Hala Mohammad:

Waiting for Spring

Exiled in Paris, the Syrian poet despairs for her country as the crisis there deepens.

GO HERE TO VIEW 20-MINUTE VIDEO

08 Sep 2012

Renowned and outspoken Syrian poet Hala Mohammad explains how she thinks poetry is central to the political change underway in the Middle East, and especially to the fight against Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president.

Her work is respected for tackling memory, fear, alienation and loneliness and they are feelings which pervade this moving meditation from a woman trapped in exile for medical reasons.

She may be living in Paris, the city of romance, but her stay is marked by despair and claustrophobia as she is forced to watch from afar the deepening crisis in her country.

But even with her faith in politics exhausted, Hala retains her belief in the power of poetry to inspire change.

 

By Yasmin Fedda 

I have been visiting Syria all of my life and when the uprising began I felt hopeful that much needed change would come to the country.

However, as time goes on, and more people are killed, it becomes an increasingly painful struggle. At the same time, it has been inspiring to see and read about the artistic work and courage of protesters in Syria.

I wanted to find out more about how Syrian poets are responding to the conflict and uprising in their country.

When I came across the poems of Hala Mohammad I was struck by their clear, refined structures and use of everyday language to evoke her feelings and thoughts about what was happening in her country as she watched from afar, exiled in Paris.

I also wanted to use this film to highlight the work of artists, poets and protesters on the ground in Syria - people who have been finding creative ways to express and resist ever increasing violence and oppression.

__________________________

Interview with

Hala Mohammad,

director of the documentary

“Journey into Memory” (2006)

>via: https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/alqawl/2012/04/16/interview-with-hala-mo...“journey-into-memory”-2006/

The Migrant,

the Immigration Narrative,

and ‘La Puerta de No Retorno’

By BFC/A

Santiago Zannou was born in Spain to a Spanish mother and a father from Benin.  In The Door of No Return (La Puerta De No Retorno)[1], he tells the story of his father, Alphonse:

Santiago A. Zannou takes his father Alphonse to Benin, his homeland, 40 years after he left, to confront him to his fears and his lies. During this travel of redemption, Alphonse will search for the reconciliation with his last sister alive, but also the forgiveness of his ancestors, with the hope to cure the wounds of the past.

(from Dokia Films)

It took me a while to realize – I hadn’t yet read the synopsis above – that Alphonse was a real person, let alone Zannou’s father.  The trailer doesn’t feel like some son-gets-to-know-father formats I’m familiar with; the film is rightly a docudrama:

The story is very much Alphonse-centric, and puts the immigrant in the center of the immigration narrative.  From Taskovski Films, who distributes the English language version of the film:

Alphonse will have to face the past and the present of his homeland. He will have to talk and explain 40 years of silence, shame and disillusion. To his sister who has been waiting for him, also to his mother, who died without seeing him back. He knows that time has come to face all the questions he could not or did not want to answer for more than three decades.

Perhaps that framing is fresh(er) stance.  Here’s an interesting observation from scholar Swagata Basu of Jawaharlal Nehru University, with my emphasis added (a summary of her MPhil thesis – Spanish Responses to Immigration Mapped Through Cinema is available on her blog online, and is well worth a read):

In case of Spanish immigration cinema, I would argue that identity alone is neither the central theme nor the driving force. Here the process of identification is foregrounded. Thus Identity crisis or cross cultural identity conflicts, which are typically observed in second generation immigrants, are often not the most recurring themes in Spanish immigration cinema. This is perhaps because second generation immigrants do not yet form a considerable part of the Spanish society. Instead Spanish immigration cinema currently maps the various responses of the Spanish people towards the immigrants, thereby throwing light as much upon the notions that the Spanish people have about themselves as about the others.

Perhaps Santiago Zannou, the son of an immigrant and a rising force of Spanish cinema, is beginning to change that.

 

---

[1] I don’t know how to gauge this entirely, but it seems that the phrase ‘door of no return’ doesn’t have same currency in Spain as it does in Americas (or maybe just Anglophone America?), where it connotes the Atlantic slave trade and the facilities that housed slaves along the African Atlantic coast, or, specifically, the Maison des Esclaves on Gorée Island in Senegal.

FOUR LITTLE GIRLS

Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, Addie Mae Collins, and Denise McNair. Murdered in an act of terrorism on this day in 1963.

We will never forget Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson and Addie Mae Collins--all 14 years old, and 11-year-old Denise McNair. They were murdered in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in an act of terrorism by a Klan related group on Sept. 15, 1963 in Birmingham, Alabama. The Birmingham Public Library has an online digital collection of photos and news clippings: http://bit.ly/cezq1X Also see the film 4 Little Girls by Spike Lee, the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, and a lesson from Teaching Tolerance: http://bit.ly/9U5FHj

__________________________

GO HERE TO VIEW SPIKE LEE DOCUMENTARY

4 Little Girls (1997)

There are many remarkable things about the documentary 4 Little Girls. Spike Lee's striking, beautifully realized film is a cinematic lesson of what kind of material is better suited to the documentary format. In his first documentary, Lee shares an attribute of Ken Burns: the major event in his documentary is not seen on camera. Except for four quick glimpses of black-and-white autopsy photos, the picture stays clear from the bombing. Lee remains with the faces, the girls' friends, families, and the historic figures of the era. They've all grown up since the bombing but their memories haven't faded. The vital facts of the case are certainly here: the troubled history of Birmingham, the court proceedings, friends' last run-ins with the girls. What touches us deeper though are those witnesses telling us of living through the core era of segregation and bigotry: a father explaining to his child why she can't have a sandwich in a cafeteria and a woman offering up tears of past events. There's even an interview with George Wallace, the prince of segregation, that belongs in a David Lynch feature. Lee's film asserts the bombing energized the civil rights movement and when the voice of America, Walter Cronkite, echoes those sentiments, you believe he may have it right. From the director of ' 'Do The Right Thing' ' and ' 'Malcolm X' ' comes ' 'a masterpiece.' ' (Chicago Tribune) When a bomb tears through the basement of a black Baptist church on September 15, 1963, it takes the lives of four young girls. This racially motivated crime, sparks the nation?s outrage and helps fuel the civil rights movement sweeping across the country.

>via: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3302971953362876297 

BLACK BODIES_ (ONE DAY SOON)

By IanKamau | Published: August 4th, 2012

This video was directed by RT for The NE the song ‘Black Bodies‘ is available on the album One Day Soon//

As I write this I am sitting in a cafe in Junction in Nairobi, Kenya; one of the places that made me decide to record the album One Day Soon. I came here after spending two months travelling through South Africa (Capetown, Port Elizabeth, East London, Grahamstown, Durban, Pretoria, Johannesburg) and am now on the verge trying to confirm a trip/show in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

I have been away from Toronto, for almost twelve weeks in a particularly violent summer for the city. Anyone who has worked with young people in the areas affectionately branded (yes I mean branded) as ‘priority neighbourhoods’ by government and large non-profit agencies knows that this type of violence is not unprecedented, unfortunately in many parts of Toronto it is quite regular.

What is different about this violence, as in the case of Jane Creba on boxing day a few years ago, is that these shootings have been ‘random,’ they have put people in danger who don’t usually feel that they are vulnerable to this type of violence and that freaks them/us out. What incidents like this should reveal is how privileged many of us are to live in relative safety. Many people around Toronto and many people around the globe do not enjoy this type of privilege. For some reason we are more afraid of ‘random’ violence because it might take the lives of ‘innocent’ people. The idea of ‘innocence’ is however a value judgement on human life. ‘Innocent’ people are more valuable than ‘the guilty’ by societies standards. Unfortunately ‘guilt’ is often perceived. I’ll explain. When I walk into banks, corner stores and certain neighbourhoods I personally can be perceived as potentially guilty or at least worthy of fear despite my good intention, it comes along with the territory of being a black male in North America (and almost anywhere else in the world quite frankly).

Many young people in Toronto, often but not exclusively black , often but not exclusively male have lost their lives in Rexdale, Jane & Finch, Esplanade, Jungle, P.O., Regent Park, Blake Street, Malvern etc. etc. etc. for a long time and there hasn’t been this kind of outrage as the Jane Creba shooting or the Eaton Centre shooting that happened a few weeks back. All loss of life is tragic because all life is valuable. We show our entitlement when we think our safety is worth more than the many people who live with this kind of violence every day as a result of their economic standing, physical environment or social standing. If you are more upset by Jane Creba than Chantel Dunn for instance, you might be practicing this form or prejudice, as a matter of fact, if you live in Toronto and you know the name Jane Creba and not the name Chantel Dunn you might be subject to our medias prejudice. Why are we more outraged when this happens close to us? Why are we more outraged when the victim looks like us? What is the value of a human life?

