The Love Issue

ISSUE 31, February 2012 www.comelime.com

EDITION

in association with

MUSIC

events

GALLERY

COMMUNITY

screen

COMEDY

FOOD & DRINK

Kosibah

theatre

ONfor I T TI er a

PE dinn abar 41 M O in uan GE

£2.00

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W t G PA E 2 a SE

International Women’s Month 2012

Women’s Weekender ’s Day

Women’s Weekender Mother

Every Women’s lifestyle

po

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EE FR

Saturday 17th March 12-7.00pm Sunday 18th March 1-9.00pm This two day Women’s Expo will showcase all types of International Women’s Lifestyles, hosted by Janelle Oswald (TV fashion presenter).

The two day event will consist of Hair & Fashion shows, Empowerment and massage area, Beauty tips, Jewellery, International designer shoes & handbags, Makeovers, Mother’s Day presents, Live entertainment, Male grooming area representing all nationalities and the chance to meet the celebrities.

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UTE YOU

Croydon Fairfield Hall ADMISSION FREE www.fairfieldhall.com

ERS SAL

TH THE BRO

Sunday 18th March Croydon Fairfield Hall Time: 7.30-10.30pm

Tickets: £19.50 £22.50 £25.50 Box Office: 020 86889291 www.fairfieldhall.com INFO: 07957441101

INFO: 07957441101

plus booking fees

Due to overwhelming public demand the UK’s largest International Women’s month event is back. Now in its’ 16th year, this Mother’s Day celebration event, hosted by Brenda Emmanus (BBC), will have something for all the family. This year the Brothers will pay tribute to the Sisters as some of our top male celebrity comedians, singers and dancers will be honouring you for the evening.

Design: Clive f 07903 180066

Photo: Paul Murphy

FP in Association with Fairfield Hall

CONTENTS

20 FEBRUARY 2012 04 Events I’mPossible 06 World Events Awards Season 07 Food/Drink Valentine’s special 09 Fashion/Beauty Kosibah 13 Theatre Umoja

09 35

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18 Music Devlin 24 Gallery Art and Love 27 Community Crème of Nature Community Awards 28 Literature and spoken 50 Black British Books 34 Screen The Nine Muses

Word from the Editor

42 Clubs Blaze It Up Ents

This is our third annual love issue and this month’s big question asks: Is it better to love or be loved?

43 Comedy Beginner’s Guide to Comedy 46 Breaktime Get your jokes on

We’ve also, of course got it covered on London’s best

cultural event listings to show the love of your life that you mean business.

Sophia A Jackson xx

Team Lime Cover image: Dress by Kosibah -Tulullah | Photographer – Chris Williams | MUA/ Stylist – Zainab Rauf

Published By Got Media Limited

Editor Sophia A Jackson editor@gotmedialive.co.uk

Vernia Mengot Gillian Fisher Lindsay Johns

Designer Mialisa Fenty

Advertising and sales Dean Serieux dean@gotmedialive.co.uk

Contributors Cassam Looch Semper Azeez-Harris Tricia Wombell Adelaide Damoah Amica Anselm

Events listings info@comelime.com Website Basil Lumsden

CONNECT WITH LIME www.comelime.com www.facebook.com/ limemagazine www.twitter.com/ limewithus

Lime: a word used in the Caribbean which means socialising and good times with your friends and family – welcome to Lime Magazine.

LIME MAGAZINE 2011

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11 EVENTS

Feb Sotonye Diri presents No More Excuses

A one-day workshop With award winning entrepreneur, motivational speaker, author and accountability coach, Sotonye Diri. Unlock Your Potential is an interactive 1 Day workshop for anyone who is desiring to Unlock their potential, Overcome their barriers and Achieve their goals. Through the use of Proven Strategies, Interactive Worksheets, Practical Solutions and Real Life Examples, Sotonye Diri will take you through the necessary steps to attaining a life of Balance and Great Reward.

