Fumi Okiji

Fumi Okiji is an Assistant Professor of Rhetoric at the University of California, Berkeley, and holds a Professor position at The European Graduate School (EGS). Born in 1976, her academic journey began with a BA in Human Geography (Queen Mary, University of London), MA in Communication, Culture, and Society (Goldsmiths), and a PhD in Philosophy under Andrew Bowie at Royal Holloway, University of London. She previously taught at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, in the Women, Gender, Sexuality department.

Her research integrates black studies, critical theory, and sound/music studies, focusing on how black expression illuminates modern life. Key works include Jazz as Critique (2018), which reinterprets Adorno through jazz's socio-musical dynamics, and her current project Billie’s Bent Elbow: The Standard as Revolutionary Intoxication, exploring socio-political gatherings beyond identity frameworks. She engages Adorno and Benjamin’s theories on aesthetics and dialectics, alongside analyses of musicians like Cecil Taylor and Nina Simone.

Okiji also experiments with interdisciplinary methods, blending sound practices into academic writing. She co-founded the Le Mardi Gras Listening Collective, a collaborative space for study, music, and intellectual exchange.