Crossing borders: The social, cultural and economic significance of Grime

20 April 2021, 4.30 PM - 20 April 2021, 6.00 PM

Dr Joy White, University of Bedfordshire. Chair: Dr Justin Williams

Online

Crossing borders: The social, cultural and economic significance of Grime

Grime is a contemporary Black British musical genre with its roots in East London.  From its early days as a niche practice articulating the experiences of young Black lives, it is now a genre with a worldwide audience. What are its influences and origins? How does it relate to reggae, hip hop and UK garage? How has Newham’s Grime foundation allowed for the emergence of other musical forms? In this paper, I reflect on the social, cultural and economic significance of grime.

Biography

Joy White is a Lecturer in Applied Social Studies at the University of Bedfordshire and the author of Urban Music and Entrepreneurship: Beats, Rhymes and Young People’s Enterprise, one of the first books to foreground the socio-economic significance of grime music. Joy’s latest book Terraformed contextualises the history of Newham and considers how young black lives are affected by racism, neoliberalism and austerity. Connecting the dots between music, politics and the built environment, it centres the lived experiences of Black youth in the inner city.

Contact information

For further information and the Zoom link, please email sarah.hibberd@bristol.ac.uk.

This talk is being hosted in conjunction with the Centre for Black Humanities.

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