Magic City Post: Building An Intercultural Society

Well friends, check out my latest article on Building an Intercultural Society in the Magic City Post. I share thoughts about internalized oppression and how we as southerners have to take pride in our city despite our past. Check it out. It was also picked up by a national diversity blog--Diversity News Online.

JCPA African-American Mission: Final Thoughts

I had the pleasure of representing Birmingham and the JCRC along with Joyce Spielberger this week to the JCPA African-American and Jewish Mission. Several people from across the country visited Birmingham to learn more about our social justice and civil rights initiatives. They came in twos--one Jewish, one African-American. Each came with the desire to learn from each other and to come away with ideas for their communities.

After seeing some local organizations on display, I was REALLY proud of Birmingham and of Alabama. We have had to work uphill from a bloody past. I think we have done a great job. Of course there is more work to do. Some of the initiatives that have helped Birmingham progress no longer exist or they are struggling to hold on. We need to fund Anytown, AL and the Heritage panels. We need to make sure Youth Leadership Forum and Leadership Birmingham are secure. Because of de facto segregation and socio-economic disparities, we have to orchestrate contact. It won’t happen on its own.

The group came away with the power of relationship building and how well our community seems to do that. We have many organizations that cross social and religious lines. Others were struck by the racist past and how it still haunts us in the present. Although I sometimes get overwhelmed by the fact that we always talk about the past, if we didn’t, we would be in denial. Denial is a dangerous state of mind. In Alabama, racism is thrown in your face all the time. In many states, it is hidden. Issues erupt and no one knows how to deal with them. We have had several organizations in place for years to address racism and religious intolerance.

I have enjoyed the opportunity to share this work with members of the Jewish community for over 20 years. I hope we continue to build on what we have started. Keep up the good work Birmingham.

African-American /Jewish Mission Service Project

he African American/Jewish Mission includes a service project as a culminating event. We connected with Urban Ministries, located in the Western section of Birmingham. They have a housing initiative that help people to spruce up their homes.

Learn more about Urban Ministries:





We met a wonderful woman who resided in what used to be Roosevelt City.







Some members of the group painted

The African-American/Jewish Mission: Setting the Tone

After a tour of Vulcan Park and dinner, members of the African-American/Jewish Mission congregated to establish the tone for the rest of the week. The mayor gave an historical perspective of Birmingham under Jim Crow, examples of passive resistance that included the help of a Jewish merchant in the Titusville neighborhood. The leader of the local Jewish Federation introduced representatives and gave participants an opportunity to share thoughts, questions and ideas.

One of the participants began the discussion with a scenario that is familiar to many of us. We literally and figuratively have a situation where communities live on opposite sides of the track. It gave Birminghamians an opportunity to talk about initiatives that have been in place for several years. We discussed decades of programs to address issues of race, religion and life circumstances. It was a great opportunity to introduce many successful initiatives.

As we showcased our Birmingham success stories, participants wanted to know more about cultivating personal and institutional relationships across cultures. I had forgotten how deeply these organizations impacted me. My emotions began to take over so the details of everyone's comments are a bit fuzzy. The fact that I have maintained many of the cross-cultural relationships that were facilitated through these programs began to overwhelm me. Hopefully, participants will comment on this post. So how did people in a divided community begin to build relationships across cultures?

Some comments from the group included:

1) A shared history of struggle connects the community across racial, religious, social and cultural lines. The comment originally related to the Civil Rights Movement, but as we were leaving, a participant added an interesting comment that African-Americans and Jews also have a history of slavery.
2) The community has faith-based institutions who have a social justice mission to address social issues faced by different religious communities. They are willing to share resources, both human and financial.
3) There are people who are willing to take risks.
4) Some of the aspects of southern culture and community lend itself to this type of work.
5) A participant shared the realization that the next generation can perpetuate or change our past. They have begun the work of eradicating racial divisions on their own terms.

Some group members also identified challenges:

1) Intragroup issues that prevent the work from being done.
2) Unwilling partners across community lines.
3) The realization that some factors of the past have not faded.
4) The perception of a paternalistic agenda and people attempting to change communities without buyin from the local community.
5) Keeping the dialogue going.

I look forward to tomorrow's visit to the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. There is a gallery that chronicles the impact of the Movement on people around the world. Perhaps it will deepen the dialogue. I also look forward to hearing success stories from other parts of the country.

Please check out A Rabbi and A Pastor Go to Birmingham for additional perspectives on the trip.

Dinner at Vulcan Kicks Off African-American/Jewish Mission

I was so excited to read that the African-American/Jewish Mission kickoff would be held at Vulcan. It is absolutely, positively, unequivocally my favorite spot in Birmingham. I have included it on my list of places to visit in Birmingham as part of a personal mission to expand Birmingham's story. Of course the Civil Rights Movement and Birmingham's impact is significant on national and international levels, but unfortunately, people know little else about us. The first thing that many visitors say is that they had no idea that Birmingham was so hilly much less what valuable elements are in those hills.

Most Birminghamians fail to see the beauty and significance in Birmingham's creation. We participate in pigeonholing the city into a specific space and time. Even the President, on his election day, mentioned Birmingham and fire hoses despite a few visits that demonstrated different aspects of Birmingham. It is almost as if Birmingham is frozen in time as far as the media and the outside world are concerned.

