Loose Egusi 000: Before We Set Off…
Introducing the idea behind and direction for Loose Egusi; mission statement, segments, inspirations, and goals.
[Barbara Jones-Hogu, Relate To Your Heritage. 1970]
Honestly, I’m surprised it took me this long to realise that a 2-hour radio show dedicated to African music, with an accompanying blog, is exactly what I should be doing. In this first post I’ll introduce the mission statement/ethos behind the show, along with the key segments that will make up each episode, and hopefully, why you should be interested. After this, there’ll be at least 1 post per episode, plus potentially some extras, we’ll see how we go, it’s all changeable. Tune into the Loose Egusi shows for the full experiences, 1st of each month, livestreamed from The Boat Pod in Little Venice, West London, directly onto Mixcloud. First one’s up, full accompanying post coming soon.
Mission Statement
Loose Egusi is a monthly radio show and blog celebrating African music of the past, present, and future, hosted by The Repeat Beat Poet (Peter deGraft-Johnson, yours truly, verbose microphone host doing the most). Across two hours, we’ll be blending Afro-roots, Afro-fusions, and African folk music with the vast array of music from the Black diaspora (including, but not limited to Blues, Gospel, Jazz, Rock, Country, Funk, Soul, Hip Hop, Disco, House, Techno, Jungle, Garage, Grime, Dubstep, Jazz) and selecting a different country each episode for a deeper dive into its music and culture in the 'Ear To The Ground' segment.
In full, I’m making this show as an exercise in honest exploration and passion, combining my loves for music, and for Africa, and sharing this part of my lifelong mission to rediscover the continent of my heritage on my own terms; not a university area studies scholar, private collector, corrupt politician, record reseller/merchant hunting for tasty profit, no. This is my personal pan-African odyssey, guided by intuition, rhythm, melody, and harmony. This show is me leaning into the supernatural connecting power of music to chart the passing of time, feel the churn of history, and embody the blueprints of a flourishing and fantastic African future. I hope you’ll join me on the journey.
Segments
Ear To The Ground - Every month I’ll focus on a different African country and share some examples of the music it specialises in, using its music to help understand the country, its people, and its context. (Author’s note - the currently existing borders between African countries were drawn up by colonisers for the purpose of resource extraction, literally divide-and-rule. The music doesn’t abide by these borders so neither will I, expect plenty of glorious transgressions here)
African Art Attack / RBPortraits (which one should I pick? I’m torn, opinions welcome) - Each tracklist image will feature a piece of art from an artist hailing from the country of the month.
RBPicks - Top 3 tracks from each show. These could be anything from new releases, reissues, or rediscoveries, but these will be my 3 favourite tracks, selected because they best encompass the ethos of the show; a celebration of African music.
Inspirations
I’m taking inspiration from Afropop Worldwide, Mwalimu Express (Rita Ray is largely responsible for this show’s genesis tbh), the Pan-African Congresses, festivals like Soul II Soul (The Independence Day Festival of Ghana, Accra 1971), FESTAC (Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture, Lagos, 1977), Notting Hill Carnival and the wider work of Claudia Jones, Malcolm X, Hakim Adi, Kehinde Andrews, Ekow Eshun, Cornel West, Lola Olufemi, Lowkey, Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan, Josh Rivers of the Busy Being Black Podcast, and countless musicians whose work will inevitably be featured in one way or another across the lifetime of this show.
Right, for now, that’s everything. First full episode blog dropping imminently. Subscribe to get these emails direct to your inbox! I promise I won’t spam you.
And lastly, always, wherever you are, whenever you’re reading this, however you’re engaging with this work, and whoever you are, I appreciate your time and attention. Stay #LooseEgusi.
RBP x