CELEBRATING WALTER RODNEY'S LEGACY WITH HIP HOP

Tonight in downtown Atlanta, Georgia we celebrate the life and legacy of one brilliant black scholar, writer, pan-Africanist and historian; Walter Rodney. Artists to perform are Humanist from Burkina Faso via Paris and Waterflows from Senegal via DC. The show will be hosted by yours truely Buddha Blaze.

CELEBRATING WALTER RODNEY WITH HIP HOP

Venue: Soundtable, Space 2

Address: 482 Edgewood Avenue, 

South East Atlanta, Georgia

Date:  Friday March 22nd

Time:  8.30pm

WALTER RODNEY (March 23 1942 - 13 June 1980)   

He is a Guyanese history scholar and lecturer who has written and lectured on the need for Europeans to accept their part in under-developing Africans. By the age of 24 he earned a Phd. at the London School of African & oriental Studies. His lectures were against capitalism and in 1968 he led a revolution of poor workers in Jamaica an action that led him for being banned in Jamaica for ever. The riots came to be known as the Rodney Riots. Rodney went to teach at Dar es Salaam University in 1969 where he built a centre of African knowledge and education. in 1974 he returned to his native Guyana to take up a position at the University of Guyana but the government of Guyana resisted his return, this led to riots in that country. he then formed a powerful opposition political party called Working People's Alliance that was opposed to the government's capitalistic tendencies. He was later arrested and charged for various allegations. He was assassinated in 1980 after falling victim to a car bomb. he was one of the first black scholars to really take on the capitalism system. His most important book is called How Europe Underdeveloped Africa, where he described how Europe had a calculated plan to exploit Africa. He is a celebrated figure of Black freedom all over the world with lecture halls, history syllabuses, libraries, and school spaces named after him. The city of Atlanta Georgia hosts the headquarters to the Walter Rodney Foundation at Marketplace Boulevard on East Point. Visit the foundation here: Walter Rodney Foundation

DISCUSSION: IS AFRICAN HIP HOP A SOCIAL MOVEMENT??

African Hip Hop or Hip Hop in general can be viewed in many ways. Many people have used it as voice of the poor, some have used it as a tool to riches  others have used it as channel of expression. Do you see Hip Hop as a Social Movement?

Join Me as I host this Discussion in Atlanta, Georgia. Is African Hip Hop a Social Movement?

Thursday 21st 7pm;  The University Amphitheatre - Kennessaw State University - Northern Atlanta, Georgia.

Performers will include Humanist from Burkina Faso, Waterflow from Senegal, Ambassador for Ghana, Sol Messiah from Atlanta just to name a few.

DONT MISS OUT:  

WHY DON'T KENYAN ARTISTS GET POLITICALLY INVOLVED?

The Kenyan General election has just ended and what an interesting time it was. I took time to do an article for Okay Africa about some of the hip hip artists that had brought us some great music that had political messages.

There were artists who got paid to do songs for political parties and that's their right. But then there were artists who refused to take money and did songs about how they felt. The artists included Muki Garang, Jemedari and Octopizzo.

Read the article: Kenyan Political Tongues

Jemedari wrote a Letter to the President

Bro Muki is tired of living on 'A Dollar  a Day'

Octoppizo reveals what happened on Toboa