Long story short, despite the fact that the Mission has a civil rights and social justice focus, we are starting our journey on Red Mountain, home to the ingredients to make steel. Despite Black Codes, Jim Crow and all that jazz, I would like for visitors to know that descendants of the Magic City share an industrial history. Though we won't have a lot of time to explore this aspect of our history, I am glad that they will at least be exposed to it. Participants won't have the benefit of family day at a plant where tour guides tell you the temperature that many of the workers endured while working with melted steel, but it is June so they will share in the heat and humidity.

2010 African-American and Jewish Mission

On Sunday, June 20, 2010, Birmingham will host African-American and Jewish community leaders from across the country. The Jewish Council on Public Affairs has selected Birmingham as the 2010 site of an annual mission. The Mission is twofold: 1) To strengthen ties between African-American and Jewish leaders and 2) To address systemic poverty. A large portion of the Mission will include visits to popular civil rights and social justice institutions. They will visit places such as the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, the Lowndes County Interpretive Center, the Southern Poverty Law Center, and Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. Their visit will culminate with visits to local community projects.

Components of the Mission reflect Gordon Allport's "Contact Hypothesis." The "Contact Hypothesis" is one of the most successful means of reducing prejudice or encouraging collaboration among people of different races, ethnic groups or religions. It is often much more sustainable than training or short-term dialogue groups. The contact hypothesis consists of the following components: 1) Pairing individuals from different cultures who are as similar as possible in every other way such as job function, position in the community, socio-economic status...). 2) Set goals and engage in an activity to achieve the goals. 3) Hold participants accountable for their activities. The movie Remember the Titans exemplifies this concept. Denzel Washington was faced with uniting two football teams from schools that had been desegregated. He matched team members by position and required that they get to know each other and work to maintain the winning traditions of both teams. If they did not carry out his requests, they were punished.

The 2010 African-American/Jewish Mission pairs individuals from two different cultures who represent their communities. The entire group will travel, dialogue and work together over a three-day period. In addition to visiting civil rights related institutions, they will hear presentations from local social justice organizations. A representative from Center for Faith-Based Initiatives and Neighborhood Partnerships will also make a presentation. The group will visit an inner city community and help refurbish a home for a family in need. They will spend time reflecting on the experience and strategize for future initiatives.

Though this post was written in the third person, I have the honor of being one of the representatives from Birmingham. Future posts will probably shift from two points of view--observer and participant. I am looking forward to seeing Alabama from the eyes of others and learning something new about the state that has been home to the last five generations of the majority of my maternal and paternal families.

Jammin' with the Wailers at the Alys Stephens Center

A friend, who I see infrequently, called to see if I wanted to go to the Wailers concert. I said, "Of course." I didn't know what to expect. I love the Alys Stephens Center and its series of international music and performing arts. When we got there, the instrumentalists warmed up the crowd. I was trying to think if I had ever attended a Reggae concert. A raspy soulful voice joined the set. It was the lead singer. As soon as he was center stage, I began to think that I was going to have to move to the back of the room. There was no way that I could sit and listen to the Wailers. I was going to have to find a place to dance.

No sooner than the thought came to mind a young man came from no where and started dancing in the empty seats two rows ahead of us. The people behind him asked him to sit down. Well shortly after, the lead singer said, "Come dance with me." The young man and several of his friends ran to the front of the stage. They were joined by several others. I started having flash backs of Rugby Road Extended and one of the few fraternity parties I attended at UVA. However, the Alys Stephens Center has much better acoustics.

I saw my friend Efe, who teaches African dance. She joined the crowd. I ran to hug her. She said, "I knew this could not be a sit down affair." Some people either left the concert or moved to another seat. There was one couple that seemed irritated the whole night. How can you be at a Wailers concert and not even move a pinky? Is it physically possible? Had it been in my younger years, I would have started chanting, "No parking on the dance floor" or "If you didn't come to party than you should go home!" Even prominent university officials were jammin'.

The lead singer was electrifying. I have only seen one other performer who seemed as if the music was coming from the depths of his soul. I thought, "Is this guy channeling Marley?" The music started at his feet, his core and then came oozing out of his mouth.

He jumped around the stage all night wearing a wind breaker with the hood covering a knit cap. I was wondering how many calories he burns with each performance. I also thought at any moment he was going to jump into the crowd. The group performed for two hours with maybe a five minute break. It was amazing. The entire Center was alive.

What was your favorite concert experience?

Dia de Los Muertos in Birmingham

I used to pride myself on attending almost all of the cultural festivals in Birmingham. It is becoming impossible. Our city has grown to the point where there is so much going on, it is difficult to choose what to attend. Of course having a preschooler adds to the number of events we attend and type of events.

Bare Hands Gallery in Birmingham, AL has been hosting a Dia de Los Muertos celebration for seven years. I have been trying to get there for about three years. Tonight, all the forces of the universe were in alignment so I was able to attend. It was nice that two other friends were there to help with my son.

I kept wondering, where in the world would a festival take place on 1st Avenue South and Richard Arrington Blvd (21st Street South)? I am on Richard Arrington Blvd daily, but I couldn't imagine they would close the streets. I find navigating Birmingham's city center very easy. It is on a grid pattern. The address sounded familiar. I had seen a production of "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Isn't Enuf" at that same intersection several years ago.

