Episode 2 – theKEEPERS (Akua Naru & Sammus)

Ideally, the question why is there not enough women in rap should fall to promoters, journalists and managers. Sexism still sets the pace in all genres of music, however it is usually associated with rap the most. It’s deeply embedded in the structures of our society and plays a major role in who is considered a genius and therefore gets to have their name written into history. It was only last year when the Grammy for the best solo rap album went to a woman - Cardi B, and the hall of fame was graced by its first rapper and producer - Missy Elliott. This year to many people’s surprise, Billboard magazine announced Lauryn Hill’s debut album as the most influential hip hop album of all time.
Despite these achievements, prejudice remains. Festivals, media, labels, as well as literature, present and award primarily men. All the while women have always been and always will be a moving force of hip hop culture. All we need to do is observe it from a different angle. The hurdles that stand in the way of women, trans* and non-binary people in hip hop are being highlighted by a unique project called TheKeeper - a digital archive focusing on, and highlighting the representation of women, trans* and non-bianry people in hip hop culture, as well as their significance for the culture on a global scale. Where do women of rap disappear to? What exhausts them? Why is keeping focus on black feminism so crucial? And how does an archive become a living global community? In the second episode of My Emancipation Don’t Fit In Your Equation podcast series, the movers of culture and guardians of theKeeper archive, Akua Naru and Sammus, are sharing their experience from the rap scene as well as the academic spheres.

Latanya Olatunji aka Akua Naru is a hip hop artist. In her case this means that she is not only a rapper - her creative occupation spans from writing music to activism, community organising and research. On her four solo records, as well as in her writings and poetry she focuses on the stories of black women. She has traveled the world not only with her music but also as a researcher and a lecturer. She was awarded The Nasir Jones Hip Hop Fellowship and worked with HipHop Archive and Research Institute at Harvard University. Currently she is continuing her academic work at the Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity at Brown University. She is the initiator of theKeepers project.

Enongo Lumumba-Kasongo aka Sammus is a rapper and a producer. She has three solo albums and several EPs under her belt, is a computer game sound designer and does research in the field of music and technology. Her dissertation at Cornell University focused on the politics of community recording studios that target primarily young, marginalised people. Currently, Sammus continues her research at Brown University, where she also teaches courses such as ‘Rap as Storytelling’. She is a feminist and an afrofuturist thinker who describes her music as ‘black girl nerd rap’. She takes part in building and connecting communities with the aim to draw attention of the academic sphere towards other kinds of experience and knowledge producers and to change the preconceived notions of how, what and who from should we be learning.

www.followthekeepers.com

LIST OF REFERENCES

Akua Naru – Black Future
Sammus – Power-Ups
Akua Naru – The World Is Listening
Missy Elliott – Sock It 2 Me
Akua Naru – The Journey …
bell hooks in discussion at Lion’s Roar
Sammus – Comments Disabled
Akua Naru – One Woman w/ Dr. Tricia Rose
Sammus – Crown

Concept & narration: Mary C
Title music: Mary C
Translation: Dora Rodriguez
Dubbing: Hellwana, Zeynab Gueye
Visuals: Vladyslav Afanasiev & Jan Brož

MY EMANCIPATION DON’T FIT IN YOUR EQUATION

Podcast series that maps the revolutionary and emancipatory thoughts in current music presented by Mary C and Institute of Anxiety.

Let’s explore revolutionary thoughts and strong emotions in contemporary music, that have the power to move our society. They have always been here but are very often neglected. However, there still are places where they thrive, where new provocative and strong realities emerge and where new pop music arises, along with new revolutions.

Let’s explore the process of evolution and emancipation of electronic dance music and rap.
How do artists, especially those from african diaspora, create? Is it even possible to create when the art should be an absence of fear? What can artists help us learn and unlearn and how can we become connected and free ourselves through listening? Meet the artists who produce music as well as important knowledge, bring communities together and organize a variety of initiatives. How does their emancipation diverge from the current normative equation? The title of the podcast is inspired by Lauryn Hill’s lyrics 'My emancipation don't fit your equation.' appears in her song Lost Ones.

Marie Čtveráčková aka Mary C is a curator, musician, music journalist, producer, and cofounder of ZVUK and Synth Library Prague. From 2011 to 2020 she worked at Radio Wave as the creator and moderator of Scéna s Mary C (The Scene with Mary C), which focused primarily on rap, its context, and its contemporary forms. She is currently focusing on musical education in the area of electronic music and works as a curator and instructor at Synth Library Prague. In 2018 she founded the collective Trigger, which aims to connect women and trans* people in the music scene. She is interested in the use of feminist theory as well as considerations of hiphop culture in informal education and opportunities for community organizing.