour of my mother | Right wrist - Inside arm
My mother dies
My mother dies on 18 December 2000. I'm 15 years old. The ground underneath my feet is slipping away. It is in this moment that I am confronted with how precious life is. The rebel is awakened inside me, and I develop a deep-rooted aversion towards authority.
My mother was one of the supporting pillars within our community. I learned from her how to build bridges between people.
Community
I am going to live and work a whole year in Paris as patissier/chocolatier.. A completely new world opens for me: I am able to experience my sexuality in freedom.
2006
'Hayati - my life'
My second tattoo | Left wrist - Inside arm
Elope
May 7, 2006, I decide to walk away from home and move in with my boyfriend. I’m 20 years old. Only nine years later, I returned to restore the bond with my father and family.
I take my first steps as a drag queen in multiple nightclubs and cafes.
2011
‘I am who I am’ / ‘Arab dagger’/ ‘Hand of Fatima’
Three tattoos I had within a period of one year | Chest
Mira Mirage
It’s been seven years since I left home when I was getting these tattoos. I am already performing as drag queen ‘Mira Mirage’ for five years on stage. It was written in the stars that I would one day be on stage and make theatre performances. In my mind, I wrote countless letters to my parents, sisters, and brothers.
It doesn’t come as a surprise that I would eventually make the performance ‘De meisje’, a monologue in which I tell my life story. ‘De meisje’ premiered in September 2019. In the meantime, I have played this show more than 70 times in Belgium and the Netherlands.
Art & Photography
2013
'Akhlami - my dreams'
Placed in Gran Canaria, selected for The Voice of Flanders | Back
The Voice
My two new loves are singing and amateur theatre. Yoga and meditation bring me balance from now on. That same year, when I am 28 years old, I participate in The Voice of Flanders. I make it to the semi-finals.
In 2021 I release my first album MESSIAS - a body of work I created with Aiko Devriendt about religion, relationships & taking matters in own hands.
2014
After 6 weeks of travelling through Indonesia with my best friend Shanti, I am – finally – going to live for the first time on my own.
2014
I’m going through my loneliest period..
I practice a lot of yoga and meditation, and I read multiple self-help books.
Numerous therapy sessions later, I know what I want to do with my life: be creative within every possible discipline.
2015
Performing on stage, acting, singing, writing, directing, photography, etc...
The troubled relationship with my father is my last impediment. I gather all my courage, and I decide to write a letter to my father. Our reunion after more than nine years is very emotional, and we have heavy-loaded conversations together.
For three years, I have a conversation with my traditional Islamic father.
Three years full of heavy conversations combined with countless tears.
2017
'The little mermaid'
For all the memories of Morocco and the monologue ‘Zeemeermin’ (Mermaid) | Right ankle
Mermaid
I spent two months in Morocco every summer with my family as a child. Whenever I swam in the ocean, I thought I was a mermaid. The sea, for me, remains a way to revitalise and purify.
'Zeemeermin' (Mermaid) premiers. I have written this monologue together with Nyiragasigwa Hens. The turning point of my professional theatre career. With this monologue, I visit more than 150 schools in which I have conversations with 15-year-olds about sexuality, gender, and religion.
Mermaid is a production of BeHuman vzw, an organisation in which I have been taking charge of the business for three years. I develop and facilitate multiple creative projects such as ‘Phenomenal Woman’ and the event ‘Pride of Color’.
2019
My father dies
My father dies one month prior to "De Meisje' (The Girl) premiers. I am 34 years old. My father is incredibly proud of me, and we are good friends at the end of his life.
2019
"Amazigh hands'
I got this tattoo after my father died | Hands
Change
This tattoo has found inspiration from Amazigh signs from North Africa. These signs symbolise the multiple shapes of extremes on the spectrum. Fear/love, good/evil, day/night, man/woman… How are we able to find balance? How can we cope with the duality in life?
2020
Sjamaan, a production house that strives to more representation of women and colour in the media, is established.
2020
2021
'Maybe the day had a shitty you’
I got this tattoo because there are no bad days | Right forearm
Acceptance
Some days there was a constant thundercloud hanging above my head. I always think about all the suffering in our society. Writing helps me to channel these thoughts and emotions.
Yoga and meditation guide me to understand that there are no bad days. Sometimes there are days in life on which we aren’t the best version of ourselves, and that’s okay.
It is the release of my first album 'Messias'. That same year, I get asked to become an artist in residence for the Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten in Antwerp, and I move to the sizzling city of Brussels. Chosen Family vzw sees the light of day, an organisation that creates safe(r) spaces through art, music, and food. We immediately organised the exposition 'In the Mood for Love', in which we collect money on behalf of male sex workers.
Chosen Family vzw organises with Queef, The Crazy, Circle and Merhaba during the Belgian Pride, a street party: ‘Back To The Roots Streetparty’. I start with the preparations for the theatre performance, Venus, in Libra in the Toneelhuis (Antwerp). It's going to be a queer punk performance in which I run a nightclub with four musicians, twelve creatures and a dancer who invites people to shelter from a world that is becoming tougher by the minute.
2023
My first book appears by the publishing house Lannoo. I have written a fictional narrative about my own life. It is all about a boy named Idriss.
On 1 December, Jaouad will release a new album: Homo Universalis. The nine songs were written for his musical book performance ‘De meisje'. They were recorded live at The Rabbit Field Studio with Stef Kamil Carlens on production.
Homo Universalis is another step in Jaouad Alloul's musical oeuvre. These live recordings are a gift to his audience. Dedicated to his partner Jeroen Vanluyten: thank you for giving our love wings to fly.
2025
A life that knows ups and downs,
A life in which I radically chose myself,
Out of love for that same life.
The living proof that life will get better.
Curious about what gifts life will bring us.
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2025
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