It is spectacularly short-sighted to think that the answer to this type of violence is throwing money at the issue, more police, tougher jail sentences or kicking people out of the city (a suggestion from our amazingly short sighted Toronto mayor). If I continued to have faith in the non-profit sector I might say that the answer is more programs or something cliche like that, but unfortunately I don’t believe that the answer as that simple. The answer is somewhere in what our society values and what society does not value (I feel like I could write an entire book on society and value.. so I’ll just leave it at that).

A few years ago I saw a young man get shot in my neighbourhood; heard shots, looked out the back window of my apartment down to the street where I used to ride my bike as a kid and saw this young man on his knees holding his chest and stomach while his friend called the police. Three weeks later this young man passed away in the hospital due to his injuries. His name was Jermaine, he was not the first or the last to die of a gunshot wound in Esplanade, and my neighbourhood is not known as a particularly dangerous one. I did not know this young man and I could choose whether to be involved or not despite our proximity; another privilege.

A few weeks later his mother came to lay flowers and ask the press for support in helping to find his murderer, she came with his girlfriend and his new baby.

This incident was the impetus for the writing of the song Black Bodies. It was different to me to feel the closeness of this violence as opposed to thinking about it academically, and I still didn’t feel the effects personally; I personally didn’t lose anyone I had a relationship with.

Black Bodies references the line in the song “Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday (later covered by Nina Simone), specifically the line “black bodies swinging in the southern breeze, strange fruit hanging from the Poplar trees.” The bridge of ‘Black Bodies’ specifically makes multiple references to the song ‘Strange Fruit.’ ‘Black Bodies’ is an attempt to re-contextualize the lynching of black people, specifically black men. At one stage people were being lynched by racists simply for being black, now, in addition to the justice system, education system, economic and social systems lynching us (statistically black people are the highest represented in prisons even where they are not the majority, highest represented in terms of drop out rates, are large populations in poverty stricken communities and are often high occupants of what some call the ‘under class) we are also highly represented as victims of violence, gun violence specifically and often from our own community. Unfortunately I now know people who “occupy both sides of the trigger” and it has changed my perspective. Some I supposed would believe that this has only to do with blacks as people, an enormous and prejudice simplification of the problem that denies so many historical, economic and social factors as to be almost laughable, if the reality completely serious (but again, I digress).

Myself and Randall Thorne (RT) started disguising a concept for the visuals for this song over a year ago; we applied for and received a VideoFACT grant (which I wasn’t expecting). The original idea was a short documentary with the mothers of victims of gun violence from different part ofToronto telling their stories form their perspective. We went and met with five families who had lost their sons to violence and listened to their stories, their frustrations, their pain and their joy. For me, despite this idea not panning out, this was the most important part of me creating this song. Unfortunately because of the sensitivity of the subject matter we ended up not being able proceed with the original idea for the video as we had envisioned it and decided to go a more traditional route due to logistics and an over-extended production schedule.

I would however like to thank all the mothers and families that we met with for sharing their stories, opening their doors and more than anything educating us about a side of these stories that I still don’t feel like has been properly explored. Thank you so much for your time, resilience, strength and vulnerability.

Below are the lyrics to the song (I thought for this one it was important). Thanks again to all the families that we spoke to and thank you to RT and Rinku for being so patient and working so hard on this project.

This video is dedicated to all those people who have lost their lives too soon.

Black Bodies (Lyrics)

(Verse 1) In the shadow of the gun the unsung live away from the sun / the river of peace it’s often the shallowest one / though once some hung to silence our voices / violence and riots for denying our choices / now the choice it’s for black boys to fall like rain / bullets make a body fold like paper cranes / our lives at a time both sacred and profane / and black folk selling black folk crack cocaine / and the business is good / customers come to visit if you live in the hood / so now we love the ghetto we believe it’s our home / the streets are our kingdom the corner our throne / we’re like flies in the fibers or spiders webs / trapped / taking orders like Simon says / we no longer court the truth but seek a bullet instead / ‘cause the world barely cares if we’re alive or dead

(Chorus) Black bodies on the concrete / falling down / calling out / save our souls / black bodies on the concrete / falling down / calling out / save us / black bodies on the concrete just like mine / we believe it’s fine / to pay no mind / black bodies on the concrete / here and there / everywhere / who really cares?

(Verse 2) Like stakes in the heart bullets like bats tend to fly after dark / so we make sure the children are home from the park / a shame, everyday another name to discuss / flood the streets with their guns and they blame it on us / always at the back of the bus as they say / Jane made the front page after boxing day / these guns you can get them off the streets of the shelves / so the youth make the purchase to protect themselves / parents unaware of what the new reality is / tragically a catastrophe where families live / and many black boys becoming men on their own / you won the lottery if you got a father at home / so we find the wrong influence looking for a father figure / don’t see the irony in why we call each other “nigger” / it kills the concept of a brother or a sister / no surprise we occupy both sides of the trigger / standing in wonder / under the cover of the sun / listen the distant thunder of the summer of the gun / put the truth right in front of our eyes we don’t see it / that’s why these young brothers say “peace” but don’t mean it / fighting wars unaware of what we’re dying for / foolish, the streets they ain’t mine of yours / so we cry and say goodbye to the lives we know / ‘cause as fast as they come they go

(Chorus)

(Bridge) Our mothers weep / for their fallen youth / in this urban war / we are the hardened troops / still on the front line / yes the strangest fruit / falling like autumn leafs / cut off from the root / no longer southern trees these days it’s city streets / what a brutal fait we force ourselves to meet / by our own hands / so those that know won’t speak / what a cost we pay for thinking life is cheap / our spirits weak / we pray our souls to keep / bullets sing lullabies for an endless sleep

(Verse 3) Like playing with flame / kids are killers now their making a name / only some but our community it’s taking the blame / though the killer knows the blame is essentially his / most folks are unaware of who the enemy is / it’s distorted, whenever a life is aborted before its time / and our kind sure can’t afford it / still it seems that the dream of the streets won’t cease / but we know that blessed are those that make peace / guns make a mockery of the life we treasure / leaving flesh twisted like treble clefs in a measure / calling out loud screaming “love” we can’t say it enough now / we’re smearing our blood on the pavement / giving the same pain / making the same claims / living the same shame / killing to maintain / because we don’t trust we doubt first / a life without worth it’s prone to outbursts / so we’re still dying / only the killer has changed / Africans once in the waves the worth of a slave / now the dope on the street is the rope on the tree / and these guns are the box kicked from under our feet / the hate is not replaced it’s the fists in the fight / respect for life it’s rotting before it’s ripe / we didn’t chose these ghettos, favelas and slums / but it seems they made these Goddamn guns… for black bodies

(peace)

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Posted in Blog, home, Video | Tagged Black, Black Bodies, bodies, Hip Hop, ian kamau, Kamau, Music, one day soon, Poetry, randall thorne, rt, Toronto, video  | Leave a comment |

50 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau; I am an artist. I believe my ability to create is tied to my purpose. I was raised in Toronto to filmmaker parents who came from Trinidad in 1970. I believe in community. My creative life actively involves my community work. I make music.

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Posted in Blog, home, Uncategorized | Tagged 50 Words, Bio, Biography  | Leave a comment |

150 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau; I am an artist. I believe that my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

I was born and raised in Toronto to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers. I grew up around ideas, information and art.

Making music has taken me around the world; it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diversity of dynamic, interesting individuals.

I believe in community. My creative life extends to my work in arts-based community projects. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life.

I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

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Posted in Blog, home, Uncategorized | Tagged 150 Words, Bio, Biography  | Leave a comment |

250 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau; I am an artist. I believe my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

I am a writer, producer and a graphic/visual artist. I perform what I write so I also consider myself a performer. I do not think of myself as an entertainer.

I was born and raised in Toronto to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers. I grew up around ideas, information, education and art. I hope my entire life will be immersed in this kind of creativity.

