This summer at the British Library, history is celebrated in a truly unique style in Beyond The Bassline - a beautifully presented exhibition taking you through the past 500 years of Black British musical history. A serious journey to reflect on, represent and give its due recognition.
Curated by Dr Aleema Gray at the British Library in collaboration with Mykaell Riley (Founder member of Steel Pulse and Research Associate at the University of Westminster) Beyond The Bassline was built on three years of partnership research, working to document a comprehensive picture of six centuries of contribution to British music from Black artists. If you visit the exhibition, any doubt that its impressive chronology is an exaggeration should be expelled from your mind, as its contents present a real and thorough timeline evidencing the meaningful contributions of Black artistry all the way back to the 16th century.
Beyond The Bassline draws from our community and the British Library’s sound archives to provide unparalleled education, divided into four sections: The Ocean (reflecting on where it all begins with the transatlantic slave trade and migration), The Stage (both classical arenas and underground spaces) Frontlines (how Black music has always been a community narrative across ALL of the UK) and Cyberspace (the evolution of music making into a 21st century digital age).
As Halina Kaszycka-Williams, Community Interpretation Manager at The British Library and Beyond The Bassline curator explains:
“We want people to walk away feeling inspired, feeling informed, feeling whole. Feeling in tune with something that's inside, but larger than them.”
After a visit back in April for the exhibition’s opening week, we caught up with Halina to find out more about the creators and collaborators who helped make this exhibition so full and special, and take a deeper dive behind the exhibition’s creation and how it all came together.
--------
Gee: Beyond The Bassline starts with a story before Britain, a timeline dating back to the transatlantic slave trade, moving into the earliest musicians of African descent in the 16th century courts of Henry VIII. The long chronology of 500 years feels really important to the exhibition, as alot of our knowledge of Black British Music has typically started with the Windrush generation. Was there an underlying aim of uncovering stories which haven’t been centred previously and how did starting this far back shape the exhibition's story of Black British music?Curated by Dr Aleema Gray at the British Library in collaboration with Mykaell Riley (Founder member of Steel Pulse and Research Associate at the University of Westminster) Beyond The Bassline was built on three years of partnership research, working to document a comprehensive picture of six centuries of contribution to British music from Black artists. If you visit the exhibition, any doubt that its impressive chronology is an exaggeration should be expelled from your mind, as its contents present a real and thorough timeline evidencing the meaningful contributions of Black artistry all the way back to the 16th century.
Beyond The Bassline draws from our community and the British Library’s sound archives to provide unparalleled education, divided into four sections: The Ocean (reflecting on where it all begins with the transatlantic slave trade and migration), The Stage (both classical arenas and underground spaces) Frontlines (how Black music has always been a community narrative across ALL of the UK) and Cyberspace (the evolution of music making into a 21st century digital age).
As Halina Kaszycka-Williams, Community Interpretation Manager at The British Library and Beyond The Bassline curator explains:
“We want people to walk away feeling inspired, feeling informed, feeling whole. Feeling in tune with something that's inside, but larger than them.”
After a visit back in April for the exhibition’s opening week, we caught up with Halina to find out more about the creators and collaborators who helped make this exhibition so full and special, and take a deeper dive behind the exhibition’s creation and how it all came together.
--------
Halina: I think in building the exhibition that felt sort of obvious. It's a bit of a USP. A lot of other shows tend to look at postwar musicianship in the UK. Or they might go a little bit earlier, for example, the Victorian era and 18th century, sort of at best. Our big aim was to challenge the canon and ideas that there wasn't Black presence in the UK before that time. John Blanke is the central figure that we examined within that, kind of as a starting point, the sort of ascension that he made. He wasn't just a street performer, he was actually a royal
trumpeter in Henry VIII’s royal court. This challenges stereotypes. That's not to say that obviously, you know, racism didn't exist at that time, and there wasn't a large, large black presence in the UK then...but it’s the very fact that a musician of African descent was playing at that time. This really speaks to the talents of Black musicians. The fact that this person was deemed a good enough musician to be able to perform in those highest courts.
