Friday, 30th March 2007: Benjamin Zephaniah @ The Annexe!

latest update, at 3.30pm Thursday 29th March: i’ve just got a call from Masrul, the guitarist of Kuchalana. Apparently he’s down with food poisoning in Kuala Terengganu and would not be able to make it, and this means KUCHALANA is not playing. A call to the main guy Mang minutes ago, confirmed it.

I guess the band is living up to their name more and more these days.

In late 2003, rasta performance poet Benjamin Zephaniah was invited to receive the title OBE or “Officer of the Order of the British Empire” from the Queen of England. Here’s his reply:

“Me? I thought, OBE me? Up yours, I thought. I get angry when I hear that word “empire”; it reminds me of slavery, it reminds of thousands of years of brutality, it reminds me of how my foremothers were raped and my forefathers brutalised.”
read more: here

proudly brought to you by
The Ricecooker Shop, Bau-Bau Cafe, The CM Annexe & The British Council

BENJAMIN ZEPHANIAH
+ Wayang Kadbod by the kids from Projek Kampung Seni
+ Rahmat Haron
+ Tenderfist
+ Kuchalana

Room#3, The Gallery, Top Floor, The Annexe, Central Market, KL
Friday, 30th March 2007 | 8.30 PM
Entrance: by donation | RM10 (more, more better!)

“I have been called a dub poet, an oral poet, a performance poet, a pop poet, a pub poet, a rap poet, a Rasta poet, a reggae poet and even a black poet, the list goes on. In all honesty, none of those titles offend me, I am probably all of these persons but if I had to chose one I would start with oral poet.”

a feature on Guardian: here

a brief:

Dr. Benjamin Zephaniah was born in Birmingham, but spent his early years in Jamaica, where he absorbed much of the music and poetry that influences his work. Benjamin had a difficult school life, and at 14 was sent to a borstal, and spent two years in prison. It was there that he decided, ‘I’m going to use this energy differently. I’ve got the talent to be a poet‚ĶI wanted to educate myself, be a bit more spiritual, a bit more political’. – from 100greatblackbritons.com

more info on Mr. Benjamin Zephaniah: benjaminzephaniah.com | wikipedia