Art and music instigate larger conversations. While some may never go to an art gallery or theatre production the majority of us listen to and appreciate a musical form of some kind.

Making music has taken me around the world, it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diversity of interesting individuals.

I believe in community. My creative life extends to my work in community development, specifically with arts-based projects. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life.

My desire is to put my experiences into the world so that I may enter a larger conversation with people in different places. I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

Share

Posted in Blog, home, Uncategorized | Tagged 250 Words, Bio, Biography  | Leave a comment |

350 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau; I am an artist. I believe my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

I am a writer, producer and a graphic/visual artist. I perform what I write so I also consider myself a performer, I make music and write poetry; spoken word. I do not think of myself as an entertainer.

I was born and raised in Toronto to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers, my mother a producer, my father a writer and director from a family of teachers. I grew up around ideas, information, education and art. I hope my entire life will be immersed in this kind of creativity.

Art is the creative expression of our humanity. The greatest artists are those who have the ability to create inspiring work while communicating ideas and powerful messages to everyday people.

Art and music instigate larger conversations. I believe music is the greatest communicator because most of us listen to it in one form or another. While some may never go to an art gallery or theatre production the majority of us listen to and appreciate a musical form of some kind.

Making music has taken me around the world, it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diversity of interesting individuals, these conversations have helped to open my mind and my spirit.

I believe in community. My creative life extends to my work in community development, specifically with arts-based projects for young people. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life and reminds me of the importance of expression, inspiration and opportunity.

My desire is to put my thoughts and experiences into the world so that I may enter into a larger conversation with people in different places. I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

Share

Posted in Blog, home, Uncategorized | Tagged 350 Words, Bio, Biography  | Leave a comment |

500 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau, I consider myself an artist. I believe my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

Primarily I am a writer, producer and a graphic/visual artist. I perform much of what I write so I also consider myself a performer, I make music and write poetry; spoken word. I do not think of myself as an entertainer. I am interested in expression and communication through art in a variety of different forms. I’m sure that I’m not the only one.

After five years of studying fine arts and graphic design I graduated from university with a honors degree but this is by no means the end of my creative interest or outlet.

I was born and raised in Toronto, Canada to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers, my mother a producer, my father a writer and director from a family of teachers. I grew up around ideas, information, education and art. I hope my entire life will be immersed in this kind of creativity.

Art is the creative expression of our humanity. The greatest artists are those who have the ability to create compelling and inspiring work while communicating ideas, perspectives and powerful messages to everyday people. The most influential artists are everyday people themselves, with the ability to communicate in direct, expressive and still unassuming ways the thoughts and experiences of others like them, honestly. The greatest art in my estimation inspires people to take action, to be better and to see beyond their surroundings.

Art and music instigate larger conversations. I believe music is the greatest communicator because most if not all of us listen to it in one form or another. While some may never go to an art gallery or see a theatre production the majority of us listen to and appreciate a musical form of some kind.

Making music has taken me around the world, it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diverse range of interesting individuals, these conversations have helped to open my mind and my spirit.

I believe in community and community building. My creative life extends to my work in community development, specifically with arts-based projects for young people. From painting murals in downtown neighbourhoods in Toronto, to volunteering with youth hip hop projects in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Nairobi to working with the Royal Conservatory of Music. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life and reminds me of the importance of expression, inspiration and opportunity.

My desire is to put my thoughts and experiences into the world so that I may enter into a larger conversation with people in different places. I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

BLACK BODIES_ (ONE DAY SOON)

By IanKamau | Published: August 4th, 2012

This video was directed by RT for The NE the song ‘Black Bodies‘ is available on the album One Day Soon//

As I write this I am sitting in a cafe in Junction in Nairobi, Kenya; one of the places that made me decide to record the album One Day Soon. I came here after spending two months travelling through South Africa (Capetown, Port Elizabeth, East London, Grahamstown, Durban, Pretoria, Johannesburg) and am now on the verge trying to confirm a trip/show in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

I have been away from Toronto, for almost twelve weeks in a particularly violent summer for the city. Anyone who has worked with young people in the areas affectionately branded (yes I mean branded) as ‘priority neighbourhoods’ by government and large non-profit agencies knows that this type of violence is not unprecedented, unfortunately in many parts of Toronto it is quite regular.

What is different about this violence, as in the case of Jane Creba on boxing day a few years ago, is that these shootings have been ‘random,’ they have put people in danger who don’t usually feel that they are vulnerable to this type of violence and that freaks them/us out. What incidents like this should reveal is how privileged many of us are to live in relative safety. Many people around Toronto and many people around the globe do not enjoy this type of privilege. For some reason we are more afraid of ‘random’ violence because it might take the lives of ‘innocent’ people. The idea of ‘innocence’ is however a value judgement on human life. ‘Innocent’ people are more valuable than ‘the guilty’ by societies standards. Unfortunately ‘guilt’ is often perceived. I’ll explain. When I walk into banks, corner stores and certain neighbourhoods I personally can be perceived as potentially guilty or at least worthy of fear despite my good intention, it comes along with the territory of being a black male in North America (and almost anywhere else in the world quite frankly).

Many young people in Toronto, often but not exclusively black , often but not exclusively male have lost their lives in Rexdale, Jane & Finch, Esplanade, Jungle, P.O., Regent Park, Blake Street, Malvern etc. etc. etc. for a long time and there hasn’t been this kind of outrage as the Jane Creba shooting or the Eaton Centre shooting that happened a few weeks back. All loss of life is tragic because all life is valuable. We show our entitlement when we think our safety is worth more than the many people who live with this kind of violence every day as a result of their economic standing, physical environment or social standing. If you are more upset by Jane Creba than Chantel Dunn for instance, you might be practicing this form or prejudice, as a matter of fact, if you live in Toronto and you know the name Jane Creba and not the name Chantel Dunn you might be subject to our medias prejudice. Why are we more outraged when this happens close to us? Why are we more outraged when the victim looks like us? What is the value of a human life?

It is spectacularly short-sighted to think that the answer to this type of violence is throwing money at the issue, more police, tougher jail sentences or kicking people out of the city (a suggestion from our amazingly short sighted Toronto mayor). If I continued to have faith in the non-profit sector I might say that the answer is more programs or something cliche like that, but unfortunately I don’t believe that the answer as that simple. The answer is somewhere in what our society values and what society does not value (I feel like I could write an entire book on society and value.. so I’ll just leave it at that).

A few years ago I saw a young man get shot in my neighbourhood; heard shots, looked out the back window of my apartment down to the street where I used to ride my bike as a kid and saw this young man on his knees holding his chest and stomach while his friend called the police. Three weeks later this young man passed away in the hospital due to his injuries. His name was Jermaine, he was not the first or the last to die of a gunshot wound in Esplanade, and my neighbourhood is not known as a particularly dangerous one. I did not know this young man and I could choose whether to be involved or not despite our proximity; another privilege.

A few weeks later his mother came to lay flowers and ask the press for support in helping to find his murderer, she came with his girlfriend and his new baby.

This incident was the impetus for the writing of the song Black Bodies. It was different to me to feel the closeness of this violence as opposed to thinking about it academically, and I still didn’t feel the effects personally; I personally didn’t lose anyone I had a relationship with.

Black Bodies references the line in the song “Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday (later covered by Nina Simone), specifically the line “black bodies swinging in the southern breeze, strange fruit hanging from the Poplar trees.” The bridge of ‘Black Bodies’ specifically makes multiple references to the song ‘Strange Fruit.’ ‘Black Bodies’ is an attempt to re-contextualize the lynching of black people, specifically black men. At one stage people were being lynched by racists simply for being black, now, in addition to the justice system, education system, economic and social systems lynching us (statistically black people are the highest represented in prisons even where they are not the majority, highest represented in terms of drop out rates, are large populations in poverty stricken communities and are often high occupants of what some call the ‘under class) we are also highly represented as victims of violence, gun violence specifically and often from our own community. Unfortunately I now know people who “occupy both sides of the trigger” and it has changed my perspective. Some I supposed would believe that this has only to do with blacks as people, an enormous and prejudice simplification of the problem that denies so many historical, economic and social factors as to be almost laughable, if the reality completely serious (but again, I digress).

