Conscientization 101

A revival is as an improvement in the condition or strength of something. Considering this definition, Cyclonious The Natural Disaster’s latest album The Revival is aptly titled. Quite possibly his magnum opus, as well as his last solo album, this regenerative work is a timeless classic that sounds a clarion call from the akoben (war horn) that the ultimate fight is for rejuvenation of humanity via praxis.

We are proud to bring you part one of a two part series entitled Cyclonious: The Revival. In part one we discuss the conception of the album, limitations of speaking a colonial/slave language, and much more.

This episode features music from:

and if you want to hear Cyclonious on this same track checkout,

Cyclonious The Natural Disaster social media and affiliated websites:

In the conclusion of our two part series, A Complementary Bond: You & Me – Asabi Hawah & Raggo Zulu Rebel, we explore with You & Me the importance of conscientization in understanding African identity within the proper context and the development of specific songs on their critically acclaimed debut album Folk Songs.

This episode features sounds from:

For more from You & Me collaborations, Asabi, and Raggo checkout their social media:

You & Me

Instagram @youandme_2014

Asabi Hawah

Raggo Zulu Rebel

Folk music is defined as music “relating to the traditional art or culture of a community or nation,” and the critically acclaimed dynamic group You & Me aptly titled debut album Folk Songs, is the epitome of this definition. You & Me is the collective talents of songstress/poet Asabi Hawah and Raggo Zulu Rebel aka JAH MESSENGER.

We are proud to bring you part one of a two part series titled A Complementary Bond: You & Me (Asabi Hawah & Raggo Zulu Rebel). In part one we discuss You & Me’s formation as a group, being self-directed as opposed to self-made, balance and complementarity, the importance of language, media created images and the primacy of selling lifestyles in late stage neoliberal capitalism.

This episode features music from:

For more from You & Me, Asabi, and Raggo, checkout their social media:

You & Me

Instagram @youandme_2014

Asabi Hawah

Raggo Zulu Rebel

We conclude our two part series with our brother Cyclonious The Natural Disaster titled Cyclonious: Practice Without Thought is Blind; Thought Without Practice is Empty. In this episode we discuss the negative effects of neoliberalism on the ability to mount effective organization for development and much more.

This episode features music from:

and,

Cyclonious The Natural Disaster social media:

Conscientization (critical consciousness), “refers to learning to perceive social, political, and economic contradictions, and to take action against the oppressive elements of reality” (Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire page 35). In Kwame Nkrumah’s Consciencism: Philosophy and Ideology for Decolonization, he identifies reflection and action as necessary for decolonization and development; and when one is sacrificed at the expense of the other you end up with either thought without practice which is empty or practice without thought which is blind (page 78). We present part one of a two part series with Cyclonious The Natural Disaster to discuss the principal of conscientization, and how it is an invaluable, epistemological, analytical tool which can be applied to all areas of development.

This episode features sounds from:

         and,

Cyclonious The Natural Disaster social media:

We conclude our digitally re-mastered two part series from Brother Del Jones entitled Understanding Our Rich Cultural Heritage & Strengthening It For The Revolution, that took place circa late 1996 or early 1997 at the cultural institution known as African Echoes in New Jersey.

In conclusion, Brother Del Jones discusses:

and much more!

This episode features sounds from:

and,

Del Jones aka Nana Kuntu was one of the fiercest and vigilant Africans who walked the earth. In a sea of anti-African madness, Brother Del Jones did the libratory analysis necessary to heal a brutally scarred people, while at the same time he worked to reunify Africa’s physically and mentally  dispersed people via nationbuilding. Brother Del Jones did not live a life of theory divorced from practice, he was a warrior on the frontline…he was our WAR CORRESPONDENT!

We are proud to be airing a digitally re-mastered two part series from Brother Del Jones called Understanding Our Rich Cultural Heritage & Strengthening It For The Revolution. This lecture took place circa late 1996 or early 1997 at a cultural institution known as African Echoes in New Jersey.

In part one Brother Del Jones discusses:

and much more!

This episode features sounds from:

and,

Books mentioned in this episode: Showdown: Pan-Afrikanism  vs. White Supremacy by Del Jones, Sex Prisoners: Culture Bandits Vol. 3 by Del Jones, and Defying the Tomb: Selected Prison Writings and Art of Kevin Rashid Johnson featuring exchanges with an Outlaw by Kevin “Rashid” Johnson.

We conclude our two part series, Moments of Truth with Watusi87 of RU1 Fam. In this episode we discuss the definition of freedom from an African-centered perspective, how European sexual exploitation of African people during slavery/colonialism still resonates with us today, and how this continued sexual exploitation is used as a counter revolutionary weapon against Africans worldwide via the music industry.

RU1 Fam is one the most dynamic, innovative, and thought provoking hip hop collectives to hit the scene in quite some time; they are a rejuvenating breath of fresh air amidst the corrosive, perverse, latrine environment that inundates the music scene nowadays. We had the chance to dialogue with another one of RU1 Fam’s members, Watusi87. In part one of this two part series entitled Moments of Truth With Watusi87 of RU1 Fam, we learn more about Watusi87 as an artist, his musical influences, his insights on various aspects of the African world, and much more.

This episode features sounds from:

Watusi87 of RU1 Fam social media:

We conclude our digitally re-mastered two part series featuring our beloved brother Dr. Bobby E. Wright, at the Black Psychology and Mental Health Conference, at Atlanta Junior college on April 10, 1980. In this episode Dr. Wright discusses the following topics:

Dr. Bobby Eugene Wright, was born in Hobson City Alabama on March 1, 1934. He obtained his BSc in Education and MSc in Counseling from Chicago State University and his PhD in Clinical Psychology from the University of Chicago. Dr. Wright properly diagnosed the quintessential dilemma that faced African people around the globe as mentacide. He defined mentacide as “the deliberate and systematic destruction of a group’s mind with the ultimate objective being the extirpation of that group”. He diagnosed that the only way to restore lost African sovereignty was through the destruction of mentacide, which could only be done with the development of a Black Social Theory. For more on Dr. Bobby E. Wright, checkout his book The Psychopathic Racial Personality and Other Essays.

This episode features music from:

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