Folk to Folk
Now more than ever, we need opportunities that bring us together and unite us across communities & cultures.
Folk to Folk will see a globally diverse range of Liverpool-based women share stories and songs from their places of birth.
These songs will be developed into collective singing experiences that create a deeper sense of belonging and human connection.
So, if you would like to sing collectively & have a story to share, please apply and be part of this free project!
Launching Liverpool City Region Music Board's Black Music Action Group
I was really proud to be able to be part of the launch of the Black Music Action Group (BMAG) on behalf of Liverpool City Region Music Board.
I was really proud to be able to be part of the launch of the Black Music Action Group (BMAG) on behalf of Liverpool City Region Music Board.
As the chair of the BMAG subgroup, it is a huge step in the right direction towards creating equality and inclusion for black people working within the music sector in the Liverpool region.
Liverpool City Region Music Board hosted an event at the British Music Experience, to officially launch its sub-group, the Black Music Action Group and the Music Board’s recently published Black Lives Matter Manifesto. The event was part of ON RECORD 2021, a festival celebrating and exploring Black music across the city region, at a public event at the British Music Experience.
The Black Music Action Group is a collaboration of music industry professionals with a wealth of experience and a cross-section of skills and experience; who come together to redress imbalance and proactively create a sustainable and dynamic sector that supports black artists across all music genres.
A key component of this pivotal launch was the announcement of the ReMap project, which explores the challenges in establishing music careers experienced by Black musicians and industry practitioners living and working in the Liverpool City Region (LCR). A collaboration between ON RECORD and the Institute of Popular Music at the University of Liverpool (UoL).
On Record event curator, and lead on the LCR Black Music Action Group Yaw Owusu said: “The research seeks to address three key questions:
Why recent Black music initiatives have had no sizeable impact on the opportunities for LCR-based black music artists?
Why the Black music community remains underrepresented in the LCR’s wider music economy?
What can be done to increase parity between LCR-based emerging and established Black music artists and their equivalents from other demographics?”
Phase One of this project took the form of a short documentary film that can be watched here:
Liverpool City Region Black Lives Matter manifesto
Liverpool City Region Music Board’s Black Lives Matter Manifesto.
Following the recent recruitment of eight new Music Board members, the Manifesto’s action to increase the cultural mix of Board membership and sub-groups, with a commitment to a minimum of 30% Black members has now been accomplished. And the Board is developing a specific Black Lives Matter sub-group, chaired by Jennifer John, who played a significant role in the creation of the Manifesto.
Created in response to the Black Lives Matter Movement and born from the LCR Music Board’s dedication to diversity and inclusivity, the manifesto details the Board’s commitment to acknowledging the contribution of Black people to the local music scene, past and present, while also improving the support and incorporation of Black music professionals, Black-led organisations and their work, into Liverpool City Region’s music and music culture eco-system.
“As a black female music industry professional, I know first-hand about the challenges that exist when trying to progress in an industry that’s historically not as inclusive as it should be.
As a Music Board we aim to be proactive in the strategic development of a sustainable infrastructure that includes and supports black artists working within the sector across all music genres.
The BLM sub-group is a collaboration of music industry professionals and creatives who have a wealth of experience and a cross-section of skills and experience that we can all share and learn from. This is an invaluable opportunity to redress imbalance and create a sustainable and dynamic sector that the City Region can be extremely proud of.”
LCR Music Board, and specifically its BLM sub-group, is contributing to a research project led by The University of Liverpool, which focuses on the challenges and needs of Black music creatives and industry professionals, as well as those specialising in Black music, based in the Liverpool City Region. This research project will generate key recommendations that will inform actions to be driven into policy and practice by the LCR Music Board.
The Black Lives Matter sub-group is composed of local industry professionals. The members are:
Jennifer John - Jennifer John Music (Chair)
Barbara Philips - Positive Impact
Yaw Owusu - The Playmaker Group
Les Spaine - Les Spaine Music
Paul Duhaney - Africa Oyé
Saad Shaffi - 24 Kitchen Street
Hannah Lynch - DJ
DJ 2Kind - DJ & L100 owner
Julian Gill - Songwriter & Content creator
Mo Ogleh - 2-Tone Artist manager
Mike Cave - Mix & Mastering Engineer
Alicia Smith - Culture Liverpool
Going forward the LCR Music Board aims to consciously ensure that the city’s Black music scene is fairly represented in all marketing materials that sell the city as a music tourism destination. And the Board has made the decision to no longer use the acronym ‘BAME’, nor will it use “urban” as the generic term to describe music of Black origin.
“If Liverpool is to be an authentic city of music then it needs to reflect the multi-culturalism and more specifically the contribution that Black people and Black music has made and continues to make, and the corresponding wealth of music, culture and business that results from this. We believe that this is also core to being a UNESCO City of Music in the 21st Century.”
The LCR Music Board BLM Manifesto can be downloaded here: Black Lives Matter – LCRMB Manifesto 2021