I think it sets the scene as we go on to look at John Dee’s (the court astronomer and advisor to Elizabeth I) map as well. He was the first person to coin the term British Empire.
“We have to go that far back to understand why we came to be here on these shores and why we've created all of these incredible cultures, incredible genres, and all the socio-political history.”
There is a response and a dialogue in that. I think when people do see 500 years, obviously, you have the naysayers and particularly quite a lot of white people, who were just like: “You know what, 500 years? It's only one person, etc, etc.” Then there are so many people that are obviously captivated by that and understanding “Why? How? Who?”and as I said, really challenging it. These are not figures that are necessarily brought out unless you're an academic, unless you read certain books of the Tudor period, unless you are a music academic or ethnographer or a mega fan. So really bringing that into the mainstream you know. There are a lot of people that we've worked with who have studied this, its their realm and they have really been able to give us a lot of insight into that.
trumpeter in Henry VIII’s royal court. This challenges stereotypes. That's not to say that obviously, you know, racism didn't exist at that time, and there wasn't a large, large black presence in the UK then...but it’s the very fact that a musician of African descent was playing at that time. This really speaks to the talents of Black musicians. The fact that this person was deemed a good enough musician to be able to perform in those highest courts.
I think it sets the scene as we go on to look at John Dee’s (the court astronomer and advisor to Elizabeth I) map as well. He was the first person to coin the term British Empire.
“We have to go that far back to understand why we came to be here on these shores and why we've created all of these incredible cultures, incredible genres, and all the socio-political history.”
There is a response and a dialogue in that. I think when people do see 500 years, obviously, you have the naysayers and particularly quite a lot of white people, who were just like: “You know what, 500 years? It's only one person, etc, etc.” Then there are so many people that are obviously captivated by that and understanding “Why? How? Who?”and as I said, really challenging it. These are not figures that are necessarily brought out unless you're an academic, unless you read certain books of the Tudor period, unless you are a music academic or ethnographer or a mega fan. So really bringing that into the mainstream you know. There are a lot of people that we've worked with who have studied this, its their realm and they have really been able to give us a lot of insight into that.
Halina: Yeah! The reason why Mykaell (Mykaell Riley) brought this to the British Library is because of our sound archive - which most people don't know about, musicians, sound artists and sound academics alike. We have a 6 million strong sound archive, including recorded sound, items for recording and listening, manuscripts and written documents, like sheet music. We do have sheet music from artists like Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Ignatius Sancho in our own collection. We do have a large, large, large number of loans within the show. Its about 90 loans, which is completely different to any other British Library show. Some of them might have eight, some of them might have 20 but never this kind of level. Really engaged in that is a community story, bringing in actual artefacts, documents and instruments that people have actually used and played. Things that haven't just been, you know, gathering dust in an archive. We have worked with the George Padmore Institute, Black Cultural Archives, the National Archives as well (you can see some of that in The Stage section). Though the roots of it are in the British Library collections and bringing them out, it's a collaborative effort between loads of different sources as well. It has brought up a lot of questions about how we archive what is deemed important, the gaps in the archive as well. It’s really engaging people that might not be exhibition goers or might not be historians, but hopefully will be music fans as they come to the show. It’s really bringing it to the fore.
Gee: The exhibition really helps reveal the pioneering role of Black Artists in so many of music’ most enduring and innovative genres: from classical and jazz to ska and reggae, drum and bass, UK garage and beyond. Were there any genres or scenes which were more of a challenge to represent fully or any you wished you could further explore?
Halina: I guess we focused on a particular range of genres as you said, you know, we look at classical music genres, dub, roots, reggae. Black British genres like lovers rock and then grime and jungle, the two more contemporary, ‘cyberspace’ genres. We looked at the roots in West Africa and performing citizenship, Fela Kuti and E.T Mensah, all those first musicians going to the UK during the 60s and 70s. Obviously, they're not the first African musicians that came to the UK, but there was a lean towards that kind of mainstream context there.
