Read | How long, not long – Harry Belafonte

 

“What I did,” Belafonte says, “what made conscious political sense, was to say, ‘Let me have you love me because I will show you my deeper humanity.’” He beats out the “Banana Boat” rhythm on his desk. “If you like this song so much that I can engage you into singing it, delighting in it, I’ve sold you a people, a region, a culture. If you look more deeply into that region, that culture, those people, you’ll see a lot of things that have to do with oppression, with slavery. The song is a work song. It’s a protest song.” Calypso is Trinidadian music, derived from West African kaiso by slaves who used it to mock their masters. Belafonte tilts his head back, eyes half-closed, and opens his palms, becoming a Kingston dockworker. “ ‘I want to get home. I want to drink a rum. I want to get out from under.’”

Harry Belafonte is  an iconic actor, musician and activist. He also outsold Elvis. Read this fantastic interview about his life and struggle alongside his good friend Dr Martin Luther King Jr HERE

http://www.vqronline.org/articles/2013/fall/sharlet-belafonte

Truly inspirational.

Watch | Re-imagining Work

Another good RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce) animated talk on a subject that I’m always interested in. How can we get people more engaged, more productive, and happier at work? Is technology part of the problem — and could it also be part of the solution?

Dave Coplin, Chief Envisioning Officer at Microsoft, imagines what might be possible if more organisations  encouraged a truly open, collaborative and flexible working culture. Using technology in a healthier way and having more trust,

Listen | The Last Poets in the Boiler Room

On the 1st September 2013 the legendary group The Last Poets were in the Boiler Room in London. They were interviewed and performed, damn exciting stuff. Much talk about music, poetry and performance. Stream and download below.