There were so many cars on Richard Arrington, that I had to cross the bridge to 1st Avenue North. I made a right on 22nd Street and as I crossed the bridge heading south, I saw it. In the midst of the dark sky and buildings that all seemed to blend together was a courtyard full of colorful lights that one usually only sees during the Christmas season. I also saw people in full costume parading down 1st Avenue South heading for a small white tent. I was definitely at Dia de Los Muertos.

As we entered the gates, I could smell incense. The music was an eclectic mix. Since I had my son with me, I wanted to make sure he ate so we made our way to the food tents. We ate paella from the Homewood Gourmet, tamales from Cantina and black beans and rice by Golden Temple. As we ate, we were entertained by live and recorded music.

I spent time chatting with people from a previous life as we waited for the itinerary to unfold. The center piece was the artistic display of alters. We looked at some of the altars along the back wall of the gallery and then stood in line to enter the building. As I was managing a backpack, a son who wanted a piggy back ride and conversing, I wasn't sure whether we could continue to stand in line without incident. The time passed by quickly as I saw former colleagues and students.

As we entered the doors, my son was fascinated by the lights. We named all the primary colors and then when we finally hit the door, there were lights and images of the departed everywhere. My son, who had been a bit timid most of the night, became fascinated with all the candles. One of the the altars had a musical theme. He named all of the instruments and attempted to play the drums. The installations and the lights decorated the hall from top to bottom.

Frida seemed to be a common theme or perhaps she just happened to be the one person that I recognized. I am not sure if it would be sacrilegious to say this, but she almost seemed to be a patron saint or a muse for the artists who created the alters. There was a huge portrait of her on the back wall and many smaller images just about everywhere.

As we entered the main gallery, I was struck by an installation that included an altar to a baby that had departed. It was so beautiful and sad. It included the baby's crib, high chair and a casket. The pastels were a contrast to some of the other altars.

As we exited the gallery to return to the courtyard, some of the entertainment had begun. Somehow I failed to notice the structures in the middle of the courtyard. My years of taking Spanish included stories of Dia de Los Muertos. However, I missed the fact that the courtyard was supposed to be a graveyard. Maybe it is because my son decided he could walk instead of riding on my back. He wanted to touch everything and it was easy to stumble over all the items on the ground. It dawned on me that we were in a graveyard simulation. We were on cement of course, but there were headstones and images one sees in a graveyard placed throughout the courtyard.

Since I spent most of my time nervous that my son was going to destroy something, I couldn't fully concentrate. I will have to go back to Bare Hands. You can still see the installation through November 14th.

SpeakYoSoul Live! Features: JASPECTS! The Polkadotted Stripe Tour!

DATE: SATURDAY 11/21/2009

TIME: 8:00 PM

LOCATION:


BOSS ULTRA LOUNGE
312 20th Street South, Birmingham, Alabama 35233
Phone: (205) 326-3673

COST: 15:00

CONTACT: speakyosoulbham@gmail.com


WEBSITE:
www.myspace.com/speakyosoulbham

www.urbanham.com


SpeakYoSoul Live! features Award winning Jazz/Hip Hop/NuSoul Artists JASPECTS-The Polkadotted Stripe Tour! CNN’s Black in America featured Jaspects in 2008. They’ve got soundtrack credits on the movie Hustle & Flow and have performed for Bill Cosby!Spinning all WAX will be Atlanta’s DJ Dynamite Dave Soul-2009’s Essence Festival Coca-Cola SuperLounge DJ.

SoulfulHouse Party follows!


MERCHANDISE WILL BE ON SALE!


COMMENTS ABOUT JASPECTS:

"Jaspects, on their newest release, The Polkadotted Stripe, it is obvious that they have seen both the birth of cool as well as the future of the funk in heavy doses".

SoulBounce


"Nominated for Indie Album of the Year 2009"

SoulTracks



"This album is very original with a mixture of sounds being used from hip-hop,electronica,r&b,and soul but from jazz musicians".

Amazon Customer


"Loving how Jaspects have incorporated electronic with they're established jazz sound on The Polkadotted Stripe".


Last.Fm User


ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -
Today, Jaspects, an Atlanta-based group of young musicians who were born in the hip-hop era, fuse rap and jazz melodies to introduce younger audiences to jazz.

CNN



CREDITS:

Individually, Jaspects' works have appeared in the 2005 major motion picture "Hustle & Flow," on Chamillionaire's platinum albums "Chamillitary" and "Sound of Revenge," on Carlos Santana's "All That I Am," and with platinum recording artists David Banner, Wyclef Jean, Big Boi ("Kryptonite"), and Mary J. Blige ("Just Fine"). Collectively, Jaspects has shared bills with: Dwele, Bilal, Mike Phillips, Herbie Hancock, Eric Roberson, Stevie Wonder, Brian McKnight, and rap phoneme Drake. Jaspects has also collaborated with Grammy-nominated artists Janelle Monae, PJ Morton and Anthony David, in addition to Kedar Entertainment act Algebra, and Good Music's Fonzworth Bentley.

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts featured Jaspects in January 2009 as a headliner for the Millennium Stage Series.