I would say in the latter sections, I have my own personal takes and some of the curators do as well, in terms of more contemporary genres that we didn't explore. We didn't give too much of a focus on UK rap or UK hip hop as a genre unto itself. We did include some of those records, like London Posse and people like that, in the magazine wall. We aim to showcase again looking at R&B, looking at neo soul in the UK context. There is an infographic of all of the genres that have been birthed. I was personally upset that we didn't give dubstep a big rep, because it feels like in certain people's minds it was appropriated by a lot of brostep, and you know, a little bit of corrupting of the genre. Afro-swing and Afro-pop, you know, J-Hus and all that kind of thing. We weren't able to investigate given the space and that was something that we really wanted to explore in other means as well, because that has just had such an incredible impact and such incredible influence as well. We gave early jazz but we didn't really look at contemporary jazz. Obviously, I’m from South, you know, there's so many incredible contemporary jazz musicians, all over London and the UK.
“In Cyberspace, we had to really choose carefully which quintessential genres. I think grime and jungle really do crystallise this, they have gone on to birth other genres, like breakbeat or two step and four by four. All that kind of thing. So really looking at them as like, pivoting and pivotal points within the 90s and early 2000s.”
I would say in the latter sections, I have my own personal takes and some of the curators do as well, in terms of more contemporary genres that we didn't explore. We didn't give too much of a focus on UK rap or UK hip hop as a genre unto itself. We did include some of those records, like London Posse and people like that, in the magazine wall. We aim to showcase again looking at R&B, looking at neo soul in the UK context. There is an infographic of all of the genres that have been birthed. I was personally upset that we didn't give dubstep a big rep, because it feels like in certain people's minds it was appropriated by a lot of brostep, and you know, a little bit of corrupting of the genre. Afro-swing and Afro-pop, you know, J-Hus and all that kind of thing. We weren't able to investigate given the space and that was something that we really wanted to explore in other means as well, because that has just had such an incredible impact and such incredible influence as well. We gave early jazz but we didn't really look at contemporary jazz. Obviously, I’m from South, you know, there's so many incredible contemporary jazz musicians, all over London and the UK.
“In Cyberspace, we had to really choose carefully which quintessential genres. I think grime and jungle really do crystallise this, they have gone on to birth other genres, like breakbeat or two step and four by four. All that kind of thing. So really looking at them as like, pivoting and pivotal points within the 90s and early 2000s.”
Gee: It felt like a great representation of the bubbling underground. Representing pop music too would have been a whole other venture!
Halina: That was something that we did touch upon. In the record shop there's obviously the Top of the Pops screen. There's people like Mike Morrison and like, you know, you could have said shout out Craig David or Sade but the list is endless. I think that it is important to remember we are representing Black British music. With certain things like rap, which obviously has its roots in sound system culture, but is in its essence, is American. In the record shop for example, we were quite careful to look at genres that were ‘made in the UK’, like Two Tone, Roots, Lovers Rock, which has been made in the UK rather than interpreted in the UK.
We touched on gospel within the faith interruption that I co-produced. We wanted to obviously give light to how faith has spiritually shaped and influenced difficult musical traditions. There's a massive gospel community, one that's transcended and infiltrated the mainstream as well. But there were other team members, events programmers who again, make the association of gospel with America, the American South and having more of a stake there. This wasn't deemed to be necessarily distinctly Black British.
We touched on gospel within the faith interruption that I co-produced. We wanted to obviously give light to how faith has spiritually shaped and influenced difficult musical traditions. There's a massive gospel community, one that's transcended and infiltrated the mainstream as well. But there were other team members, events programmers who again, make the association of gospel with America, the American South and having more of a stake there. This wasn't deemed to be necessarily distinctly Black British.
Gee: The exhibition feels very immersive. From the sounds of the ocean in the opening section, the soundbites embedded in the mosaics honouring the Rastafari culture, or the film/sound systems installations which punctuate between sections. Can you highlight some specific contributions which really helped shape certain sections or added a whole new element?
Halina: Yeah, all of them. Upon entry you have the Touching Base soundscape. This was then a conversation between Jukebox Collective as well. They responded with their film ‘Of Us’, a triple response or a double response to those themes in my interpretations. This dance film, which I worked with the Jukebox Collective on, is absolutely unto itself. It could have taken up a lot more space. I've seen quite a lot on social media of this, obviously it's one of the first things that people have really taken to and are really drawn to. It's a beautiful transition which obviously highlights hybrid Welsh identities, which was super important when thinking about the UK as a whole and thinking about Black Britain, rather than just you know, centering London or centering English experiences.