Myself and Randall Thorne (RT) started disguising a concept for the visuals for this song over a year ago; we applied for and received a VideoFACT grant (which I wasn’t expecting). The original idea was a short documentary with the mothers of victims of gun violence from different part ofToronto telling their stories form their perspective. We went and met with five families who had lost their sons to violence and listened to their stories, their frustrations, their pain and their joy. For me, despite this idea not panning out, this was the most important part of me creating this song. Unfortunately because of the sensitivity of the subject matter we ended up not being able proceed with the original idea for the video as we had envisioned it and decided to go a more traditional route due to logistics and an over-extended production schedule.

I would however like to thank all the mothers and families that we met with for sharing their stories, opening their doors and more than anything educating us about a side of these stories that I still don’t feel like has been properly explored. Thank you so much for your time, resilience, strength and vulnerability.

Below are the lyrics to the song (I thought for this one it was important). Thanks again to all the families that we spoke to and thank you to RT and Rinku for being so patient and working so hard on this project.

This video is dedicated to all those people who have lost their lives too soon.

Black Bodies (Lyrics)

(Verse 1) In the shadow of the gun the unsung live away from the sun / the river of peace it’s often the shallowest one / though once some hung to silence our voices / violence and riots for denying our choices / now the choice it’s for black boys to fall like rain / bullets make a body fold like paper cranes / our lives at a time both sacred and profane / and black folk selling black folk crack cocaine / and the business is good / customers come to visit if you live in the hood / so now we love the ghetto we believe it’s our home / the streets are our kingdom the corner our throne / we’re like flies in the fibers or spiders webs / trapped / taking orders like Simon says / we no longer court the truth but seek a bullet instead / ‘cause the world barely cares if we’re alive or dead

(Chorus) Black bodies on the concrete / falling down / calling out / save our souls / black bodies on the concrete / falling down / calling out / save us / black bodies on the concrete just like mine / we believe it’s fine / to pay no mind / black bodies on the concrete / here and there / everywhere / who really cares?

(Verse 2) Like stakes in the heart bullets like bats tend to fly after dark / so we make sure the children are home from the park / a shame, everyday another name to discuss / flood the streets with their guns and they blame it on us / always at the back of the bus as they say / Jane made the front page after boxing day / these guns you can get them off the streets of the shelves / so the youth make the purchase to protect themselves / parents unaware of what the new reality is / tragically a catastrophe where families live / and many black boys becoming men on their own / you won the lottery if you got a father at home / so we find the wrong influence looking for a father figure / don’t see the irony in why we call each other “nigger” / it kills the concept of a brother or a sister / no surprise we occupy both sides of the trigger / standing in wonder / under the cover of the sun / listen the distant thunder of the summer of the gun / put the truth right in front of our eyes we don’t see it / that’s why these young brothers say “peace” but don’t mean it / fighting wars unaware of what we’re dying for / foolish, the streets they ain’t mine of yours / so we cry and say goodbye to the lives we know / ‘cause as fast as they come they go

(Chorus)

(Bridge) Our mothers weep / for their fallen youth / in this urban war / we are the hardened troops / still on the front line / yes the strangest fruit / falling like autumn leafs / cut off from the root / no longer southern trees these days it’s city streets / what a brutal fait we force ourselves to meet / by our own hands / so those that know won’t speak / what a cost we pay for thinking life is cheap / our spirits weak / we pray our souls to keep / bullets sing lullabies for an endless sleep

(Verse 3) Like playing with flame / kids are killers now their making a name / only some but our community it’s taking the blame / though the killer knows the blame is essentially his / most folks are unaware of who the enemy is / it’s distorted, whenever a life is aborted before its time / and our kind sure can’t afford it / still it seems that the dream of the streets won’t cease / but we know that blessed are those that make peace / guns make a mockery of the life we treasure / leaving flesh twisted like treble clefs in a measure / calling out loud screaming “love” we can’t say it enough now / we’re smearing our blood on the pavement / giving the same pain / making the same claims / living the same shame / killing to maintain / because we don’t trust we doubt first / a life without worth it’s prone to outbursts / so we’re still dying / only the killer has changed / Africans once in the waves the worth of a slave / now the dope on the street is the rope on the tree / and these guns are the box kicked from under our feet / the hate is not replaced it’s the fists in the fight / respect for life it’s rotting before it’s ripe / we didn’t chose these ghettos, favelas and slums / but it seems they made these Goddamn guns… for black bodies

(peace)

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Posted in Blog, home, Video | Tagged Black, Black Bodies, bodies, Hip Hop, ian kamau, Kamau, Music, one day soon, Poetry, randall thorne, rt, Toronto, video  | Leave a comment |

50 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau; I am an artist. I believe my ability to create is tied to my purpose. I was raised in Toronto to filmmaker parents who came from Trinidad in 1970. I believe in community. My creative life actively involves my community work. I make music.

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150 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau; I am an artist. I believe that my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

I was born and raised in Toronto to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers. I grew up around ideas, information and art.

Making music has taken me around the world; it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diversity of dynamic, interesting individuals.

I believe in community. My creative life extends to my work in arts-based community projects. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life.

I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

Share

Posted in Blog, home, Uncategorized | Tagged 150 Words, Bio, Biography  | Leave a comment |

250 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau; I am an artist. I believe my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

I am a writer, producer and a graphic/visual artist. I perform what I write so I also consider myself a performer. I do not think of myself as an entertainer.

I was born and raised in Toronto to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers. I grew up around ideas, information, education and art. I hope my entire life will be immersed in this kind of creativity.

Art and music instigate larger conversations. While some may never go to an art gallery or theatre production the majority of us listen to and appreciate a musical form of some kind.

Making music has taken me around the world, it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diversity of interesting individuals.

I believe in community. My creative life extends to my work in community development, specifically with arts-based projects. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life.

My desire is to put my experiences into the world so that I may enter a larger conversation with people in different places. I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

Share

Posted in Blog, home, Uncategorized | Tagged 250 Words, Bio, Biography  | Leave a comment |

350 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau; I am an artist. I believe my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

I am a writer, producer and a graphic/visual artist. I perform what I write so I also consider myself a performer, I make music and write poetry; spoken word. I do not think of myself as an entertainer.

I was born and raised in Toronto to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers, my mother a producer, my father a writer and director from a family of teachers. I grew up around ideas, information, education and art. I hope my entire life will be immersed in this kind of creativity.

Art is the creative expression of our humanity. The greatest artists are those who have the ability to create inspiring work while communicating ideas and powerful messages to everyday people.

Art and music instigate larger conversations. I believe music is the greatest communicator because most of us listen to it in one form or another. While some may never go to an art gallery or theatre production the majority of us listen to and appreciate a musical form of some kind.

Making music has taken me around the world, it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diversity of interesting individuals, these conversations have helped to open my mind and my spirit.

I believe in community. My creative life extends to my work in community development, specifically with arts-based projects for young people. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life and reminds me of the importance of expression, inspiration and opportunity.

My desire is to put my thoughts and experiences into the world so that I may enter into a larger conversation with people in different places. I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

Share

Posted in Blog, home, Uncategorized | Tagged 350 Words, Bio, Biography  | Leave a comment |

500 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau, I consider myself an artist. I believe my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

Primarily I am a writer, producer and a graphic/visual artist. I perform much of what I write so I also consider myself a performer, I make music and write poetry; spoken word. I do not think of myself as an entertainer. I am interested in expression and communication through art in a variety of different forms. I’m sure that I’m not the only one.

After five years of studying fine arts and graphic design I graduated from university with a honors degree but this is by no means the end of my creative interest or outlet.

I was born and raised in Toronto, Canada to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers, my mother a producer, my father a writer and director from a family of teachers. I grew up around ideas, information, education and art. I hope my entire life will be immersed in this kind of creativity.

Art is the creative expression of our humanity. The greatest artists are those who have the ability to create compelling and inspiring work while communicating ideas, perspectives and powerful messages to everyday people. The most influential artists are everyday people themselves, with the ability to communicate in direct, expressive and still unassuming ways the thoughts and experiences of others like them, honestly. The greatest art in my estimation inspires people to take action, to be better and to see beyond their surroundings.

Art and music instigate larger conversations. I believe music is the greatest communicator because most if not all of us listen to it in one form or another. While some may never go to an art gallery or see a theatre production the majority of us listen to and appreciate a musical form of some kind.

Making music has taken me around the world, it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diverse range of interesting individuals, these conversations have helped to open my mind and my spirit.