DIRECTIONS: If traveling towards Downtown Bham, take 20th Street. BOSS is just a few blocks from UAB and ONA’s Music Room on your LEFT. (RIGHT) if traveling to the Southside from downtown.

PAVO magazine highlights Birmingham's Art Scene

On Saturday night I had planned to drop by Rojo for an hour to celebrate the launch of PAVO Magazine. They advertised free food and discounted drinks so I thought, "The James' are watching the Alabama game, so why not drop in." I saw a couple of people I knew including a person who I practiced Yoga next to every Sunday for several years, but we had never had a conversation.

After I spent the first hour killing the fajita bar and drinking unsweet tea, the publishers started the program. It started as a traditional, let me thank everyone yada yada yada and then some poetry reading. Then a woman who had interviewed me for the magazine pulled out her cello and started rockin' with a band. More poetry reading. Then Sharrif Simmons entertained us with spoken word and his acoustic guitar.

A guy who I had a conversation with while standing in line for the bathroom, got up with a thick stack of papers to read his poetry. I was thinking, "This would be a great time to leave." However, I was intrigued by this hip hop group that was setting up while he was talking, so I stayed. To my amazement, the poet's piece was called, "Duran Duran Buttons" or some other eighties reference that intrigued me. It was great.

The hip hop group had a DJ whose set up seemed elaborate to me. He had two turn tables, an equalizer, a Mac laptop. Eventually, the place exploded with a house mix and samples from the Transformers. I was thinking I'm not going home anytime soon. One of the emcees introduced the group as he revealed a green t-shirt. "Hello. We are The Green Seed. "

So an hour "let me show my face" turned into a three hour experience. Good luck PAVO. If your magazine is anything like your parties, we are in for a treat.

Female Beatmakers

I've had the pleasure of finally interviewing someone who I think is an amazing artist(musician and graphic designer). Ry Nea Sol! (aka MsBeatJunkie), she's a female producer/beatmaker from Birmingham, Al:

Aquarius Rising: So, when did you start making beats?

MsBeatJunkie: In 2000, while I was in college at Jacksonville State University.

Aquarius Rising: You majored in Psychology with a minor in Communications. Did you participate in any extracurricular activities that involved music?

MsBeatJunkie: Yes, I was a member of the Jacksonville State University Mass Choir and also the Campus Ministry worship leader.

Aquarius Rising: Wow, so what was your motivation to start producing your own music?

MsBeatJunkie: I didn't hear any music that sounded like what I felt, what I heard in my thoughts on the radio and i hadn't heard of any female producers out there.

Aquarius Rising: What devices did you start out with to create the beats you wanted to hear?

MsBeatJunkie: (She smiles) Fruity Loops aka (FL Studio) and a keyboard.

Aquarius Rising: What did your first beats sound like?

MsBeatJunkie: They were actually dirty south hip hop beats because that's what I heard around me at the time. The word spread that I was producing. I started to get calls and requests to make beats for national and local christian hip hop recording artists.

Aquarius Rising: Do you still make dirty south beats?

MsBeatJunkie: My music changed when I
started listening more closely to what was inside of me. I am far from the commercial tones of crunk and snap. To me, my music is "organic soul, futuristic boom bap" (laughing). I am influenced by many genres. I also implement the art of sampling like many producers, but did not always sample.

Aquarius Rising: Which artists influence your creativity?

MsBeatJunkie: Pete Rock,Madlib,Jdilla,Tonex,Sun Ra...

Aquarius Rising: Sun Ra was a very eccentric musician. Why Sun Ra?

MsBeatJunkie: Sun Ra made music based on what he felt whether you liked it or not. J.Dilla was the same way; both were led by the music.

Aquarius Rising: Technology has become so advanced now. Are you still using just the software and a keyboard?

MsBeatJunkie: (laughing)Yes, but I have other toys too. I love software though, and mixing it with various hardware allows me to be even more creative.

Aquarius Rising: Are there any female producers that you admire?

MsBeatJunkie: The Angel, she is a female producer that you dont hear alot about. I discovered her years ago while watching this movie called "Boiler Room". I was intriqued because the beats in every scene were so tight and organic; so hip hop that I had to find out who produced them and when I found out the producer was a "girl" I really got on it because I dreamed of producing movies for film and tv as well. She's really talented.

Muhsinah (mu-seen-nah), Georgia Ann Muldrow, and Angie Stone are other female producers that I like as well.

Aqaurius Rising: Have you worked with any Birmingham artists?

MsBeatJunkie: I've produced some tracks for spoken word artist Shaun Judah and have had studio sessions with Byron The Aquarius; both are very talented artists. I am currently working with other artists in the city and outside of the city.

Aquarius Rising: Have you faced any challenges as a female beatmaker?

MsBeatJunkie: Of course! Being dismissed in some way or another because of my gender.

Aquarius Rising: So, where can we find evidence of your skills?

MsBeatJunkie: http://www.myspace.com/offbeatmusiq

What do jazz, sidewalks and Greek food have in common?

I have been searching for a piece that I wrote a few years ago regarding Birmingham's cultural scene. My husband and I were attending the first annual 4th Avenue Jazz Festival. It was outstanding. Jazz Hall of Famers and jazz enthusiasts returned to perform on 4th Avenue North. It was a reunion.