That connection was actually made by Aleema, the curator. We had the pleasure of going down to Cardiff a few months ago and you know, talking about the original ideas and all that kind of thing, and obviously it developed into this absolutely stunning, breathtaking film, with loads of very young participants and dancers. It was that intergenerational dialogue, that understanding of place and space. It was quite an arduous shoot on the South Coast of Wales. They really fought against the elements there. I think all of these represent journeys in both the concept and the creation as well. The struggle makes it sweeter sometimes.
You mentioned the mosaic series and the accompanying soundscape. That was a complete community effort. It was a really beautiful experience where multiple people were returning as participants. They came and contributed to each piece and again, you know, the feedback and people's responses and reflections particularly. There was a lot of like elder women that took part which took place in Kennington. This was a lot of people from the local area and in South London, looking at the therapeutic processes which that kind of entailed. The fact that they'd never actually taken part in this kind of creative process before, where they could also see things that were emerging in a very tangible way. So it was connecting the mind and the body working together, with the roots of the conversation created in Rastafari culture. This is all about connection and oneness. So it felt like everything was really holistic and that way. Rastafari Movement UK work across the community in loads of different forms. So they work within wellbeing practices as well.That was the whole point of that space, to really link in both the spiritual the individual connection, and the political motivations. You can see little things like reparations, and you know, and bringing out all of those kinds of symbolisms as well. The company soundscape really looked at introducing different musicality in conversation. What are the differences? What are the similarities between the gospel traditions? Bringing out archival recordings.
Gospel artist Renée Landell recorded that with musician Roots Hitek and her band in Birmingham. She’s actually from the oldest black majority church in the UK, the Bethel Church. The archival recordings that you hear, some of them were her grandfather and other pastors that were active and still active today within the church and for her again, that process that engagement with community, family, but then also the responses to you know, when we were mixing in the studio. Seeing Roots and Renne come with completely different, you know, outputs in a way, of how they look to and embody their spirituality in how they create music was just phenomenal.
I did also want to shout out Shivas Howard-Brown, who created the most beautiful home made speakers sound system that I've ever laid my eyes on in the self made section. So that was no
That connection was actually made by Aleema, the curator. We had the pleasure of going down to Cardiff a few months ago and you know, talking about the original ideas and all that kind of thing, and obviously it developed into this absolutely stunning, breathtaking film, with loads of very young participants and dancers. It was that intergenerational dialogue, that understanding of place and space. It was quite an arduous shoot on the South Coast of Wales. They really fought against the elements there. I think all of these represent journeys in both the concept and the creation as well. The struggle makes it sweeter sometimes.
You mentioned the mosaic series and the accompanying soundscape. That was a complete community effort. It was a really beautiful experience where multiple people were returning as participants. They came and contributed to each piece and again, you know, the feedback and people's responses and reflections particularly. There was a lot of like elder women that took part which took place in Kennington. This was a lot of people from the local area and in South London, looking at the therapeutic processes which that kind of entailed. The fact that they'd never actually taken part in this kind of creative process before, where they could also see things that were emerging in a very tangible way. So it was connecting the mind and the body working together, with the roots of the conversation created in Rastafari culture. This is all about connection and oneness. So it felt like everything was really holistic and that way. Rastafari Movement UK work across the community in loads of different forms. So they work within wellbeing practices as well.That was the whole point of that space, to really link in both the spiritual the individual connection, and the political motivations. You can see little things like reparations, and you know, and bringing out all of those kinds of symbolisms as well. The company soundscape really looked at introducing different musicality in conversation. What are the differences? What are the similarities between the gospel traditions? Bringing out archival recordings.
