Today’s Kinté Media Links
Rokia Traoré is my new imaginary friend!
Can Rokia Traoré, the picture of her CD, Bowmboï, fit on your screen? Did I not resize the image correctly? Perhaps I am so smitten not just with her poise and refined looks but her elegant musical juxtaposition of soft grace and solid rhythmic precision that let’s me know without doubt that a real woman is present. So, so… my heart dances at the sight of her… The receiving place the she builds with her music is such a lush, rich structurally sound haven that shimmers with deep blue laced with the verdant…
So I bought a CD from Amazon.com but listened to samples on iTunes. Sorry, Steve: 128kbps is not enough for my enjoyment of her hard work. And keep in mind that I’m still seeing my other imaginary friend, Oumou Sangare: it is just that now, Oumou won’t get so tired of me coming by so often…
A message from Rhonda Ray…
“I wanted to forward you the link to my new website http://www.rhondaray.net So that you can stay updated on my events. Sign up for my mailing list so that I can let you know the dates of my upcoming shows. And click on my store to download my Afrolicious ringtone for free. Feel free to forward the link to friends as I'm trying to get my music out to everyone. My album “Afrolicious” is scheduled to be in store towards the end of the year.” Rhonda’s work is her in the kinté space. See “Hip Hop Poetry Jam.”
Professor Shonda Buchanan’s Poetry Anthology
Tsehai Publishers released Voices from Leimert Park: a poetry anthology back in December of 2006. Now, I had the choice of doing the typical Negro move and not mentioning this book here in the kinté space simply because Shonda does not mention me at all or show any of my work at all in this book. And I call Shonda, ‘Shonda’ because we were, at one time over a decade ago, very close… But isn’t that always how it is when you reach a certain age in an imperial society? Are we always breaking up in some way or another? Divide and conquer, baby…
So let me break ranks with all the fighters of the never ending samsara for those of us born into sun-setting styles of imprisonment and say that I’m sure this book is a great book because many, many great poets came through the Leimert Park scene (especially back in the 1990s)—and I guess I’m just one of those among the anonymous… Oh well… just like me, Shonda can’t please everyone… Professor Shonda Buchanan is currently among the faculty of Hampton University.
Somehow I think the subtext here is related to “Anansi Writers Workshop Never Worked on rasx()”… maybe not… The Leimert-Park-related poets here in the kinté space include, “Roland X: Dead Woman Dying,” “Merilene Murphy: these hands,” “Rhonda Thompson: Hip Hop Poetry Jam,” “Mahoka Zawadi: Spellbound” and “Bryan Wilhite: the art of kara walker.”