Walter Kitundu and other chocolate links…

Walter Kitundu is another genius grant dude and follows my rather non-elated views in “Will Bryan Stop Bashing African-American MacArthur Fellows?” and “Does Stanley Nelson Have Negro Problems?” This time I’m genuinely impressed.

Walter Kitundu is cool. When young people who dare to describe themselves as “creative” actually self-discover the need to think about how one foot goes in front of the other, they should take notes from Walter Kitundu. I started with his PhonoKora demonstration on YouTube.com and understood within seconds that this dude is serious. It would be completely unfair and mean spirited to compare this cat to DJ Spooky so I won’t do it—but I dare DJ Spooky mention this fellow artist at his next show (may he already has)—remember artists need to promote other artists and demonstrate that they actually research the “market.”

Walter Kitundu is the living embodiment of African futurism.

DBR (Daniel Bernard Roumain)

While DJ Spooky would have to “struggle” to find what use I could possibly have in the improvement of his “life,” for me it’s easy: back in the first month of this year, DJ Spooky turned me on to DBR (Daniel Bernard Roumain). You see kid, how I remember details and shit?

DBR and Kitundu need to make a music-concert, art-video thang. I would buy it. Check out this cat on YouTube.com in some Australian documentary. You can also check out his website with the annoying, long-ass Flash intro. I have asked Spooky the same question twice and he has yet to answer it: “Where can I find his Black Dada Nihilismus track?” Do I have to find a fair-skinned suburban kid to ask him the same question so I can get an answer? “Huh?”

Now you can find DBR tracks—my first experiments will be in etudes 4 violin & electronix.

Rhiannon Giddens of the Carolina Chocolate Drops

Rhiannon Giddens of the Carolina Chocolate Drops strikes me from a distance as one of those physically arresting women who was not incarcerated by her good looks. When my daughter grows up I’m pretty sure I would be very pleased and relieved to find her living the kind of inner/outer life Rhiannon leads. Rhiannon Giddens does not have to throw her leg around a vertical pole to obtain a sense of identity and economic empowerment.

What is so much more is that she is actively involved in reviving African history right here in the U.S.A. So you want to meet the lovely Rhiannon Giddens? Hah! First you need some talent. Start at blackbanjo.com—or just give up (like I did on Facebook) and listen to her ensemble play in Dona Got a Ramblin’ Mind.

Mahmoud Darwish, Poet Laureate of the Palestinians, 1941–2008

When DemocracyNow.org featured Mahmoud Darwish with words like, “Darwish was considered one of the most important Arab poets, a towering literary figure for over four decades. The poetry of Mahmoud Darwish is well known and loved across the Arab world by people from all walks of life,” I stormed the library of my local college campus looking for his work. Eventually this led me to Unfortunately, It Was Paradise: Selected Poems. It could not find the book for lending. I will definitely try again… or just break down and buy another book. But one must be careful of translations of poetry—especially across the boundary of Latin-based language.

Now I did get my hands on a translation of Iraqi poet Fadhil Al Azzawi. Look for him in the kinté space in the coming months…

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