Every once in awhile, people who may have never walked along 4th avenue north would pass through the crowd looking for the Carver Theater. They were en route to catch an independent film as part of the Sidewalk Film Festival. When the film was over, many of them stopped and hung out at the festival.

That night, we left 4th Avenue North to catch the annual festival at the Greek Orthodox Church on the Southside. We danced and ate all the leftovers. After we shut down the festival a group of friends left for an event at Workplay.

To some of you, this doesn't mean anything. To me, it was the beginning of a cultural explosion in the City Center, stretching from north to south. Birminghamians were functioning in cultural enclaves, but organizers created a situation where people were forced to intersect. Some jazz enthusiasts were introduced to the Film Festival. Film fans, stopped and hung out at the Jazz Festival. I can't wait to see what is in store for the fall.

What events are you looking forward to this fall?

B'ham's Hip Hop Scene and Me

As much as I appreciate other music genres, I am still a fan of hip hop, particularly conscious hip hop. Few in Birmingham know that I was a percussionist in my high school band (Color Guard and Drum Major also). So naturally I'm into music that I can dance to, groove to or be moved by the messages of its lyrics.

Fortunately, I re-united with Patrick Johnson a.k.a S. Fly of Red Light District over a year and half ago. We were once employed by the same company. S. Fly is the first Birmingham hip hop artist that I was introduced to. Red Light District is an unforgettable group in my mind. I’ll always remember my favorite lines in one of their songs: “ I know a place where we can go, there’s nothin’ but love around, nothin’ but love around”. The track’s beat, the bass is so deep and melodic. It’s one of those songs that you just ride out to when you need to clear your head.

Since then, I’ve also met other Birmingham artists such as: Thed Weller, Byron the Aquarius, I.M.A.E, Poet John Paul, Shaheed, Supreme and Poet Shaun Judah. They performed at one of Birmingham’s most energizing and uplifting spoken word/live music events, The Latte Lounge: SpeakYoSoul Live! at Java and Jams coffee house . I saw Green Seed shut it down at the Bottletree a few years ago. I’m now a fan and really encourage each of these artists to continue to deliver the goods with sick beats and passionate messages about love, struggle, triumph, politics, friendships, foes and “things that make you go mmmhhh”.

Lastly, I think that Birmingham is filled with incredible talent. We can't forget about the ladies. The artists I’ve mentioned have all impressed me. Just as impressive is the female producer/singer/graphic artist Ms.BeatJunkie. She’s remixed tracks for artists abroad and here in the city. Her influences are cats like J.Dilla Flying Lotus, Pharcyde, Digable Planets and Sun Ra. You must experience her for yourself. She even freestyles and has a soulful, jazzy, “can sing just about anything” voice. She has her very own unique swag! You can listen to some of her beats at www.myspace.com/offbeatmusiq.

While you’re cruisin’ the web for hip hop, stop by djlovedeluxe.podomatic.com. This is my site. Yes, I’m making a really concerted effort to hone my dj skills. Stay tuned for the 69 Boyz/Flo Rida mashup. Not very conscious I know, but we all have our weaknesses! The SoulHeat mix on the site showcases some of my favorite conscious hip hop tracks and a remix by Birmingham's MsBeatJunkie. You know, it’s really cool to know personally some of the great hip hop artists and musicians in our city.

Thanks Bettina for the opportunity to share my thoughts on the Birmingham Hip Hop scene. I wish each of the artists mentioned much success in life and their careers.

Thed Weller on B'ham Hip Hop

In Thed Weller's own words...

Ah...Hip Hop in Birmingham. For me, I won't go back to what it "was" I'll write about what "it is"... Alive! But before you can accurately talk about something I feel it important to define what it is you are talking about. What is "Birmingham Hip Hop"? For the purposes of this blog entry I'll define it as, "art inspired by life; usually but not limited to artists from the less privileged population*." There is a thriving hip hop scene in Birmingham now, but it's sometimes difficult to find "the scene" because of several factors. If you don't limit yourself to only the people/artists you already know of and you don't limit yourself to only attending events at certain venues, you'll find many talented and exciting artists in and around The Magic City. If you trust your friends and are willing to be exposed to "new" music and/or culture, then, when you hear or read that there is something going on at a spot that you may have never heard of, go check it out. That's how I've come to know and enjoy Birmingham Artists like, R-Tist, Constantine the Emcee, DJ FX, ComplEt, Biti, 7even, Alabama Power, Tig Knight, Attitude, Jr. Star, etc. the list could go on and on.

One of the factors that limits the strength of the "hip hop" scene in our city is money. Many people are not willing to pay to be entertained by hip hop artists and many artists are tried of having "good exposure opportunities" with no monetary compensation.

Another factor is much of "rap music" today is looked upon by "the powers that be" and many others as a 2nd class, 2nd rate form of music. I once performed at The Civil Rights Institute a cappella and was well received. After my performance I engaged in a conversation with two older gentlemen and was asked "what else did I do?" I told them that I was a rapper and the entire tone of the conversation changed. One of them told me, "I hate rap. They can throw it all in the ocean." He then proceeded to walk off. He had just told me how much he enjoyed my work but when he found out I was a "rapper", he instantly didn't like my music.

