About
The Mino Collective is a community of Artivists who are envisioning a new way to work within the music industry. The collective is founded and run by the artists-musicians-activists Ella Ronen, Brandy Butler, and Sarah Palin.
The fundament of Mino’s philosophy is to be diverse and female-led, while helping to create a sustainable future for the music industry. We have an inclusive feminist agenda and we put a priority on showcasing talent that is not necessarily white and/or male.
Our name "Mino", is inspired by the all-female army of the Dahomey Kingdom in pre-colonial Africa. Literally meaning "our mothers.” "Mino" encapsulates our core values of carrying on the historical fight for visibility and equality for women, LGTQIA and people of color, while also cultivating a nurturing and supportive environment for our fellow artists and allies to grow in.
“We who believe in freedom, can not rest until it comes”
-Dr. Bernice Johnson Reagon
Ella Ronen
The Storyteller
Ella Ronen is a songwriter, singer, mother, and feminist. She grew up in Tel Aviv, Israel, and has lived internationally since becoming an adult. Immediately upon completing her obligatory army service at age 21 Ella decided to dedicate her life to music. She has been mesmerizing audiences ever since.
Her songs are playlisted on major national radio stations (Swiss RTS1, Israeli Kan88), she plays venues such as the Songbird Festival, TEDxLausanne and the Montreux Jazz Festival, and has opened for artists like Emiliana Torrini. She has released albums in both English (Mirror Maze, 2014) and Hebrew (Toska, 2018), and currently spends her time between Tel Aviv and Zürich, working on an upcoming album in English.
In her art as well as her activism, Ella stands for equal rights, accessibility and visibility for women*, mothers, people of color, LGBTQ and other overlooked groups, in the music industry and beyond it.
Sarah Palin
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The Multi-Instrumentalist
Sarah Palin is a highly acclaimed musician and performer .The multi-instrumentalist achieved national attention through the release of her debut album JJ & Palin (2014, Helsinki Records/Irascible), but she didn't stop there. She's toured the world on Bass with BoyToy and is currently drumming for One.Sentence.Supervisor. Sarah organizes concerts and is a creative innovator within in her local community. She stands for diversity, the political and cultural support of minorities of all backgrounds, and the realization of simple ideas which richen our communal experiences throughout out day to day lives: Support our local Planet.
Brandy Butler
The Powerhouse
Brandy Butler is a singer, instrumentalist, performance artist, activist, primary school music educator, mother and all around badass. She is one of the most highly respected musicians and vocalists on the Swiss Scene, and has made appearances with or worked for almost every major Swiss Artist.
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Brandy splits her time between many things, but is consistently passionate about the creation, maintainence and sustainability of community connections. She is a continual advocate of creating more diverse pictures of the world around us, and believes deeply in educating fellow humans how to be better allies.