Gospel artist Renée Landell recorded that with musician Roots Hitek and her band in Birmingham. She’s actually from the oldest black majority church in the UK, the Bethel Church. The archival recordings that you hear, some of them were her grandfather and other pastors that were active and still active today within the church and for her again, that process that engagement with community, family, but then also the responses to you know, when we were mixing in the studio. Seeing Roots and Renne come with completely different, you know, outputs in a way, of how they look to and embody their spirituality in how they create music was just phenomenal.
I did also want to shout out Shivas Howard-Brown, who created the most beautiful home made speakers sound system that I've ever laid my eyes on in the self made section. So that was no
Gee: Ah yeah, was his audio brand Friendly Pressure, they have also produced Jumbi’s speaker set up?
Halina: Yeah! I've known Shivas for a long time through a lot of other people. He is a self taught audio builder. You know, he was creating and you know, flipping bits around, but really seriously got into it during pandemic times. He's fitted out Jumbi and Moko - spaces that were really created as listening spaces. And are Black owned. This is again, that conversation between the sound system, him being a self taught builder, as are all of the sound system builders that we know and love. He used very, very, beautiful materials that were quite expensive. He didn't necessarily make sound systems out of cupboards and cabinets and all that kind of thing but it has still got that DIY aspect. This is related back to the idea of clubs as a place for resistance and community, these ideas that we explore in the ‘Frontline’ section of Beyond The Bassline as well. The audio build was brought out with a film directed by Hannah Oliver and Yvonne Shelling, made in collaboration with Roundhouse Young Filmmakers. So it was this really amazing dialogue. They were taking a nonlinear look at the social and political conditions of why we have to make things ourselves, weaving in the sound system building element, looking to those histories to try and understand why. We can see through all of the archival footage they use and new footage, harking back to carnival and John Blanke too. It was this really amazing conversation. I’m really proud of what they've made.
Gee: We loved the regional representation the exhibition offers, showcasing the roots of Black British Music in the North of the UK, with spotlights on Leeds Carnival, Manchester Street Soul and the Birmingham/Coventry Two Tone scene. It feels like there is some personal history for people all over the UK and a few stories we weren't so familiar with. Did it feel that these stories fell naturally within the narrative or was it more intentional to dig out different communities? Was there ever any thought about structuring the exhibition in a more geographical way?
Halina: I guess naturally if you're talking about the context of Britain, you're gonna go all over Britain. I think within the club section for example, where there is the interactive with the different club spaces around the UK. We wanted to do a similar thing for sound systems as well.
I hate to necessarily use the term regional, as somehow that still centres London but it really was natural, as there are so many genres from all over. Two Tone for example - birthed in the West Midlands. There are specificities as to why certain parts of the country were influenced by different sounds. They have different socio-political conditions, different trades and industries, different waves of people coming at different times and different communities built as well. This also meant different integrations between white and Black people. It was really important and really exciting to hear those stories firsthand.
For example, with Manchester, we did a little trip. We felt that in places like Manchester, there has been a lot of white music or a lot of English music which has overtaken the shine of the Black innovators and cultural players. Manchester.
“Most people associate with Oasis, Stone Roses, and you know, similar in Liverpool, it's the Beatles and all that kind of thing. When actually, I got to meet the first DJ that ever played in the Hacienda (Hewan Clark), a Black DJ and he's completely unknown. It's completely whitewashed, essentially of history. It's now attributed to Factory Records and all that kind of acid house scene.”
The work with the resistance interruption with Leeds-based artists was important. We already have connections in Leeds because we are due to be building a new British Library North as well. So there's a vested interest for us and working with communities up there. We want to work collaboratively and amplify their perspectives because we're going to be creating a space that is for them. It is without a doubt there is a rich history in Leeds, of course the first West Indian carnival that took place outdoors, Chapeltown, lots of sound system originators, lovers rock. We didn't really profile Northern Ireland as part of the UK. We obviously did look at the Reggae Club in Glasgow, but I would love to be able to look at the profile of black artistry across all the borders. Wales did get a shout, with Shirley Bassey and Jukebox Collective. It wouldn't have worked to structure it geographically. There would have been so many overlapping threads. It wouldn't make for a fluid narrative structure. I think looking thematically and looking at those things that overlap and then looking at place within that and space within that.