I believe in community and community building. My creative life extends to my work in community development, specifically with arts-based projects for young people. From painting murals in downtown neighbourhoods in Toronto, to volunteering with youth hip hop projects in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Nairobi to working with the Royal Conservatory of Music. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life and reminds me of the importance of expression, inspiration and opportunity.

My desire is to put my thoughts and experiences into the world so that I may enter into a larger conversation with people in different places. I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

BLACK BODIES_ (ONE DAY SOON)

By IanKamau | Published: August 4th, 2012

This video was directed by RT for The NE the song ‘Black Bodies‘ is available on the album One Day Soon//

As I write this I am sitting in a cafe in Junction in Nairobi, Kenya; one of the places that made me decide to record the album One Day Soon. I came here after spending two months travelling through South Africa (Capetown, Port Elizabeth, East London, Grahamstown, Durban, Pretoria, Johannesburg) and am now on the verge trying to confirm a trip/show in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

I have been away from Toronto, for almost twelve weeks in a particularly violent summer for the city. Anyone who has worked with young people in the areas affectionately branded (yes I mean branded) as ‘priority neighbourhoods’ by government and large non-profit agencies knows that this type of violence is not unprecedented, unfortunately in many parts of Toronto it is quite regular.

What is different about this violence, as in the case of Jane Creba on boxing day a few years ago, is that these shootings have been ‘random,’ they have put people in danger who don’t usually feel that they are vulnerable to this type of violence and that freaks them/us out. What incidents like this should reveal is how privileged many of us are to live in relative safety. Many people around Toronto and many people around the globe do not enjoy this type of privilege. For some reason we are more afraid of ‘random’ violence because it might take the lives of ‘innocent’ people. The idea of ‘innocence’ is however a value judgement on human life. ‘Innocent’ people are more valuable than ‘the guilty’ by societies standards. Unfortunately ‘guilt’ is often perceived. I’ll explain. When I walk into banks, corner stores and certain neighbourhoods I personally can be perceived as potentially guilty or at least worthy of fear despite my good intention, it comes along with the territory of being a black male in North America (and almost anywhere else in the world quite frankly).

Many young people in Toronto, often but not exclusively black , often but not exclusively male have lost their lives in Rexdale, Jane & Finch, Esplanade, Jungle, P.O., Regent Park, Blake Street, Malvern etc. etc. etc. for a long time and there hasn’t been this kind of outrage as the Jane Creba shooting or the Eaton Centre shooting that happened a few weeks back. All loss of life is tragic because all life is valuable. We show our entitlement when we think our safety is worth more than the many people who live with this kind of violence every day as a result of their economic standing, physical environment or social standing. If you are more upset by Jane Creba than Chantel Dunn for instance, you might be practicing this form or prejudice, as a matter of fact, if you live in Toronto and you know the name Jane Creba and not the name Chantel Dunn you might be subject to our medias prejudice. Why are we more outraged when this happens close to us? Why are we more outraged when the victim looks like us? What is the value of a human life?

It is spectacularly short-sighted to think that the answer to this type of violence is throwing money at the issue, more police, tougher jail sentences or kicking people out of the city (a suggestion from our amazingly short sighted Toronto mayor). If I continued to have faith in the non-profit sector I might say that the answer is more programs or something cliche like that, but unfortunately I don’t believe that the answer as that simple. The answer is somewhere in what our society values and what society does not value (I feel like I could write an entire book on society and value.. so I’ll just leave it at that).

A few years ago I saw a young man get shot in my neighbourhood; heard shots, looked out the back window of my apartment down to the street where I used to ride my bike as a kid and saw this young man on his knees holding his chest and stomach while his friend called the police. Three weeks later this young man passed away in the hospital due to his injuries. His name was Jermaine, he was not the first or the last to die of a gunshot wound in Esplanade, and my neighbourhood is not known as a particularly dangerous one. I did not know this young man and I could choose whether to be involved or not despite our proximity; another privilege.

A few weeks later his mother came to lay flowers and ask the press for support in helping to find his murderer, she came with his girlfriend and his new baby.

This incident was the impetus for the writing of the song Black Bodies. It was different to me to feel the closeness of this violence as opposed to thinking about it academically, and I still didn’t feel the effects personally; I personally didn’t lose anyone I had a relationship with.

Black Bodies references the line in the song “Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday (later covered by Nina Simone), specifically the line “black bodies swinging in the southern breeze, strange fruit hanging from the Poplar trees.” The bridge of ‘Black Bodies’ specifically makes multiple references to the song ‘Strange Fruit.’ ‘Black Bodies’ is an attempt to re-contextualize the lynching of black people, specifically black men. At one stage people were being lynched by racists simply for being black, now, in addition to the justice system, education system, economic and social systems lynching us (statistically black people are the highest represented in prisons even where they are not the majority, highest represented in terms of drop out rates, are large populations in poverty stricken communities and are often high occupants of what some call the ‘under class) we are also highly represented as victims of violence, gun violence specifically and often from our own community. Unfortunately I now know people who “occupy both sides of the trigger” and it has changed my perspective. Some I supposed would believe that this has only to do with blacks as people, an enormous and prejudice simplification of the problem that denies so many historical, economic and social factors as to be almost laughable, if the reality completely serious (but again, I digress).

Myself and Randall Thorne (RT) started disguising a concept for the visuals for this song over a year ago; we applied for and received a VideoFACT grant (which I wasn’t expecting). The original idea was a short documentary with the mothers of victims of gun violence from different part ofToronto telling their stories form their perspective. We went and met with five families who had lost their sons to violence and listened to their stories, their frustrations, their pain and their joy. For me, despite this idea not panning out, this was the most important part of me creating this song. Unfortunately because of the sensitivity of the subject matter we ended up not being able proceed with the original idea for the video as we had envisioned it and decided to go a more traditional route due to logistics and an over-extended production schedule.

I would however like to thank all the mothers and families that we met with for sharing their stories, opening their doors and more than anything educating us about a side of these stories that I still don’t feel like has been properly explored. Thank you so much for your time, resilience, strength and vulnerability.

Below are the lyrics to the song (I thought for this one it was important). Thanks again to all the families that we spoke to and thank you to RT and Rinku for being so patient and working so hard on this project.

This video is dedicated to all those people who have lost their lives too soon.

Black Bodies (Lyrics)

(Verse 1) In the shadow of the gun the unsung live away from the sun / the river of peace it’s often the shallowest one / though once some hung to silence our voices / violence and riots for denying our choices / now the choice it’s for black boys to fall like rain / bullets make a body fold like paper cranes / our lives at a time both sacred and profane / and black folk selling black folk crack cocaine / and the business is good / customers come to visit if you live in the hood / so now we love the ghetto we believe it’s our home / the streets are our kingdom the corner our throne / we’re like flies in the fibers or spiders webs / trapped / taking orders like Simon says / we no longer court the truth but seek a bullet instead / ‘cause the world barely cares if we’re alive or dead

(Chorus) Black bodies on the concrete / falling down / calling out / save our souls / black bodies on the concrete / falling down / calling out / save us / black bodies on the concrete just like mine / we believe it’s fine / to pay no mind / black bodies on the concrete / here and there / everywhere / who really cares?