Yet another limiting factor is technology. Ironic because it would seem that with the explosion of social networking, it would be a unifying force, right? Well, it's so easily accessessable now, everybody is doing it. Rappers & Producers are a dime a dozen & everybody's got an agenda. It's hard and time consuming to murk through everybody that's got a CD out to find the stuff you might like. When artists had to make more of an investment in their art by purchasing studio time and what knot, fewer artists could get their product out and so, it was easier for the public to get familiar with the limited local talent that had product to offer.

Radio doesn't help either. There was a point in the not so distant past when the people at your local radio station pretty much played what they wanted to play. Now, it's more limited as to what DJ's can get on the air. Radios play what people know because that's what keeps people from changing to another station and finding a familiar tune.

Politics also is limiting the current Birmingham Hip Hop scene. Everything is political. "If you didn't come to my last show, then I'm not coming to your next show and vice versa. If you don't have me on your "top friends" on myspace, or write back under my status on facebook or chime in on what I'm doing on Twitter, you're pretty much dead to me." Many artists produce and promote their own shows, other artists come out to the shows to show "support". This "support" is really an unspoken "quid pro quo". Most artists, if they're being honest, are hoping that when it's their own show that's being promoted, if nothing else, all of the artists they've supported will come out and show up to support them. The truth is that "we" (the artists) should be able to bring enough people that we don't know out to a show so that it really doesn't matter either way if other artists come or not. This leads me to the last "limiting factor" I'll write about in this entry.

The people of Birmingham are not avid "hip hoppers". Just because their listening to 107.7 on Saturday mornings don't mean their coming out to see live hip hop music when it's available in the city. I'm not exactly sure why this is but I do know that it is. I've gone to show, after show, after show and see 20 or 30 people in a spot that should be filled with at least a hundred or more. And not just "ATL-auto-tuned-snap" type rap but real hip hop shows with Emmy Nominated Artists, a real scratching DJ, a Beat Boxer, Live instrumentation and back up singers for FREE! In Birmingham, it's very hard to get people to come out to enjoy this form of music live.

So, what's the Hip Hop scene in Birmingham like? It's alive but it does need watering. So, if you're reading this, do us all a favor and find out how you can help "water the good seeds" of hip hop when you can.

~Thed Weller

*by less privileged I don't necessarily mean poor or uneducated just people that can tell you how life for them ain't been no crystal stair.www.thedweller.com%5D
Source: www.thedweller.com

B'ham's Own Hip Hop Historian

DJ Supreme is known around the Birmingham area for his Classic Hip Hop Show on 107.7 FM. Every morning from 7:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m., Birminghamians and on-line fans are taken back to the '80's and '90's with old school hip hop music and history. Below he shares little known facts about Birmingham's Hip Hop History.

The Birmingham hip hop scene seemed to lack trendsetters. I noticed this when I was an artist (yes, I did and occasionally still do rap) on the B-ham scene in the mid to late '90s. I officially arrived in Birmingham via Butler County, AL via Detroit, MI in '96. Prior to that year I spent 4 years at the University of Montevallo.

My first Birmingham hip hop experience was at a Luke (Campbell) show at Mama's and Sons where Legion of Doom was the opening act. Didn't get to see them perform because the members of the group got into an all out bar fight with a rival group.

While at UM I met and bonded with Patrick "S-Fly" Johnson. (His future wife also attended UM.) At the time we were still trying to gauge what our place would be in the hip hop world. His group was still known as Southern Comfort and hadn't officially become Red Light District. I was part of a group known as Joint Effort. They were working on "I Know" while I was crafting "Supreme's Lounge" (my first solo LP) in my dorm room.

Patrick and I pretty much forged a friendship that is still strong to this day and we reminisce about our humble beginnings in this game. Our triumphs always seemed to parallel each other. "I Know" became a Birmingham anthem long before the BA Boys (no disrespect). At the same time, I obtained a considerable amount of fans on the talent show circuit, namely Chris Coleman. He may not remember this but when we first met, I had won a talent show he was judging. I congratulated him for his appearance on KRS ONE's album that year. It caught him off guard because I don't think he thought anyone in Birmingham would appreciate that accomplishment let alone pay attention to it.

From there my demos were forwarded to folks like Kori White, B-Brian, and Dwight Stone and subsequently I ended up doing intros for those jocks. There was a time when I actually had an intro on every jocks show. 5 times a day, 5 or 6 days a week, my raps would be the first thing you hear before a DJ popped the mic. I utilized that recognition to secure a career in radio.

In '99, I realized it was time to fill the void, and The Eargasm was born. As Chris said, most of the emcees in B-Ham emulated what they heard from our neighbors in ATL. We didn't play that at The Eargasm. You either had to be original or get booed off the stage. That's how serious it was. I still take pride in the fact that The Eargasm was the only place you could get real hip hop culture. We had emcees and crews like The Metaphizx and Abstract Chemistry. We also introduced the city to DJ's like F/X, Heron and Rahdu, as well as b-boy crews like BMW Crew. It was a proving ground, a battlefield of sorts, and it came naturally. When we chanted "Who's next? Who's next?" and it was your turn to rock the mic, you better have all the showmanship, rhyming ability, and crowd control in your arsenal. Lack of any of this spelled disaster, but if you came with it, prepare for ghetto stardom. Just ask Attitude or R-Tist, two of many emcees to sharpen their skills on The Eargasm stage. Two emcees with styles all their own.

