Sounds Of Oppression
The British Universities and Colleges Film and Video Council have published our two of video essays on Reggae Innovation and Sound System Culture. Working with Senior Lecture Roy Wallace we have been producing a series of studies exploring the British Jamaican Reggae and Sound System experience.
Our first study is “Sounds of Oppression” presented at the Reggae Innovation and Sound System Culture Conference, Birmingham City University.
The study looks at the history of the reggae sound system inheritance passed down through generations in various music styles (Ska, Rocksteady, Reggae, Dancehall and various sub-genres where it has fused with other cultures). The words and phrases describe the same fight concerning social exclusion within the Black diaspora. The crisis in mainstream UK Reggae scene concerns the ‘invisibility’ of Reggae music or lack of recognition where elements of the culture are being used within the mainstream entertainment and media outlets. Reggae and Sound system culture is also undervalued within the African-Caribbean culture with the essence of the cultural practices now stigmatised or diminished in favour of contemporary music genres and commercial interests focused on celebrity.
We would argue that the musical legacy should give recognition to the ‘roots’ of the Reggae and sound systems within Jamaican culture which has been replaced by commercial rather than authentic interests in the practices. Often those from the authentic origins are easily exploited and replaced in mainstream UK media by ‘sanitised’ celebrities which could be viewed as institutional racism working to exclude the authentic voices in Reggae. In this twenty-minute video essay we will explore some potential alternatives to current trends and examine what steps might be required to return ‘The Lost Inheritance of the UK Reggae scene’ to its righteous place in contemporary UK culture.
Our second study is “From Sleng Teng to Skanking in the Dancehall”presented at the 6th Global Reggae Conference, The University of The West Indies
From Sleng Teng to Skanking in the Dancehall a comparative analysis of UK and Jamaican reggae through the work of King Jammy and Daniel “Hussla D” Johnson
In this video essay presentation we will assess the impact of 2nd wave Jamaican reggae on the British sound system culture/music production through comparative analysis of the work of King Jammy (One Time Girlfriend) and contemporary re-mix version (Skanking in the Dancehall) by Daniel Johnson. By tracing this journey by means of a case study we intend to evidence the historical and ongoing relationship between Jamaican and British reggae in the mainstream UK music industry which consistently privileges indigenous Jamaican music production over promotion of authentic UK reggae artists.
We will argue that while Jamaican reggae is ‘visible’ on an International level, this ‘incorporation’ of reggae into mainstream popular culture, overshadows the authentic British reggae experiences. This privilege also suppresses the essential slavery narrative which is inherent in reggae and instead ‘whitewashes’ contemporary UK reggae voices through promotion of ‘culturally acceptable’ icons who negate British colonial history through the use of celebrity and association with national broadcast interests of the BBC in particular (Radio 1Xtra). The privileging of acceptable icons such as Rodigan, Toddla T, Charlie Sloth etc help de-politicize the Caribbean slavery experiences and instead re-package the authentic narrative of reggae within a post-modern consumerist culture.
This case study seeks to re-present the unique relationship between Jamaican reggae and its impact on British reggae from ‘Sleng Teng’ to Grime music, we will argue that previous reggae genres have been influenced by King Jammy, the 2nd Wave (electronic) reggae music production and help re-connect the importance of keeping the story of street authenticity alive and highlight the original reggae connections with the Caribbean to younger UK generation through Electronic Dance Music.