(Verse 2) Like stakes in the heart bullets like bats tend to fly after dark / so we make sure the children are home from the park / a shame, everyday another name to discuss / flood the streets with their guns and they blame it on us / always at the back of the bus as they say / Jane made the front page after boxing day / these guns you can get them off the streets of the shelves / so the youth make the purchase to protect themselves / parents unaware of what the new reality is / tragically a catastrophe where families live / and many black boys becoming men on their own / you won the lottery if you got a father at home / so we find the wrong influence looking for a father figure / don’t see the irony in why we call each other “nigger” / it kills the concept of a brother or a sister / no surprise we occupy both sides of the trigger / standing in wonder / under the cover of the sun / listen the distant thunder of the summer of the gun / put the truth right in front of our eyes we don’t see it / that’s why these young brothers say “peace” but don’t mean it / fighting wars unaware of what we’re dying for / foolish, the streets they ain’t mine of yours / so we cry and say goodbye to the lives we know / ‘cause as fast as they come they go

(Chorus)

(Bridge) Our mothers weep / for their fallen youth / in this urban war / we are the hardened troops / still on the front line / yes the strangest fruit / falling like autumn leafs / cut off from the root / no longer southern trees these days it’s city streets / what a brutal fait we force ourselves to meet / by our own hands / so those that know won’t speak / what a cost we pay for thinking life is cheap / our spirits weak / we pray our souls to keep / bullets sing lullabies for an endless sleep

(Verse 3) Like playing with flame / kids are killers now their making a name / only some but our community it’s taking the blame / though the killer knows the blame is essentially his / most folks are unaware of who the enemy is / it’s distorted, whenever a life is aborted before its time / and our kind sure can’t afford it / still it seems that the dream of the streets won’t cease / but we know that blessed are those that make peace / guns make a mockery of the life we treasure / leaving flesh twisted like treble clefs in a measure / calling out loud screaming “love” we can’t say it enough now / we’re smearing our blood on the pavement / giving the same pain / making the same claims / living the same shame / killing to maintain / because we don’t trust we doubt first / a life without worth it’s prone to outbursts / so we’re still dying / only the killer has changed / Africans once in the waves the worth of a slave / now the dope on the street is the rope on the tree / and these guns are the box kicked from under our feet / the hate is not replaced it’s the fists in the fight / respect for life it’s rotting before it’s ripe / we didn’t chose these ghettos, favelas and slums / but it seems they made these Goddamn guns… for black bodies

(peace)

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Posted in Blog, home, Video | Tagged Black, Black Bodies, bodies, Hip Hop, ian kamau, Kamau, Music, one day soon, Poetry, randall thorne, rt, Toronto, video  | Leave a comment |

50 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau; I am an artist. I believe my ability to create is tied to my purpose. I was raised in Toronto to filmmaker parents who came from Trinidad in 1970. I believe in community. My creative life actively involves my community work. I make music.

Share

Posted in Blog, home, Uncategorized | Tagged 50 Words, Bio, Biography  | Leave a comment |

150 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau; I am an artist. I believe that my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

I was born and raised in Toronto to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers. I grew up around ideas, information and art.

Making music has taken me around the world; it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diversity of dynamic, interesting individuals.

I believe in community. My creative life extends to my work in arts-based community projects. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life.

I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

Share

Posted in Blog, home, Uncategorized | Tagged 150 Words, Bio, Biography  | Leave a comment |

250 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau; I am an artist. I believe my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

I am a writer, producer and a graphic/visual artist. I perform what I write so I also consider myself a performer. I do not think of myself as an entertainer.

I was born and raised in Toronto to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers. I grew up around ideas, information, education and art. I hope my entire life will be immersed in this kind of creativity.

Art and music instigate larger conversations. While some may never go to an art gallery or theatre production the majority of us listen to and appreciate a musical form of some kind.

Making music has taken me around the world, it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diversity of interesting individuals.

I believe in community. My creative life extends to my work in community development, specifically with arts-based projects. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life.

My desire is to put my experiences into the world so that I may enter a larger conversation with people in different places. I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

Share

Posted in Blog, home, Uncategorized | Tagged 250 Words, Bio, Biography  | Leave a comment |

350 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau; I am an artist. I believe my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

I am a writer, producer and a graphic/visual artist. I perform what I write so I also consider myself a performer, I make music and write poetry; spoken word. I do not think of myself as an entertainer.

I was born and raised in Toronto to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers, my mother a producer, my father a writer and director from a family of teachers. I grew up around ideas, information, education and art. I hope my entire life will be immersed in this kind of creativity.

Art is the creative expression of our humanity. The greatest artists are those who have the ability to create inspiring work while communicating ideas and powerful messages to everyday people.

Art and music instigate larger conversations. I believe music is the greatest communicator because most of us listen to it in one form or another. While some may never go to an art gallery or theatre production the majority of us listen to and appreciate a musical form of some kind.

Making music has taken me around the world, it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diversity of interesting individuals, these conversations have helped to open my mind and my spirit.

I believe in community. My creative life extends to my work in community development, specifically with arts-based projects for young people. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life and reminds me of the importance of expression, inspiration and opportunity.

My desire is to put my thoughts and experiences into the world so that I may enter into a larger conversation with people in different places. I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

Share

Posted in Blog, home, Uncategorized | Tagged 350 Words, Bio, Biography  | Leave a comment |

500 Word Bio

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

My name is Ian Kamau, I consider myself an artist. I believe my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

Primarily I am a writer, producer and a graphic/visual artist. I perform much of what I write so I also consider myself a performer, I make music and write poetry; spoken word. I do not think of myself as an entertainer. I am interested in expression and communication through art in a variety of different forms. I’m sure that I’m not the only one.

After five years of studying fine arts and graphic design I graduated from university with a honors degree but this is by no means the end of my creative interest or outlet.

I was born and raised in Toronto, Canada to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers, my mother a producer, my father a writer and director from a family of teachers. I grew up around ideas, information, education and art. I hope my entire life will be immersed in this kind of creativity.

Art is the creative expression of our humanity. The greatest artists are those who have the ability to create compelling and inspiring work while communicating ideas, perspectives and powerful messages to everyday people. The most influential artists are everyday people themselves, with the ability to communicate in direct, expressive and still unassuming ways the thoughts and experiences of others like them, honestly. The greatest art in my estimation inspires people to take action, to be better and to see beyond their surroundings.

Art and music instigate larger conversations. I believe music is the greatest communicator because most if not all of us listen to it in one form or another. While some may never go to an art gallery or see a theatre production the majority of us listen to and appreciate a musical form of some kind.

Making music has taken me around the world, it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diverse range of interesting individuals, these conversations have helped to open my mind and my spirit.

I believe in community and community building. My creative life extends to my work in community development, specifically with arts-based projects for young people. From painting murals in downtown neighbourhoods in Toronto, to volunteering with youth hip hop projects in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Nairobi to working with the Royal Conservatory of Music. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life and reminds me of the importance of expression, inspiration and opportunity.

My desire is to put my thoughts and experiences into the world so that I may enter into a larger conversation with people in different places. I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

IAN KAMAU

Black Bodies

By IanKamau | Published: August 4th, 2012

 

This video was directed by RT for The NE the song ‘Black Bodies‘ is available on the album One Day Soon//

As I write this I am sitting in a cafe in Junction in Nairobi, Kenya; one of the places that made me decide to record the album One Day Soon. I came here after spending two months travelling through South Africa (Capetown, Port Elizabeth, East London, Grahamstown, Durban, Pretoria, Johannesburg) and am now on the verge trying to confirm a trip/show in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

I have been away from Toronto, for almost twelve weeks in a particularly violent summer for the city. Anyone who has worked with young people in the areas affectionately branded (yes I mean branded) as ‘priority neighbourhoods’ by government and large non-profit agencies knows that this type of violence is not unprecedented, unfortunately in many parts of Toronto it is quite regular.

What is different about this violence, as in the case of Jane Creba on boxing day a few years ago, is that these shootings have been ‘random,’ they have put people in danger who don’t usually feel that they are vulnerable to this type of violence and that freaks them/us out. What incidents like this should reveal is how privileged many of us are to live in relative safety. Many people around Toronto and many people around the globe do not enjoy this type of privilege. For some reason we are more afraid of ‘random’ violence because it might take the lives of ‘innocent’ people. The idea of ‘innocence’ is however a value judgement on human life. ‘Innocent’ people are more valuable than ‘the guilty’ by societies standards. Unfortunately ‘guilt’ is often perceived. I’ll explain. When I walk into banks, corner stores and certain neighbourhoods I personally can be perceived as potentially guilty or at least worthy of fear despite my good intention, it comes along with the territory of being a black male in North America (and almost anywhere else in the world quite frankly).

Many young people in Toronto, often but not exclusively black , often but not exclusively male have lost their lives in Rexdale, Jane & Finch, Esplanade, Jungle, P.O., Regent Park, Blake Street, Malvern etc. etc. etc. for a long time and there hasn’t been this kind of outrage as the Jane Creba shooting or the Eaton Centre shooting that happened a few weeks back. All loss of life is tragic because all life is valuable. We show our entitlement when we think our safety is worth more than the many people who live with this kind of violence every day as a result of their economic standing, physical environment or social standing. If you are more upset by Jane Creba than Chantel Dunn for instance, you might be practicing this form or prejudice, as a matter of fact, if you live in Toronto and you know the name Jane Creba and not the name Chantel Dunn you might be subject to our medias prejudice. Why are we more outraged when this happens close to us? Why are we more outraged when the victim looks like us? What is the value of a human life?