I often boasted that we were the "world famous" Eargasm, simply for the fact that out of all the national acts we featured (peace to Ishues, Lacks, and Onebelo) nothing made me more proud than when we got a visit from the New York City Breakers and they battled our very own BMW Crew. That was a memorable night and NYC Breakers enjoyed the experience.

I often dream of bringing it back like it was, but that will never happen due to the climate of the game right now. I attempted to bring back the Eargasm last year. I even got Akil The MC from Jurassic 5 to perform. No one showed up, only a few of my old Eargasm fans who were nostalgic for the old times.

I think the hip hop fans of today are so stuck on everyone sounding alike that they are numb to it. There was a term used back in the day for this cardinal sin: BITING. Back in the day biting was a serious no-no and if you were caught doing this the repercussions were often times severe. Nowadays it's commonplace to use each others sound, even rhymes. So much to the point that some of our pioneers like Busta Rhymes and LL Cool J succumb to this by having T Pain or The Dream on their records so they can be relevant to today's fickle hip hop audience.

I interviewed Biz Markie last year and in this conversation he recalled an incident where an emcee was caught biting and ended up getting robbed and catching a beat down. Maybe we as authentic hip hop practitioners need to go back to this type of severity, at least by addressing it. Nowadays though, you can't be critical of today's hip hop without being labeled a hater. Jay Z made a valiant effort by dropping "Death of Autotune", but it's sort of contradictory because he still works with Kanye West, one of autotune's poster children. I have yet to hear Birmingham's artists embrace the autotune trend, but give it time. Like Chris said Birmingham is usually late on everything.

For more info on the history of the career of Supreme, check out:
http://www.bhamwiki.com/w/Supreme

also check out:
http://www.the-eargasm.blogspot.com

Remember when the DJ was featured in songs? Ever wonder where Missy gets her intros? Click here to listen to Request Line.

The Birmingham Hip Hop Scene

Lately, I have been getting a lot of announcements regarding hip hop music and spoken word events in Birmingham. There are several cafes and night clubs that are hosting events. Malcolm's Reading Room is holding events. The Birmingham Museum of Art has even gotten into the game. So when one thinks of the Birmingham Hip Hop Scene, what comes to mind?

What is hip hop? So many people think of hip hop as rap music only. You betta ask somebody. If you ever attended the Hip Hop Summit at UA, you would know. Most people don't think of the poetry, the graffiti, the moves and the gear. Since I was living in Birmingham at the time that popular hip hop music hit the radio, it started with Sugar Hill Gang, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, and Kurtis Blow for me. My uncles liked to DJ so we listened to music all of the time. I also recall my cousin Ced performing "Rappers Delight" at all family fish fries and card games.

The Original Homeboy, Chris Coleman, 'Soul Night' DJ at Holiday Skating Rink on Valley Avenue, always had a spot for rap. He was always featured at the 'blue light in the basement' parties in the Thomas' basement in Fairfield too. Holla Fairfied, Ramsay and John Carroll! Since I had cousins on the East side, we also hit Skate Haven from time to time.

Eventually, Rap City and Yo MTV Raps made hip pop more visual. Hip hop is considered a New York creation. New York urban life portrayed through video was emulated all over the country and eventually the world. The dancers, the graffiti artists, the rappers and the DJ's were imported to us on a daily basis. Movies such as Beat Street, Krush Groove and more recent flicks such as Brown Sugar and Love Jones made additional imprints of hip hop.

The Hip Hop Diaspora, mostly rap music, exploded in other large urban centers such as Los Angeles, Oakland and Miami. Chicago, Atlanta, and even St. Louis would claim some well known rappers. Each region had a distinct sound. LA became known for Gangsta Rap. Oakland had an eclectic mix in my opinion ranging from MC Hammer to Digital Underground. The Miami scene was known for 2 Live Crew. You may recall their beef with Tipper Gore. The southern scene, known as the Dirty South, gave rise to a group of young rappers. T.I., Ludacris and even more mainstream R & B artists like Usher and TLC grew out of the southern Hip Hop scene. Missy Elliot and Pharrell were representin' the Tidewater area.

In the mid-nineties, as a result of a connection to the Seventh Sun, I recall going to spots such as the Cipher in Fairfield and the 22nd Street Jazz Club. Daagye Hendricks opened her family's doors at Harambee Room where many poets were introduced to a broad Birmingham base for the first time. I still remember a call and response poem, "Can I Kick It." Daagye also opened her doors and forced some of us to show up to hear Just a Few Cats featuring a local singer by the name of Ruben Studdard. Perhaps that will appear in another post.

So how would one characterize the Birmingham Hip Hop Scene? Stay tuned for local rappers, poets, DJ's, musicians, artists and fans to share their perspectives--past and present. In future posts, you will hear from Chris Coleman, Real Life Poets, DJ Supreme, Jona Crooner and more...

What characterizes the Birmingham Hip Hop Scene for you?

For more information on the history of rap, check out Kurtis Blow's History of Rap Music.

Click here for more posts on the Birmingham Hip Hop S

Searching for Tea in Birmingham

A friend shared a post about Taiwan's tea industry. I LOVE tea. I am always looking for local places with diverse tea selections. Safari Cup is the top spot for me to find tea. Tea selections represent the far corners of the earth. One of my friends and I even attended "High Tea" which consists of a variety of teas and pastries.