But with that said, there are other devices that one can use to give profile to other cities. Huddersfield is a key example of a city that people don't associate firsthand with Black music, if you're sort of outside of that massive sound system culture. Luton as well. Bristol is a significant one to be examined with the St Pauls area. The big cities were one thing that we did look at, but then there's all of the suburban areas and the towns as well. There's been a lot of work at the British Library over the last like, say like seven years, with the Unlocking Our Sound heritage project. That was basically a multi year project looking at preserving and digitising archives from across the UK. So, working with community centres, working with groups working with local archives, and that kind of thing. They had sort of an embedded reach within some of those lesser known or lesser profiled towns. We'd always love to do more. I’m just thinking of all the places that we couldn't mention! I don't know what's going on in Cornwall, but there must be something going on there. We were looking at port cities as natural sites of migration. There was still quite a lot that we weren't able to fully dig into!
I hate to necessarily use the term regional, as somehow that still centres London but it really was natural, as there are so many genres from all over. Two Tone for example - birthed in the West Midlands. There are specificities as to why certain parts of the country were influenced by different sounds. They have different socio-political conditions, different trades and industries, different waves of people coming at different times and different communities built as well. This also meant different integrations between white and Black people. It was really important and really exciting to hear those stories firsthand.
For example, with Manchester, we did a little trip. We felt that in places like Manchester, there has been a lot of white music or a lot of English music which has overtaken the shine of the Black innovators and cultural players. Manchester.
“Most people associate with Oasis, Stone Roses, and you know, similar in Liverpool, it's the Beatles and all that kind of thing. When actually, I got to meet the first DJ that ever played in the Hacienda (Hewan Clark), a Black DJ and he's completely unknown. It's completely whitewashed, essentially of history. It's now attributed to Factory Records and all that kind of acid house scene.”
The work with the resistance interruption with Leeds-based artists was important. We already have connections in Leeds because we are due to be building a new British Library North as well. So there's a vested interest for us and working with communities up there. We want to work collaboratively and amplify their perspectives because we're going to be creating a space that is for them. It is without a doubt there is a rich history in Leeds, of course the first West Indian carnival that took place outdoors, Chapeltown, lots of sound system originators, lovers rock. We didn't really profile Northern Ireland as part of the UK. We obviously did look at the Reggae Club in Glasgow, but I would love to be able to look at the profile of black artistry across all the borders. Wales did get a shout, with Shirley Bassey and Jukebox Collective. It wouldn't have worked to structure it geographically. There would have been so many overlapping threads. It wouldn't make for a fluid narrative structure. I think looking thematically and looking at those things that overlap and then looking at place within that and space within that.
But with that said, there are other devices that one can use to give profile to other cities. Huddersfield is a key example of a city that people don't associate firsthand with Black music, if you're sort of outside of that massive sound system culture. Luton as well. Bristol is a significant one to be examined with the St Pauls area. The big cities were one thing that we did look at, but then there's all of the suburban areas and the towns as well. There's been a lot of work at the British Library over the last like, say like seven years, with the Unlocking Our Sound heritage project. That was basically a multi year project looking at preserving and digitising archives from across the UK. So, working with community centres, working with groups working with local archives, and that kind of thing. They had sort of an embedded reach within some of those lesser known or lesser profiled towns. We'd always love to do more. I’m just thinking of all the places that we couldn't mention! I don't know what's going on in Cornwall, but there must be something going on there. We were looking at port cities as natural sites of migration. There was still quite a lot that we weren't able to fully dig into!
