3xposure.
My archive for respect and celebration of black cultures
Fela Kuti
Nigerian multi-instrumentalist, Fela is famous for bringing the West African Afrobeat and other contemporary Jazz rhythms with political, social and cultural cues to audiences around the globe. Fela is widely known for his activism in the areas of social and economic injustice, specially within the corrupt Nigerian government.
Kuti's legacy has continued his fight against social injustice around the world, some of these resources can be found on the following links:
Seun's work:
https://www.npr.org/2011/07/16/138187204/seun-kuti-channels-his-fathers-political-fury
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World Justice Program:
https://worldjusticeproject.org/world-justice-forum-vi/resources
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Partisan Records (black owned and endorsed by NAACP legal fund):
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Yasiin Bey, how Mos Def is known nowadays, has been a propeller of Brooklyn rap and activism against police brutality and racial inequality. His songs take a very political turn as he explores various themes of American exceptionalism that contradict to the situations he talks about in his songs.
Yasiin's legacy for music and as an activist is better discussed on the following link:
Mos Def
Digable Planets
The trio was a revolutionary rap group from New York who broke barriers of discussions regarding race, feminism and life as an ordinary citizen of the metropolis. Bringing also aspects of Jazz, Soul and other rhythms, being crucial for the future of other hipster groups in New York and the world.
La Femme Fetal lyrics:​ https://genius.com/Digable-planets-la-femme-fetal-lyrics
Pharrell Williams' prodigy, Simmie Sims III aka Buddy has been in the industry as early as his 14th birthday. Buddy, growing up in a rough part of South Los Angeles, had to fight for his career his entire life, economic and logistical problems rose but his competency showed him greater solutions. I want to emphasize a defining part of his career, the single "Black". He reflects about the misconceptions of mainstream media on African Americans and definitely achieved his purpose of getting his voice heard.
Buddy
Black lyrics:
A Tribe Called Quest
Legacy and activism:​ https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/25/opinion/the-legacy-of-a-tribe-called-quest.html
We The People Lyrics:
https://genius.com/A-tribe-called-quest-we-the-people-lyrics
The Queens rap group initially started adapting elements of other music genres to their music, always with emphasis on their unique flow and production. With time the members sought the necessity to represent more relevant themes of social critique, being referred a lot as " The Most Intelligent Rap group to ever exist".
Legendary New York rapper, Nasir Jones, has been a pioneer when it comes to political rap by reflecting in his and other people's lives, depicting difficulties, achievements and the possibility of anyone making it to the top. In his music he urges people to empower themselves by acknowledging diversity, and leaning into what makes them unique
Nas
Chico Science
Pioneer of the multi genre music infused with regional rhythms in the 90s in Brazil. Chico and his band, Nação Zumbi, used culturally underrated movements in Brazil to create a dancy, courageous and authentic sound which they used to explore themes of economic disparity, disfranchisement and systemic racism in Brazil which is very relevant till today.
Manguebeat as a form of activism:
Jackie Shane
A black transexual singer in the Toronto scene in the 60s. She was key figure in acceptance at the time having a very important role in the soon to come Civil Rights movement in America and LGBT+ community in eastern Canada. R&B and soul singer her voice achieves insane falsettos which we can only thank to her stage persona.
A Link to her museum in Toronto that takes donations to the LGBT and trans cause:
http://www.myseumoftoronto.com/programming/jackie-shane/
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Other Black LGBT organizations:
https://hellogiggles.com/lifestyle/black-lgbtq-organizations-to-donate-to/
Nina Simone
Folk, Jazz, Soul and pop singer Nina Simone is widely known for her impact in the Civil Rights movement in America after the 1960s. Her contralto voice matched with beautiful words was one of those artists that could transcend racial barriers and she used that to communicate effectively the problems which African Americans were encountering in their lives at the time. She went ahead also to be a very important figure in the representation of black women's beauty and life, creating more power and representation of them in American culture.
Charles Wright & The Watts 103rd Rhythm Band
Street band reflecting a different time where economic choices in the U.S weren't dependent on individuals. These musicians wrote beautiful songs emphasizing the expression and the responsibility of disenfranchised communities to be cooperative to one another to obtain success and be themselves in a world that keeps getting harder and harder to do that. Sampled by emblematic rap groups such as N.W.A the song got the mainstream attention it deserved, which even though being old have very relevant messages even today.
Bad Brains
Propellers of black punk music widely creating their own movement of what is called RastaPunk. Laid down a path for multi genre music and for others to implement aspects of reggae music and percussion into their own music, such as Johnny Lyndon in his Public Image Ltd. project. "Don't matter what they say we got the attitude to do things"
Racionais MCs
Their Website:
https://www.racionaisoficial.com.br/
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Paper on their importance (In Portuguese)
https://periodicos.sbu.unicamp.br/ojs/index.php/histedbr/article/view/8645849
Brazilian rap group that came from the shadows to create a movement of awareness of a disenfranchised and marginalized communities and population in Brazil. Introducing aspects of America's rising HipHop culture they fused it with brazilian music and regional themes that reflected violence, the difficulties in being a person of colour in the latin american country and also a very political entendre, also riding on the wave of rap groups of the time like Public Enemy and N.W.A by talking about police brutality. Mano Brown, group’s main rapper also showed up at protests in Brazil for Black Lives Matter.
Gill Scott Heron
Spoken word poet, activist and undefinably a precursor of rap music with his way of
blabling and spitting the lyrics catching you in surprise every time with his sometimes even aggressive tonality.