Where is your favorite spot for tea in Birmingham?

Also see, Heavnly Tea in Chinatown.

Soul Food in Japan, India, and the Middle East?

I may have mentioned in a previous post that the president of the UAB International Student Association and the graduate student association president converged upon my office in October 1990. They were both from India. They had read that I had a background in international relations. My position at UAB did not have direct responsibilities regarding international students, but any student who paid student service fees was a constituent.

We quickly developed a friendship. I hung out at the international house and frequented ISA (now the ISSA) events. One day some of the international students asked, "Bettina, when are you going to take us to a soul food restaurant?"

I had to think about it. My grandparents, mother and five great aunts lived in Alabama. Between their homes and my friends' mothers, I had NEVER eaten soul food at a restaurant. Plus, I lived my first 11 years out of the south so I was accustomed to eating soul food on special occassions and holidays. Sure. There were places that cooked southern food, but not what I call "hardcore" soul food dishes like chitterlings (pronounced chitllins) and other pork scraps, ox tails...My secretary told me to take the students to Family Reunion in West End.

Well, I get lost in Mountain Brook and West End. Birmingham and many surrounding communities are based upon a grid pattern. Those two communities are more complex. I had to get a navigator, my husband, to make sure I did not get lost.

When we got to Family Reunion, I ordered several dishes for the students including: chittlins, ox tails, neck bones, greens, candied yams, okra and I can't remember the rest. My husband and I ordered fish. We started off with a conversation about hot sauce and pepper sauce. One of the students had put pepper sauce on his chitllins and hot sauce on his greens. I would remember this incident when I traveled to Japan and my polite Japanese host family screamed, "no" as I covered my rice with soy sauce. Anyway, we shared that hot sauce was for the meat and pepper sauce for the greens.

Eventually, the students noticed that my husband and I were eating fish. They asked why we weren't eating the items we had ordered for them. I shared that I wasn't sure if they would like soul food so I didn't want to ask my relatives to cook for us due to the fact that most of the foods are labor intensive. However, both my husband and I were raised not to eat certain foods out unless we knew the cook and the condition of the kitchen. However, I didn't want to disappoint them and I had gotten really good references on this particular restaurant.

It didn't seem to matter to my Indian, Japanese, Middle Eastern and Western European students. They were excited to be in a predominately African American city and actually learning about African American culture. They also found commonalities. The Indian students taught me about bhindi masala (an okra based dish) and a Japanese student taught me about fried pig intestines. From that point on, the students made regular trips to Family Reunion.

Anytown, Anytown

Last night I had an unexpected encounter. Almost everyone in the room had an association with Anytown Alabama. Anytown is a prejudice reduction camp for high school students that was sponsored by the National Conference for Community and Justice. Most states had an Anytown, Metrotown or some version of the camp. Now that the NCCJ national office in New York is defunct and a number of other factors, the Birmingham office had to close its doors.

I have had an instant connection with people that were associated with Anytown. Anytown organizers were intentional in putting classes together of people from different races, faiths, ethnic groups, socioeconomic backgrounds and different parts of the state. It involved an intense week of delving into their souls and developing a lifelong bond with people who started as strangers.

So how can I spot an Anytowner? Usually, Anytowners have no problem stretching beyond boundaries of most of their peers. Their experience at camp made them face their prejudices in an open setting. The residual effect of this intense searching of the soul includes a new human being with a perspective on life that most people will never have.

So what am I talking about? Many people say, "I don't have any prejudices. I don't see color..." These statements are rarely tested. This attitude is self-reported. We never get to ask people who interact with them whether they behave in a manner contrary to their opinion about themselves. If Anytowners were in denial at the beginning of the week, they faced their prejudices and learned to overcome them. They were put through the test and passed it with flying colors.

In my world of training, we are doing well to get more than two hours with a group. In that amount of time, appealing to the affect is very difficult. Anytown offered 24 hour, round the clock, facilitated activities.

Next to my family and classmates, I would say Anytowners make up my close friends. The picture above is from my baby shower which was given by several Anytown Alumni, high school and college classmates and one military brat.

Back to the encounter on last night. When we found out that we were all involved in Anytown, we began to sing the theme song, Anytown, Anytown yellow, white, black, red or brown or something like that. We also did an energy check which was a series of claps that you have to hear to understand what I am saying. I was amazed that I could somewhat remember a song I learned in 1992. We went on to reminisce about our experiences. We will miss you Anytown, AL

Poetry and Music Festival at Malcolm's Meeting Room

Are you living under a rock and unaware of Birmingham's diverse culture? If I were still teaching African American Studies, this would be a required event. Birmingham's Civil Rights District is ALIVE!

Per a Facebook invitation from Sharrif Simmons: Enjoy a mix of music and poetry July 10 -12 at Malcolm's Reading Room featuring Def Jam Poet/Apollo Winner/Author Jessica Care Moore, The Sharrif Simmons Experiment, The Common Ground Collective, Sparlha Swa, S.Fly of Red Light District...Weekend/Daily Passes available at malcolmsreadingroom.com, Malcolm's Reading Room, Charlemagne Records, Greencup Books, Dreams Salon, and Matthew's Bar & Grill