Holding Up The Ladder

• Francis Fuster (Pt 1)

  You’re in for a treat today! And a little interruption from conversations from my archive. I recently did a gig at London’s Jazz Cafe playing keys and singing for a special concert in honour of South Africa Freedom Day and the late great South African trumpeter, Hugh Masekela. The person leading the band was his percussionist and friend of nearly 50 years, Francis Fuster.Born in Sierra Leone to a Liberian mother and Swiss father. Now 81 (but looks more like a man in his 60's!) a 7th Dan black belt in karate, upright and sharp as a tack. We talk about his journey from dancing, to drumming, to teaching, to percussion. About being a member of the band described as the Beatles of Africa, Gerald Pino and The Heartbeats.We talk about his close friendship with icon and disruptor musician Fela Kuti, also the reason he started learning karate. How he went from Sierra Leone to Liberia, to Ivory Coast, to Ghana, to Nigeria, ending up in New York and the wildness of that period. We talk about playing with Paul Simon and the huge record that was Graceland. And his close professional and personal relationship with Hugh Masekela.This was a joyous interview (what was meant to be an hour long conversation, was closer to 2!) So it's divided into 2 parts.Guest: Francis FusterTitle: You gotta be readyMusic: Bach, Handel, Miles Davis and John ColtraneMusic linksGeraldo Pino and the Heartbeats, Maria Lef for WakaHugh Masekela, Don't go lose it babyHugh Masekela, Bring Him Back Home (Nelson Mandela)Francis Fuster, NajesuehOther linksShango-Ja Martial Arts AcademyFind out ways to support the Israel-Palestine project click herePodcast WebsitePodcast IG Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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• I've been thinking about...friendship (pt 1)

  Today's episode of 'I've been thinking about' is a 2-parter and it's all about friendship and how it has impacted my practice. We talk about how much our families impact our lives, but not so much our friendships. Yet since we choose our friendships they are deeply significant - I explore why.Holding up the Ladder links:Find out ways to support the Israel-Palestine project click herePodcast WebsitePodcast IG Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  9:13
• Rich Harless (Pt 2)

  Welcome back to the 2nd part of my conversation with Rich Harless. We caught up last month, and kick off our convo talking about how NFTs are no longer the hot topic, but the shift is to AI. And for context, the 2 artists Rich refers to are Sam Ryder who was runner up on the Eurovision song contest and Marc Rebillet who performs in the street.And if you haven't done so already, I recommend listening to Part 1 to get a full picture.Guest: Rich HarlessTitle: It’s like skywriting in a hurricaneMusic: Depeche Mode, David Bowie, Purple Disco MachineLinks:Rich Harless on LinkedinFeather agencyFind out ways to support the Israel-Palestine project click herePodcast WebsitePodcast IG Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  40:38
• Rich Harless (Pt 1)

  In this week's episode we’re talking tech, marketing, AI and the music industry with entrepreneur, Rich Harless.Rich Harless is a Berlin-based, US-born entrepreneur and the founder of Feather, a company pioneering AI-powered brand measurement for digital advertisers. Prior to launching Feather, Rich held leadership roles at leading music and media companies such as AOL, Shazam, and Digitalstage.io, where he collaborated with some of the world’s largest streaming platforms, record labels, and a diverse range of independent artists. With over two decades of experience across digital advertising, emerging technology, and the creative industries, Rich has worked at the intersection of AI, blockchain, and augmented reality, helping brands and media platforms navigate technological shifts.We talk about old vs. new music; the disconnect between art and business; about streaming platforms. The role of social media for independent artists, as Rich says it’s good for discovery but not for monetisation.And because this is a never before heard conversation from my archive and the tech space changes so rapidly, Rich very kindly came back on the pod to chat with me about what he’s up to now and the latest changes in the tech space. For example, the first time we spoke it was centred around web 3 and NFTs and now the focus has shifted to AI. I decided to keep it in, because Rich explains things so clearly it helps provide a kind of technological arc, so to speak, to understand where things are at now. So this is a 2-parter. Tune in next week Wednesday to hear the follow-up conversation we had just last month.Guest: Rich HarlessTitle: It’s like skywriting in a hurricaneMusic: Depeche Mode, David Bowie, Purple Disco MachineLinks:Rich Harless on LinkedinFeather agencyTed Gioia - Is Old Music Killing New Music?Find out ways to support the Israel-Palestine project click herePodcast WebsitePodcast IG Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  58:54
• I've been thinking about...maturity, ageing - the process produces the sound

  What makes an artist great, how does an artist become great? In today's episode of I've been thinking about, I explore the idea of maturity, ageing and process.It seems to me that maturity, ageing in the Arts is actually beneficial. Unlike other professions where ageing is synonymous with decline, with cognitive or physical impairment - people in sports have an early retirement age for that reason, Or former US president Biden wasn’t he forced to step down because of his cognitive decline due to his age? That doesn’t seem to apply to artists. When it comes to the Arts, age and maturity actually have the opposite effect - we can keep getting better. And there are many examples of this: Irish writer Edna O’Brien lived to 93. French writer Annie Ernaux now 84, won the Nobel prize for literature at the age of 82. Classical pianists only seem to get better with age, they have all the technique of years of practice without the need for showmanship that you sometimes see in younger pianists. I think about artists like Sonia Boyce who represented Britain at the Venice Biennale in her 60s or figurative painter Claudette Johnson also in her 60s. What about American abstract painter Stanley Whitney still making beautiful work at 79 or Indian artist, Arpita Singh. Now 87, I recently went to her solo exhibition at London’s Serpentine and her work took my breath away, her use of colour and composition, I felt like I was seeing an entirely new interpretation of artistic expression.I mean as long as you can pick up a paintbrush or pencil, or a camera, the work doesn’t and shouldn’t stop. And I’m not saying that we have to wait until we’re in our 80s to produce works that’s meaningful. I’m saying that our process produces the sound and the deeper the process the richer the sound. Music Refs:Ray LaMontagne, JoleneJoni Mitchell, Both Sides Now from 1969Joni Mitchell, Both Sides Now from 2000 Holding up the Ladder links:Find out ways to support the Israel-Palestine project click herePodcast WebsitePodcast IG Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  17:58

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