All posts by newsandnoise

Greek hip-hop bands pay tribute to Pavlos Fyssas

It has already been more than a week ago that the Greek rapper and left-activist Pavlos Fyssas, aka Killah P was stabbed to death by a member of the Golden Dawn (GD).  The GD is a right-wing extremist political organization and political party in Greece. The party won seats in the Greek parliament at last year’s election. They deny any involvement in the killing of Pavlos. After this extremely sad incident thousands of people demonstrated against neo-nazisme. On Tuesday about ten rival hip hop bands in Athens decided to unite against the GD. Michalis Mytakidis, aka B.D. Foxmoor, of Greek band Active Member, spoke to the journalists at a press conference in Athens.

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Elton John not welcome in Russia

The last time Sir Elton performed in Russia was in December 2010, see poster here on the right. His forthcoming concert in December this year could become a problem. Since the anti-gay law the people seems to be getting more intolerant towards homosexuals. A committee of parents in the Ural region sent an open letter to Putin to complain about the concert: ‘The singer intends to come out in support of local sodomites and break the current Russian law, directed at protecting children.’ (Daily Mail) According to the Guardian the superstar will perform in Russia despite such complaints.  Earlier this month he told the Guardian that he feels an obligation to perform in Russia. “As a gay man, I can’t leave those people on their own without going over there and supporting them.” (The Guardian)
In an interview with NPR’s Terry Gross, Elton John stated last Monday that he wants to support the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) community and that he will try to solve this in a diplomatic way.

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Parallels in the development of Jazz and Ghanaian Brass Band music – a lecture of John Collins

It is fascinating to see musical changes in society. Sometimes these changes are linked to sociopolitical or economical motivations. Sometimes a culture tries to superimpose other cultures. Or sometimes music from other cultures is just a source of inspiration. It is never a one-way track, but rather back and forth, upside down, and inside out. In this article John Collins is going to enlighten us about the roots and the routes of African rhythms. This is a transcription (edited by Collins) of the lecture held at the World Blend on June 28, 2013, during the Jazz Days in Rotterdam. This World Blend carried the smart title: Bye Jazz, Hello World.
Mind you, this is a long read with lots of pictures and music.

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Cuban band leader suspended

The government of Cuba organized an event to mark the 15th anniversary of the arrest in the United States of the Cuban Five at the Tribuna Anti-imperalista on the 12th of September. The popular Funk/Timba band Interactivo was invited as the closing act. It is a huge stage, opposite of the Special Interest Section, an official American building, and among thousands of people, the family members of the five imprisoned Cubans were present. Frontman, Roberto Carcassés took this opportunity to criticize the Cuban authorities. Now it seems that he and Interactivo are suspended to perform at any state facility in Cuba, which practically means that they are “separated from the industry” for an indefinite time period (Havana Times).

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Salif Keita pressured to cancel Jerusalem Sacred Music Festival

An open letter addressed to the Jerusalem Sacred Music Festival, the Hadassah Hospital and the fans of Salif Keita is circulating on Facebook. The famous Afropop singer-songwriter from Mali cancelled just a few hours before his departure for Jerusalem Festival due to threats by BDS. On the official fan page of the festival you can see the different reactions. News and Noise! had been talking to festival organizer Dubi Lenz about his view on such boycotts. We also interviewed Yvonne Kahan who is the manager of some Israelian artists. Both concluded that boycotting is not the answer. In this post you can read the open letter coming from the managers of Salif Keita.

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