It was DJ Moxie who provided the narration. White and English. On Thu 18 Oct 2018, 19:37 Shaun Fogarty, <fogg...@gmail.com> wrote:
> What a fantastic discussion. I am inspired to spin some Drexciya later > when I get to sit down. Maybe I’ll try to think more deeply about the > context of the music. > > Cheers, > Shaun (England) > > On Thu, 18 Oct 2018 at 19:28, David A. Powers <cybo...@gmail.com> wrote: > >> 1. Stealing by RA is terrible. Remember that along with the fact of black >> innovators not getting credit, there is an even more common story of >> exploitation in the music industry: musicians and creators who get ripped >> off, whether it's theft by a manager, record labels stealing, or this >> current example. This kind of exploitation goes on all the time, and I do >> believe musicians, writers, and artists, need to work to take whatever >> steps they can to stop such theft. Let me tell you, I lived in the D, if >> someone steals from you there, they better be prepared to get their ass >> beat. I'm just saying... >> >> 2. It's racist to make assumptions about race and cultural background >> based on someone's accent. >> >> 3. All civilized societies to this day, use slave labor in some forms. In >> the global economy, slavery is simply pushed to the margins: slaves still >> work in mines to get stuff that goes into our high tech gadgets. As long as >> civilization uses slaves, there are going to be ideologies that justify the >> exploitation. US racism is rooted in the history of slavery, but also in >> the economic competition between north and south, and the fact that the >> industrialized north didn't need slave labor because it had found a more >> efficient way to exploit human labor. >> >> 4. The meaning of work, slavery, and exploitation is going to change in a >> society run by machines. >> >> And #4 is why Drexciya and techno are relevant--we live in a society of >> machines, and slave labor is embedded in the very machines we use to >> communicate with each other and to create techno music. >> >> Drexciya's music reflects the experience of the people who made it, >> including being black, growing up in Detroit, the history of US slavery and >> racism, etc. But SLAVERY is not a "black issue" it's a human issue, which >> is explored from a particular viewpoint rooted in a particular cultural >> experience. >> >> Music is not ABOUT ideas. Music is a living experience that cannot be put >> into words. >> If it could be put into words, then the music would actually be redundant! >> If you want ideas, read a book. >> The experience of listening to a Drexciya record is totally different >> than talking about it. >> Nothing you could say about a Drexciya record, would exhaust the >> potential wealth of meanings and experience that the record contains. >> Art is open ended, that's what makes it art and not propaganda... >> >> >> ~David >> >> On Thu, Oct 18, 2018 at 12:52 PM Steven Robertson <stev...@k-os.net> >> wrote: >> >>> I'm all for positive discrimination. In order to achieve any sense of >>> equality, it has to be done. It's the way to correct things. >>> >>> RA is a London-based website so far as I know. London is an >>> international city whose residents are less racist than average. It seems >>> that the most racist parts of the world are the parts with the least amount >>> of diversity. This obviously because when you live and work with people >>> from all over the world you see them as human beings. The narrator could be >>> black, but from London. >>> >>> Not giving credit, clearly is unprofessional. The accent of the >>> narrator, I don't think is a problem. I'd love to see and hear more talk of >>> Detroit music from Detroiters, and for Drexciya specifically, well - an >>> African accent could be perfect. >>> >>> I do wonder if race and racism entirely an artificial idea, that it is >>> really down to a tribalism. It's something I think is often used to >>> manipulate people in times of war (or conquest), and to sow division. Isn't >>> race more a colonial idea, to justify the theft of land from its native >>> people? These days we should know that we're all the same race, and that >>> there are so many colours. Nobody is simply white or black. There is no >>> black or white. Except, where positive discrimination is due. >>> >>> I'm lucky never to have experienced racial discrimination. I've rarely >>> seen any racism, and certainly less as time goes by. However, things could >>> change, but I'm thankful to live somewhere there is very little of this, >>> with respect to people from many places. Things have been sliding backwards >>> though, throughout Europe. Still, Europeans are not responsible for racism >>> in the US. There are people that are responsible, and you'll find them in >>> positions of power, using it as a tool, a method of control. IMHO. >>> >>> I'd be really disappointed if the music was _all_ about race and racism. >>> I don't think that's a fair representation. >>> >>> On Thu, 18 Oct 2018, at 5:25 PM, denisedalph...