Selma Bazara

Selma is featured in our ‘Humans of LJMU’ series in collaboration with the ‘Humans of Liverpool’ social media account, sharing the stories of the people who make our city, communities and university the vibrant, inclusive place it is in celebration of our bicentenary year.

She grew up with her football loving family in Toxteth and reflects in her interview on an incredible opportunity to join the LFC manager, Jurgen Klopp, and players for a kit launch photoshoot. Since sharing the images on her social media, she has received a huge number of supportive messages, particularly from young Muslim women who are proud of Selma representing them on such a high-profile platform.

Selma’s ‘Humans of LJMU’ interview

“I got discovered by Nike through TikTok last year. I've been creating content for socials for a while now and started to get attention from brands last year. I speak to the camera sometimes, and I think people think it's quite strange and unusual that I’m an Arab Hijabi with a scouse accent. It has made me stand out. After one of my videos where I said that I supported Liverpool, Nike got in touch and gifted me tickets to the game. It was incredible to experience the atmosphere at Anfield. After that, they invited me to appear in their kit launch campaign.

“When I got there on the day, there were different ‘teams’, each including one fan and a group of players. Trent, Klopp, Curtis Jones, Mane and Konate were all in my team during the shoot. Me and Mane were both fasting that day, so we bonded over that and joked about how hungry we were. Klopp was so lovely; he’s exactly like how he is on TV. He’s kind to everyone, but you can see everyone really respects him and wants to impress him. It was an incredible experience that I’ll never forget.

“I love creating content, but will it last me forever? I want something that I can sustain as a career. I really enjoy drawing. It takes my stress away. I have a room at home where I go to just lock the door and paint. I like to work on freestyle, abstract art using colours and textures. I love trying new things and experimenting with different mediums. My mum inspires me to be creative. She didn’t have the academic background me and my sisters have, but raising four girls as a single mother, she’s always pushed us and supported us to chase our dreams. She’s amazing. She wanted to go into architecture, but my dad convinced her to stay at home and look after us before they separated. I just know she would have been an amazing architect.

“I love the culture in my city. It’s really diverse, and it feels international. We’re very welcoming and homely as a community. Toxteth is my area, my home. So I feel safe there. It has been easier to live in Liverpool as a Hijabi in Toxteth because it’s very multi-cultural and I feel accepted.”