Halina: The message and the underpinning ideas were to explore the realities of the Black experience in the UK, through sound and through related cultures. Whether that's through dance or fashion as well, which sounds like a whole other exhibition in itself. The aim was to speak to our real experiences, whether its the slave trade or police brutality, discrimination, everyday racism, institutional racism and all of those kind of things. But at the same time, speak to joy and community. I think we were very very careful to have that delicate balance. We want people to walk away feeling inspired, feeling informed, feeling whole, feeling in tune with something that's inside but larger than them. A lot of Black history in the mainstream does focus and does become negative. There is this thing called Afro-pessimism (exploring the idea that we haven't really progressed since slavery. With Touching Bass’s installation, this was all about reparative futures - how we can heal each other and provide spaces of repair. We are looking at the evidence that our parents' generation and their parents' generation have been able to heal before us and that is why we are all still here. There is definitely celebration throughout but specifically, as you said, in the final parts of the show. We thought about if we are looking at Black success in the mainstream, what does success look like? That is something that is very individual. In music, record sales don’t necessarily translate to success. You can make loads of records and not loads of money, not have the agency or control over things and get signed into terrible deals. There are people that maintain quite steady careers that never ascend to really heady heights, number ones or arena tours but live a very very full life. The MOBOs is for us and by us and we were here able to showcase the depth and breadth of winners in that space. Everyone could watch it and be like “Oh My God, I remember Kele Le Roc!” or “I remember when Beverly Knight won!”. We could bring in all these people who represent us and continue in that mainstream context.
There was really a shift in energy throughout the exhibition. For example in the ocean section, the way that it's designed, the mood and subject matter, is very reflective. It's more of an individual dialogue with the objects there. It starts to ascend in energy through the jazz section, the interactions between those artists, reading some of the quite triggering material there, whether that's accounts of violence or police reports of homophobia, that kind of stuff. Then when you get to the frontline section and there's a pushes and pull there with what was going on, in the 1960s, the 80s and continuing today with justice and rights for Black people. With the record shop section it gets more vibrant, there is energy but it feels like it's meandering. The last journey is from Cyberspace to Tayo and Rohan’s film. It’s incredibly immersive. For some people this can be quite overwhelming, for example people who are
neurodiverse, but also some people found this space really comfortable. Throughout the exhibition there is a lot going on and that's why with all of the spaces that I worked on, there were points where there was a little bit of respite where you can find that pause. Particularly in the stage section where it is very light on objects and you have got a lot of space and you are able to breathe. The takeaway is mixed emotions. We wanted people to feel inspired and be able to engage, even if you are not a musician. To look at your history, personal history or shared history, and really think about what's next. What today means. From the feedback that we have got so far...people have really connected, really enjoyed themselves. Mykaell keeps on talking about the people that have been crying (laughs). I mean when I first came into the space and I first saw everything laid out, I think it was when I saw the Brixton Defence campaign banner I started crying. It was finally seeing everything that we had been working towards, that had been in drawings, everything that has come to life. It already had a life and continues to but now its being brought out to everyone. It’s been one of the most enriching experiences of my life to work with so many people who just care, love our people, love music. It’s been a trip!
There was really a shift in energy throughout the exhibition. For example in the ocean section, the way that it's designed, the mood and subject matter, is very reflective. It's more of an individual dialogue with the objects there. It starts to ascend in energy through the jazz section, the interactions between those artists, reading some of the quite triggering material there, whether that's accounts of violence or police reports of homophobia, that kind of stuff. Then when you get to the frontline section and there's a pushes and pull there with what was going on, in the 1960s, the 80s and continuing today with justice and rights for Black people. With the record shop section it gets more vibrant, there is energy but it feels like it's meandering. The last journey is from Cyberspace to Tayo and Rohan’s film. It’s incredibly immersive. For some people this can be quite overwhelming, for example people who are
neurodiverse, but also some people found this space really comfortable. Throughout the exhibition there is a lot going on and that's why with all of the spaces that I worked on, there were points where there was a little bit of respite where you can find that pause. Particularly in the stage section where it is very light on objects and you have got a lot of space and you are able to breathe. The takeaway is mixed emotions. We wanted people to feel inspired and be able to engage, even if you are not a musician. To look at your history, personal history or shared history, and really think about what's next. What today means. From the feedback that we have got so far...people have really connected, really enjoyed themselves. Mykaell keeps on talking about the people that have been crying (laughs). I mean when I first came into the space and I first saw everything laid out, I think it was when I saw the Brixton Defence campaign banner I started crying. It was finally seeing everything that we had been working towards, that had been in drawings, everything that has come to life. It already had a life and continues to but now its being brought out to everyone. It’s been one of the most enriching experiences of my life to work with so many people who just care, love our people, love music. It’s been a trip!