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Brown & Nicodemus. Beth Lesser
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beth lesser. the story of jamaican dancehall culture
author. photographer
.:: scott c
+ all images copyright Beth Lesser 2009 |
| Dancehall is at the centre of Jamaican musical and cultural life. From its roots in Kingston in the 1950s to its heyday in the 1980s, Dancehall has conquered the globe, spreading to the USA, the UK, Canada, Japan and beyond. This is its definitive story.
The book features hundreds of exclusive photographs and accompanying text that capture a previously unseen era of musical culture, fashion and lifestyle. Dancehall is a culture that encompasses music, fashion, drugs, guns, art, community, technology and more. Born in the 1950s out of the neighborhood jams of Kingston, Dancehall
grew to its height in the 1980s before a massive influx of drugs and guns made the
scene too
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dangerous for many. Beth Lesser's book tells this story from its roots to its heights. Throughout the 80's, she photographed and documented a cultural explosion as producers, singers, DJs and soundmen made a living out of the neighborhoods of Kingston.
Montreal based writer and impresario Scott C sat down with Beth Lesser on behalf of Mirror Magazine out of Canada and came away with a definitive discussion on Beth Lesser’s unique perspective on the development of Dancehall culture and Kingston circa the '80s. Continue |
Jammy's Records |
Talouse. Youth Promotion Operator |
| Scott C is a Montreal based writer and musician. In addition to his proficiency with the pen, Scott organizes the Soul Series in Montreal. |
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alive in lisboa
sarah tavares
singer. songwriter. linguist |

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“There is a big, big generation of Cape Verdeans and other Africans here in Lisbon, in Paris, in Boston, all over… with a kind of messed-up identity,” says Lisbon’s Sara Tavares, who released Alive in Lisboa on the World Connection record label. “Our generation feels very lost because there is no culture specifically for us; that talks about our reality.”
“When I walk around with my friends, it’s a very, very interesting community,” Tavares explains. “We speak Portuguese slang, Angolan slang, some words in Cape Verdean Crioulo, and of course some English. In Crioulo there are already English and French words. This is because slaves from all over the world had to communicate and didn’t speak the same languages. We are a metisse culture.” Continue
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miles & coltrane
50th anniversary of
kind of blue & giant step |
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| Once upon a time, there were giants that walked the earth. Often they carried musical instruments with them and would use them to communicate beautiful, wonderful things to the world. The best of them would take it upon themselves to be the gatherer of such giants. They would become the giants of giants. They would become the leaders of giants and through their leadership the gatherings of giants, with their gleaming instruments, would bestow great gifts upon the earth. Miles Davis and John Coltrane were such giants of giants. Kind of Blue and Giant Step are such gifts. And after a half a century we have yet to be revisited by such beings bearing blessings of such bounty. Watch Video |
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