@gmail.com wrote: >>> >>> >>> We should hear the voice of a Black Detroiter narrating about Detroit >>> music. How often does that happen. That doesn’t communicate that the music >>> is only for people of color. White people are never excluded from anything. >>> And in 2018, unintentional? Please. >>> >>> Luis Manuel Garcia writes amazing pieces about intersectionality in club >>> culture for RA. They have the information, they’re just choosing to be old >>> grampas about it. >>> >>> On Oct 18, 2018, at 11:56, Steven Robertson <stev...@k-os.net> wrote: >>> >>> As a white person who grew up in Scotland, listening to Public Enemy, >>> and Paris, and reading the biography of Malcolm X, I don't exactly feel >>> comfortable making comment here. I think here there's clearly a lack of >>> sensitivity. It is likely to be unintentional, and in the case of the >>> unattributed source, they have at least corrected this soon after the issue >>> was raised publicly in the past few days. >>> >>> I appreciate that race and racism have a lot to do with the Drexciya >>> story and UR. However, I do feel that the assertion here that it is _all_ >>> about race and racism, should be challenged. There is a cultural context >>> which is certainly important to remember. It's worth remembering too those >>> that were lost in such terrible conditions on their way to America. I would >>> argue that the music is not all about race and racism. The music has a soul >>> and that soul is humanist, not racist. It's not racist towards white people >>> from Europe. Drexciya stands against slavery. We are all human beings. We >>> are each responsible to our own behaviour, and our shared futures. The >>> music transcends race and racism. We fight the power, and the slavers >>> wherever they may be. Drawing a line in the sand and saying that you don't >>> belong here is not quite what I think is intended by the music either. We >>> are all belong to the sea in some way. It's the strongest idea about it I >>> feel. >>> >>> On Thu, 18 Oct 2018, at 4:14 PM, Andrew Duke wrote: >>> >>> Sigh. I am absolutely disgusted by RA's handling of this at time of >>> publishing and since. Denise makes great points. Liz Copeland's interview >>> with James Stinson is also used. I am tired and cranky and thus this post >>> ain't eloquent. Someone just sent me this link (below) re RA that was >>> published Oct 11, just a few days before the original--uncredited--Drexciya >>> feature. The linked feature on RA is especially relevant re the mess they >>> made this week and how the concerns of Denise and others were ignored and >>> 313-moderator Kent's concerns "downvoted": >>> https://telegra.ph/Precedent-Advisor-10-11 >>> >>> >>> On Thu, Oct 18, 2018, 11:12 AM Denise Dalphond, < >>> denisedalph...@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>> I told RA what I thought. They ignored me. That's what usually happens. >>> >>> >>> *Denise Dalphond, Ph.D.* >>> *ethnomusicologist* >>> *schoolcraftwax.work <http://schoolcraftwax.work>* >>> >>> >>> On Thu, Oct 18, 2018 at 10:11 AM Callum MacGregor < >>> callum.macgre...@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>> What about redubbing the audio with you narrating? Make a corrected >>> version.... >>> >>> On Thu, 18 Oct 2018, 16:06 Denise Dalphond, <denisedalph...@gmail.com> >>> wrote: >>> >>> I love Drexciya. And it's really cool to be able to hear from James >>> Stinson still in 2018, thanks to Andrew Duke. And it's pretty amazing that >>> Andrew Duke did that interview. It's a priceless artifact. I could go on! >>> >>> Resident Advisor didn't credit Andrew Duke when they first posted the >>> video, and why is there a white woman's british voice narrating? It's off >>> putting. They're using the voice of the colonizer to tell the story of >>> brilliant, musical escape from enslavement and forced labor. Escape from >>> the colonizer. >>> >>> Oh here goes Denise, making everything about race. But this actually all >>> the way super duper is all about race and racism. >>> >>> And how much electronic music culture coverage is based in europe, the >>> birthplace of imperialism and colonialism? A lot. >>> >>> Music fans and writers should be more concerned about preserving and >>> protecting and respecting the culture that made this music. >>> >>> Why didn't they ask Cornelius Harris to narrate? Why didn't they ask >>> John Collins to narrate? That would be meaningful to artists and fans alike. >>> >>> >>> >>> Denise >>> >>> >>> >>> *Denise Dalphond, Ph.D.* >>> *ethnomusicologist* >>> *schoolcraftwax.work <http://schoolcraftwax.work>* >>> >>> >>> On Thu, Oct 18, 2018 at 9:47 AM Jeff Davis <j...@jeffreyjdavis.com> >>> wrote: >>> >>> Pretty sure most of you saw this already but I thought this short >>> video did a good job encapsulating and contextualizing the concepts >>> behind Drexciya. >>> >>> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgG-QiChiA8 >>> >>> includes a snippet from an Andrew Duke interview as well!! >>> >>> >>> thanks, >>> >>> Jeffrey J Davis >>> >>> j...@jeffreyjdavis.com >>> >>> www.jeffreyjdavis.com >>> >>> 218.833.2847 <(218)%20833-2847> >>> >>> >>> >>>
