The Evolution of Black British Music Blu-Ray DVD: A 2022 Documentary Series in 5 Parts: The extraordinary rise of British Black Music in the past thirty five years (Featuring: General Levy, Goldie, DJ Ron, DJ Brockie, Kele Le Roc, Oxide and Neutrino, DJ Spoony, Omar, Donaeo, Jammer, Nolay, DJ Target, D Double E, Tiffany Calver, Unknown T, Kenny Allstar, Fabio & Grooverider and many many more)

Description

From the Director: “We will show that beyond just being dance floor fillers, the genres reflected their time.” “Jungle was born out of post-Thatcherite youth disillusionment; U.K. garage rose to prominence during the heady days of New Labour; grime grew in prominence in youth clubs; U.K. funky and Afro swing were born out of a yearning for the good times and coincided with the coming of age of second-generation Africans; while drill is arguably born out the years of austerity, the closure of youth spaces, and the digitalization of the world.”

The series features some incredible names, including: General Levy, Goldie, DJ Ron, DJ Brockie, Kele Le Roc, Oxide and Neutrino, DJ Spoony, Omar, Donaeo, Jammer, Nolay, DJ Target, D Double E, Tiffany Calver, Unknown T, Kenny Allstar, Fabio & Grooverider and many many more. 

Each episode documents different genres through history, with the first episode taking a close look at jungle and how it surfaced in the early ‘90s. The second of five episodes highlights the history of garage, which emerged shortly after jungle and was one of the most popular genres in dance music throughout the late ‘90s and early noughties. The next three episodes are due for release over the course of the next three weeks and set to document grime, Afro bashment and UK funky, road rap and drill.

Each episode is directed by Femi Oyeniran and Nicky Slimting Walker. The series was made originally released for Black British culture and content network BET UK.

Episode 1: “Jungle” Air Date 08/11/22: How Jungle became the most popular Black British Music genre in the early 90s. Jungle emerged out of the acid house scene, reflected the experiences of young people growing up in the concrete jungle of council estates and became the most popular Black British Music genre in the early 90s. ““Jungle was born out of post-Thatcherite youth disillusionment; U.K. garage rose to prominence during the heady days of New Labour; grime grew in prominence in youth clubs; U.K. funky and Afro swing were born out of a yearning for the good times and coincided with the coming of age of second-generation Africans; while drill is arguably born out the years of austerity, the closure of youth spaces, and the digitalization of the world.” (44:03)

Episode 2: “Garage” 08/18/22: UK garage came to the fore after jungle, we will speak to the pioneers of the scene, its rise to mainstream success and the fact that it directly led to the creation of grime (43:43)

Episode 3: “Grime” 08/25/22: Emerging from East London, Grime is the most enduring Black British Music genre, enjoying mainstream success spending over two decades. (1:02:23)

Episode 4: “Funky House & Afro Swing” 09/01/22: Exploring the influential growth of UK Funky and Afro-Swing in black British Music. UK Funky is a fusion of UK Garage, Grime and African percussion usually paired with R&B style vocals. The Afro-Swing genre saw second generation African kids coming of age with a sound that fused Afrobeats and Dancehall. (43:46)

Episode 5: “Road Rap & Drill” 09/08/22: Find out how Road Rap and Drill became the dominant sounds of youth culture in the UK. Road rap emerged from South London and grew in prominence through mixtapes that were distributed independently by artists. We will also explore how this sound, along with Drill are the dominant sounds of youth culture in the UK now. (43:26)

Total Running time: 3 Hours 57 Minutes