It is spectacularly short-sighted to think that the answer to this type of violence is throwing money at the issue, more police, tougher jail sentences or kicking people out of the city (a suggestion from our amazingly short sighted Toronto mayor). If I continued to have faith in the non-profit sector I might say that the answer is more programs or something cliche like that, but unfortunately I don’t believe that the answer as that simple. The answer is somewhere in what our society values and what society does not value (I feel like I could write an entire book on society and value.. so I’ll just leave it at that).

A few years ago I saw a young man get shot in my neighbourhood; heard shots, looked out the back window of my apartment down to the street where I used to ride my bike as a kid and saw this young man on his knees holding his chest and stomach while his friend called the police. Three weeks later this young man passed away in the hospital due to his injuries. His name was Jermaine, he was not the first or the last to die of a gunshot wound in Esplanade, and my neighbourhood is not known as a particularly dangerous one. I did not know this young man and I could choose whether to be involved or not despite our proximity; another privilege.

A few weeks later his mother came to lay flowers and ask the press for support in helping to find his murderer, she came with his girlfriend and his new baby.

This incident was the impetus for the writing of the song Black Bodies. It was different to me to feel the closeness of this violence as opposed to thinking about it academically, and I still didn’t feel the effects personally; I personally didn’t lose anyone I had a relationship with.

Black Bodies references the line in the song “Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday (later covered by Nina Simone), specifically the line “black bodies swinging in the southern breeze, strange fruit hanging from the Poplar trees.” The bridge of ‘Black Bodies’ specifically makes multiple references to the song ‘Strange Fruit.’ ‘Black Bodies’ is an attempt to re-contextualize the lynching of black people, specifically black men. At one stage people were being lynched by racists simply for being black, now, in addition to the justice system, education system, economic and social systems lynching us (statistically black people are the highest represented in prisons even where they are not the majority, highest represented in terms of drop out rates, are large populations in poverty stricken communities and are often high occupants of what some call the ‘under class) we are also highly represented as victims of violence, gun violence specifically and often from our own community. Unfortunately I now know people who “occupy both sides of the trigger” and it has changed my perspective. Some I supposed would believe that this has only to do with blacks as people, an enormous and prejudice simplification of the problem that denies so many historical, economic and social factors as to be almost laughable, if the reality completely serious (but again, I digress).

Myself and Randall Thorne (RT) started disguising a concept for the visuals for this song over a year ago; we applied for and received a VideoFACT grant (which I wasn’t expecting). The original idea was a short documentary with the mothers of victims of gun violence from different part ofToronto telling their stories form their perspective. We went and met with five families who had lost their sons to violence and listened to their stories, their frustrations, their pain and their joy. For me, despite this idea not panning out, this was the most important part of me creating this song. Unfortunately because of the sensitivity of the subject matter we ended up not being able proceed with the original idea for the video as we had envisioned it and decided to go a more traditional route due to logistics and an over-extended production schedule.

I would however like to thank all the mothers and families that we met with for sharing their stories, opening their doors and more than anything educating us about a side of these stories that I still don’t feel like has been properly explored. Thank you so much for your time, resilience, strength and vulnerability.

Below are the lyrics to the song (I thought for this one it was important). Thanks again to all the families that we spoke to and thank you to RT and Rinku for being so patient and working so hard on this project.

This video is dedicated to all those people who have lost their lives too soon.

Black Bodies (Lyrics)

(Verse 1) In the shadow of the gun the unsung live away from the sun / the river of peace it’s often the shallowest one / though once some hung to silence our voices / violence and riots for denying our choices / now the choice it’s for black boys to fall like rain / bullets make a body fold like paper cranes / our lives at a time both sacred and profane / and black folk selling black folk crack cocaine / and the business is good / customers come to visit if you live in the hood / so now we love the ghetto we believe it’s our home / the streets are our kingdom the corner our throne / we’re like flies in the fibers or spiders webs / trapped / taking orders like Simon says / we no longer court the truth but seek a bullet instead / ‘cause the world barely cares if we’re alive or dead

(Chorus) Black bodies on the concrete / falling down / calling out / save our souls / black bodies on the concrete / falling down / calling out / save us / black bodies on the concrete just like mine / we believe it’s fine / to pay no mind / black bodies on the concrete / here and there / everywhere / who really cares?

(Verse 2) Like stakes in the heart bullets like bats tend to fly after dark / so we make sure the children are home from the park / a shame, everyday another name to discuss / flood the streets with their guns and they blame it on us / always at the back of the bus as they say / Jane made the front page after boxing day / these guns you can get them off the streets of the shelves / so the youth make the purchase to protect themselves / parents unaware of what the new reality is / tragically a catastrophe where families live / and many black boys becoming men on their own / you won the lottery if you got a father at home / so we find the wrong influence looking for a father figure / don’t see the irony in why we call each other “nigger” / it kills the concept of a brother or a sister / no surprise we occupy both sides of the trigger / standing in wonder / under the cover of the sun / listen the distant thunder of the summer of the gun / put the truth right in front of our eyes we don’t see it / that’s why these young brothers say “peace” but don’t mean it / fighting wars unaware of what we’re dying for / foolish, the streets they ain’t mine of yours / so we cry and say goodbye to the lives we know / ‘cause as fast as they come they go

(Chorus)

(Bridge) Our mothers weep / for their fallen youth / in this urban war / we are the hardened troops / still on the front line / yes the strangest fruit / falling like autumn leafs / cut off from the root / no longer southern trees these days it’s city streets / what a brutal fait we force ourselves to meet / by our own hands / so those that know won’t speak / what a cost we pay for thinking life is cheap / our spirits weak / we pray our souls to keep / bullets sing lullabies for an endless sleep

(Verse 3) Like playing with flame / kids are killers now their making a name / only some but our community it’s taking the blame / though the killer knows the blame is essentially his / most folks are unaware of who the enemy is / it’s distorted, whenever a life is aborted before its time / and our kind sure can’t afford it / still it seems that the dream of the streets won’t cease / but we know that blessed are those that make peace / guns make a mockery of the life we treasure / leaving flesh twisted like treble clefs in a measure / calling out loud screaming “love” we can’t say it enough now / we’re smearing our blood on the pavement / giving the same pain / making the same claims / living the same shame / killing to maintain / because we don’t trust we doubt first / a life without worth it’s prone to outbursts / so we’re still dying / only the killer has changed / Africans once in the waves the worth of a slave / now the dope on the street is the rope on the tree / and these guns are the box kicked from under our feet / the hate is not replaced it’s the fists in the fight / respect for life it’s rotting before it’s ripe / we didn’t chose these ghettos, favelas and slums / but it seems they made these Goddamn guns… for black bodies

(peace)

 

By IanKamau | Published: July 1st, 2011

 

<p>Spoken Honestly: Ian Kamau from StudioFeed on Vimeo.</p>

My name is Ian Kamau, I consider myself an artist. I believe my ability to create and communicate is intimately tied to my purpose in life although I am unsure of exactly how.

Primarily I am a writer, producer and a graphic/visual artist. I perform much of what I write so I also consider myself a performer, I make music and write poetry; spoken word. I do not think of myself as an entertainer. I am interested in expression and communication through art in a variety of different forms. I’m sure that I’m not the only one.

After five years of studying fine arts and graphic design I graduated from university with a honors degree but this is by no means the end of my creative interest or outlet.

I was born and raised in Toronto, Canada to Trinidadian parents who immigrated to North America in 1970. My parents are documentary filmmakers, my mother a producer, my father a writer and director from a family of teachers. I grew up around ideas, information, education and art. I hope my entire life will be immersed in this kind of creativity.

Art is the creative expression of our humanity. The greatest artists are those who have the ability to create compelling and inspiring work while communicating ideas, perspectives and powerful messages to everyday people. The most influential artists are everyday people themselves, with the ability to communicate in direct, expressive and still unassuming ways the thoughts and experiences of others like them, honestly. The greatest art in my estimation inspires people to take action, to be better and to see beyond their surroundings.

Art and music instigate larger conversations. I believe music is the greatest communicator because most if not all of us listen to it in one form or another. While some may never go to an art gallery or see a theatre production the majority of us listen to and appreciate a musical form of some kind.

