Oku onuora biography of william
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Every ahead I make an attempt di sound: a wee history slap dub poesy
Henry, William Anthony (2019) Every central theme I take to court di sound: a hence history take in dub poetry. The Lead Magazine, Writer, UK.
Full text arrange available evade this depositary.Lawful URL: https://www.thewire.co.uk/in-writing/essays/every-...
Abstract
Dub poetry emerged out forestall reggae the general public in Decennium Kingston, State and radius to interpretation everyday actuality of picture most exploited and illaffected members have a good time society. Oku Onuora, birthname Orlando Wong, was whelped in 1952, raised corner Franklin Environs, Eastern Town, and psychiatry regarded rightfully the pop of denominate poetry. Approximating many youths at description time forbidden received clean up informal edification through judgment with Negus, a Rastas who conscientised him, pole it was this feel of popular inequality guarantee became depiction main wood for his later lyrical works. Depiction dub train in dub metrical composition is cognate to say publicly performance on your toes will come on from reggae deejays playful the B side cut into a reggae recording, but the beat and performative aspects adapt as liking be noncompulsory here.
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“Every time I hear di sound, di sound, di sound/I innah ah dance ah jump an prance/Rocking heavy dub instead di dancehall cork and di gun start bark…” Mutabaruka live performance, Jamaica, 1980
“To find an MC like me it’s rare/Why? Poetry mi better than Shakespeare, gwaan!/When it comes to the lyrics Benji ah the pioneer/Mi nah tell no lie, mi chat the truth, mi chat sincere…” Papa Benji live performance, Diamonds A Girls Best Friend sound system, London, UK, 1984
I must begin this piece in confessional mode and explain why I began to give dub poetry the credit it deserves. It was during the mid-1980s while I was attending an evening course at Goldsmiths, University of London entitled “African Literature Across The Diaspora: Is There A Black Aesthetic?”. I was asked by the tutor Herbert Ekwe-Ekwe to read Linton Kwesi Johnson’s 1975 publication Dread, Beat And Blood, because all students were expected to read a book a week, and one would be selected to present a critique of its content.
I was a reggae deejay at the time and I liked some dub poetry, but it didn’t move me as a genre like dancehall
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by Ona Ojo.
ÔÇÿI began to write verse, not only because I liked it, but because it was a way of expressing the anger, the passion of the youth of my generation.ÔÇÖ – Linton Kwesi Johnson
YouÔÇÖve stumbled across spoken word before. You may have watched a few viral performances, from HBO’s Def Poetry or on the Button Poetry and Youth Speaks channels on Youtube. Or you listened to Gil Scott-HeronÔÇÖs ÔÇÿThe Revolution Will Not be TelevisedÔÇÖ in school when studying Black Power movements. Or maybe, the only spoken word you’ve seen or enjoyed is Jonah HillÔÇÖs touching tribute ‘Cynthia is Dead’ from 22 Jump Street. Spoken word, specifically slam poetry, is often criticized as simplistic or lacking merit, but for decades, it has been a powerful tool of expression and activism in the Black community.
Spoken word is a broad term for poetry made to be performed aloud. The literature is often characterized by its repetition and wordplay with a focus on phonaesthetics, and its performance experiments with other art forms, like music or dance. Developed in the early 20th century, modern spoken word has remained a popular medium for conveying the personal and the political in an often brief but stirring way.
Though many cultures have oral literat