Music industry an economic imperative

Groundins

By: Charles H.E. Campbell


A confluence of heritage, creativity and economic imperative has brought us to the cusp of a trio of events to be staged in 2012 which we should wisely exploit, both symbolically and ergonomically, to maximise on the excellent opportunity it provides for the exposure of Jamaica's music industry and our potentially lucrative cultural tourism product.

I am referring to the 50th Independence celebrations, the 50th birthday of the reggae genre, and the 30th Olympic Games to be held in London, England. Of course, if we are really smart, the fact that it will also be the 125th anniversary of the birth of Marcus Garvey will not escape our attention.

Garvey was a prophet in his own right — recognised as the 20th century's best known and greatest international symbol of the movement of Africans and blacks worldwide for freedom, independence and equality. However, our national aversion to issues of race, and the hornet's nest it may stir up locally has inhibited our potential to benefit economically from his vision and worldwide appeal.

Garvey once said "Why should we give opportunity to native talent? There is one thing that is native to the Negro and that is that he can sing. I do not care where you take him from. Take him from the backyard, take him from the kitchen, the Negro sings his music just the same. He can sing his music and I believe that such native talent should be encouraged and the only way you encourage it is to have a national theatre [movement] in Jamaica."

Significantly, Garvey's PPP political platform in 1929 included the establishment of a national opera house, with an academy of music and art and the beautifying and creating of the Kingston Race Course (now National Heroes Circle) into a national park, similar to Hyde Park in London.

At the time, this would have been insightful, far-reaching investment in infrastructure and the natural talents of our people, had it been implemented, but to our detriment, it has been largely ignored by the state. Even after we gained our Independence in 1962, our own political leaders failed to facilitate, harness and mould the enormous creative abilities of our people into the national economic powerhouse it has always had the potential of being.

Left to their own devices, however, our artistes and musicians created and continue to produce, prolifically, a new internationally popular genre of music and a local industry that has already evolved beyond the wildest imaginations of some, and contrary to the dire predictions of others.

All of 92 years later, when global economic trends are re-enforcing the wisdom of Garvey's advice, in his address at the opening of the Inter-American Development Bank's Caribbean American Art Exhibition in Washington, DC, recently, Prime Minister Bruce Golding said "If you look at how world trade is moving from product to services and to more exotic areas of endeavour, the creative industries represent one important area that we will now have to pay more attention to".

So ironically, we have had to wait until our backs are against the wall, when we have begun to lose market share, due in part to our indiscipline, but primarily due to some self- serving, protectionist policies of foreign governments, before we finally awaken and smell the roses, realising that the partial solution for our economic and social development has been staring us in the face all along.

Prejudice just clouded our vision and kept us as primary producers of raw materials, while others packaged, marketed it and kept the value-added profits, just like in the days of slavery and colonialism.

Since there is now some sort of a national consensus that in going forward, the enhancement and expansion of our cultural industries is an economic imperative, I hope we can quickly convert this recognition into constructive dialogue with the private entertainment sector about determining a mutually agreed list of priority measures which the Government of Jamaica must implement in short span to encourage and facilitate the growth of the industry.

For far too long the State has looked askance at its admittedly flawed evolution, due to the lack of an enlightened national framework to nourish and give it sustenance, probably, because the politicians have neither been able to tame nor control it.

Now, they can no longer ignore its awesome potential in these economically perilous times. It's high time for the music industry to unite and demand our rightful, well-deserved seat in the national decision-making councils.

Email: che.campbell@gmail.com

Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/entertainment/Music-industry-an-economic-imperative_9029184#ixzz1PjMxiApr