Making music has taken me around the world, it has opened doors to experiences I never dreamed I would have and has put me in the position to have conversations with a diverse range of interesting individuals, these conversations have helped to open my mind and my spirit.

I believe in community and community building. My creative life extends to my work in community development, specifically with arts-based projects for young people. From painting murals in downtown neighbourhoods in Toronto, to volunteering with youth hip hop projects in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Nairobi to working with the Royal Conservatory of Music. That side of my life has always run parallel to my artistic life and reminds me of the importance of expression, inspiration and opportunity.

My desire is to put my thoughts and experiences into the world so that I may enter into a larger conversation with people in different places. I am an artist who wants to continue to be creative and support others in being creative while finding my purpose.

Big Frizzle

All Black Everything:

Big Frizzle’s ‘Africa’

September 14, 2012 By Tom Devriendt 

This music video for Big Frizzle’s ‘All Black Everything’, produced by London-based media house GlobalFaction made me wonder about GlobalFaction’s politics, and their use of imagery. I’m struck by the flood of historical images featuring in recent Congo-related music videos. Congo, in many music videos, gets often used as a stand-in for ‘Africa’ in general. And Big Frizzle’s, I’d say, is just one more example. The list is long. Especially but not exclusively, as this video shows, francophone rappers. It shouldn’t come as a surprise of course. Photos, documentaries from colonial archives, fiction films and clips of those films started to circulate ever since the arrival of YouTube or DailyMotion, and (music) video makers have been having a ball downloading and pasting them to conscious and less conscious lyrics.

One of those photos used here (around the 4:00 minute mark) is a portrait of monsieur ‘Nkazi’ by Stephan Vanfleteren. It’s a contested photo. It graces the cover of a massive tome by Belgian author David Van Reybrouck about Congo’s history (published in Dutch some years ago, recently translated in French and German, and soon available in English too). More than two-hundred thousand copies of the book have already been sold. Monsieur Nkazi died before the book came out. The portrait is contested because Nkazi’s family claims it reinforces a stereotypical image of “a poor African” and that they didn’t consent on having his portrait used for the book. And so they are asking for a compensation. The foreign language versions of the book won’t be carrying the photo.

Anyway, to return to the video, the use of these images, and the politics behind these kind of videos: I wanted to hear other opinions so I asked the Africa is a Country desk.

Sean Jacobs: At first it looks like a parody of Big Black Af (played by Mos Def) and his crew (whose fictitious members included Charli Baltimore, Cannibus and MC Serch as “One-Sixteenth Blak”) with its overbearing black global politics and “back to Africa” politics, but it is clear that it is a much harder version of what Kanye West half-heartedly wanted to do with ‘Diamonds of Sierra Leone’. Only problem, with much of rap, is that it doesn’t offer much else than consciousness and identity politics.

Wills Glasspiegel: What’s up with the link between massacres in Congo and the idea that he too seems to be down for the use of “any means necessary?”

Mikko Kapanen: I have been thinking about this a lot: what is the purpose of political music? I am interested in Hip-Hop in particular. I think at best it can be a soundtrack to political activity or politicising the audiences. Giving them references and pointers to find more information. There are some exceptions to this rule — I never get tired of sharing this link — but for the most part music and musicians just direct their audiences towards what they feel is important. Like said, I am specifically talking about political Hip-Hop, but did A Change is Gonna Come communicate hard information or just a mood of certain people in certain time and place? Or Public Enemy? The answer is ‘sometimes yes’ and definitely the artists themselves have consistently talked politics in the interviews and on stage, but more often than not, the lyrics capture something less easy to describe and that’s why many times these songs can work as a soundtrack to other struggles as well.

In my opinion this specific song and video are great. I enjoy them and I have enjoyed music from Big Frizzle before (he’s more of a chorus guy normally) and videos from GlobalFaction whose YouTube channel has at the moment nearly thirteen million views. We must realise that these guys have got a lot of muscle amongst certain audiences regardless of the fact that mainstream media don’t really support them in any way. What the mainstream media do support however is a whole lot of shallowness and I welcome any opposing force to that. That is why I think that there is a massive and massively significant connection between Congo and “by any means necessary”. It’s part of the same conscientising campaign these artist are on and I for one applaud that. I would also say that the circles that the artist and video maker represent are involved in other positive movements outside of their primary artistic expression.

It’s true by the way what Sean says about Bamboozled style Mau Mau anger; one is reminded of it, but I’d go as far as saying that the UK — I mean people elsewhere are still surprised that there are Black people in the UK — has a very different context to the US. Of course there’s no need to make more general statements, but I have observed in my four long years in Birmingham that the African-Caribbean community in the UK has got its own kind of identity politics and they don’t have a similar umbrella as, say, African Americans.

All in all as a fan of Hip-Hop — when it’s done in a progressive spirit — I always want to support positive movements. It’s easy to be cynical about music like this, but the market pressures around it are strong and they are directing all the attention and money to music that is between empty and hateful and this — together with many other songs of course — is a welcome interruption to it.

Dylan Valley: I think it’s a dope beat and conscious lyrics but it doesn’t feel very timely, it feels a little played out and a bit contrived. It reminds me Wole Sonyinka’s response to the French Negritude movement: “A tiger doesn’t proclaim its tigritude, it acts.” And although I’m still nodding my head to this, I prefer Hot Cheetos and Takis:

Boima Tucker: Hot Cheetos and Takis is cute… and real. Plenty youth I’ve run into out here think that’s what passes for a meal. American malnutrition. Let’s rap about it.

I think I still prefer to read a book (3.5 million views and counting) if we’re looking at novelty factor.

But if we’re talking about impact towards further action? I don’t know if any overt political message via popular culture can do that. These days especially, it seems that the subliminal (mainly fear) is what most moves people to action. A video like Big Frizzle’s is mostly useful, in our contemporary moment of digital identity politics, for those of us who are going to post it to our tumblrs and twitters. Now your followers can know you’re #fashionable #global AND #militant.

As far as militant Black British, it’s nice to see. Played out identity politics from the US perspective? Perhaps. But not being an insider to contemporary UK culture, it makes me want to find out more, and as Mikko illustrated, maybe collaborate with these folks. And that in itself I guess is a form of movement towards action.

I personally can’t wait for the video for Somali Malitia Mali Mob’s ‘Pirates’ to drop. The producer told me there will be lots of guns.

And all that’s why VYBZ KARTEL IS SO ENIGMATIC AND AMAZING!

Thornton Writer Residency Application

The 14-week residency at Lynchburg College is awarded annually to a fiction, poetry, or creative nonfiction writer for the spring term.

The writer-in-residence teaches a weekly creative writing workshop, visits classes, and gives a public reading.

The residency includes a stipend, housing, some meals, and roundtrip travel expenses.

To Apply

To apply, submit a copy of a previously published book, a curriculum vitae, a cover letter outlining evidence of successful teaching experience, workshop course proposal with sample syllabus, and contact information for 3 references, postmarked by October 15 to:

Lynchburg College, Thornton Writer Residency, c/o Julie Williams, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, 1501 Lakeside Drive, Lynchburg, VA 24501. 434.544.8820. Allison Wilkins, Contact.

Application Details:

• There is no entry fee

• We will be glad to return your book(s) to you if you include a SASE with sufficient postage. Otherwise the book will be donated to the Lynchburg College Library

• We do not accept applications by email

• We do not accept manuscripts; published books only, please

• You may apply in more than one field, but your course proposal and sample syllabus should showcase what you will be doing in the workshop course

Residency Expectations

The residency is for an entire semester. You are expected to arrive before the first day of class and stay until the final exam period. We typically select a fiction writer for the fall semester and either a poet or creative nonfiction writer for the spring semester.

Beginning in the 2013/2014 year, the residency is for the spring semester. You are expected to arrive before the first day of class in January and stay until the final exam period in either late April or early may (depending on the year's academic calendar).

Teaching the Course

The course meets one night a week. To ensure individualized instruction, the class size is limited to 16 students. The workshop contains a mixture of undergraduate and graduate students.

Students often take more than one Thornton writing course during their four years, and academic credit earned can count toward an English major or toward elective hours, depending on the student's needs.

Travel, Meals, and Housing

There is no cost for the residency. Your round-trip travel and housing will be provided (sorry, pets cannot be accommodated).

You will be provided with a meal pass for dining in the Burton Student Center. Additionally, the apartment has a full kitchen, and there is a grocery store within walking distance.