This information packed Workshop will be divided up into 3 key sections; Effective Goal Setting, Personal and Business Relationships and Finance.

3 key areas that play a

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Feb Forever and A Day, in Loving Memory Of...

The year 2012 is already looking bright for the community based dance company, Dynamic Eclipse Arts, having secured a place to perform at the prestigious Resolution!

At The Place in Camden, one of the most sought after and exciting dance platforms in the industry.

Resolution! is The Place’s annual, new year open season for shorter dance works. Over 70 works are presented in nightly changing triple bills. The Resolution runs from January 6th to February 17th with D.E. Arts presenting their piece ‘Forever and A Day, in 4 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

EVENT OF THE MONTH

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Feb I’mPossible: Putting British Women of Colour’s Stories In the Public Domain After the runaway success of the first-ever event; the second I’mPOSSIBLE. conversation brings various British women of colour together to share their stories on ‘how they became POSSIBLE’. The event is the lovechild of TV programme; ‘Inside the Actor’s Studio’ and Oprah’s Legend’s Luncheon with a UK twist. The audience poses questions to the panel via the host and an exhilarating experience of learning and sharing in order to find solutions

great part in your journey of success and fulfilment.

Info: 9am | Victoria Suite, Crown Plaza London (Docklands), Royal Victoria Dock, Western Gateway, London, E16 1AL | www.sotonyediri.com

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Feb Africa Centre Quiz

Night You’ve always wanted

to life’s quirks on their own terms. The return of EastEnders funny woman; Tameka Empson (‘Kim Fox’) as the event’s host and an awe-inspiring, five-strong panel including company secretary and chief legal head of Waitrose and John Lewis; Margaret CaseleyHayford. Grange Hill and East Enders actress and now author; Michelle Gayle, Hackney Vicar and chaplain to the speaker of the House of Commons; Rev Rose HudsonWilkin, resident dentist on Channel 4’s ’10 Years Younger’ and clinical director of London Smiling dental practices; Dr Uchenna Okoye and an opportunity to test your general knowledge alongside friends?

Interested in meeting interesting people who share your passion for Africa? Then join the first Quiz Night at the Africa Centre in 2012! The theme areas will cover the usual range, will be original and hopefully interesting.

Africa-specific questions

work), Capoeira, African, Waacking and House

Loving Memory Of...’ on Thursday, February 16th at 8pm.

Since 2003 D.E. Arts have been teaching and performing since 2003, having a regular class teaching ‘D.Eology’ Technique, which are styles of Urban Street Jazz: Street Dance/ Hip Hop, Contemporary Dance (Release, Limon, Graham and Light Contact

This will be an evening filled with engaging and evoking expression as D.E. Arts take you through a rollercoaster of human emotions.

Info: Starting at 8pm (doors open at 7.30pm) | The Place: Robin Howard Dance Theatre, 17 Dukes Road, Euston, WC1H 9PY | Nearest tube: Euston, King’s Cross | Box Office: 020 7121 1100 | www. theplace.org.uk | Tickets: £14 (£11 conc), save up to 40% with multi-buy ticket offers

Samantha Tross will speak at I’mPossible

the first black female consultant orthopaedic consultant; Samantha Tross participation all further validate the importance of this event.

Info: 6pm – 9pm| Pearson, 80, The Strand, London WC2R 0RL| www.i-am-possible.com

will feature in about one third of the total number of questions, which makes this the perfect evening for general knowledge fans and Africa specialists alike! Apart from the usual quiz prizes, there will be a charity raffle, and delicious home-made African food.

Info: 7pm | The Africa Centre, 38 King Street, Covent Garden, London WC2E 8JT | www. africacentre.org.uk

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Mar Urban Classic featuring Fazer, Ms Dynamite, Devlin, Skepta and the BBC Symphony Orchestra A meeting of musical cultures, bringing together the BBC Symphony Orchestra with leading artists from the UK’s urban music scene, Ms Dynamite, Fazer, and London MC Skepta. Conducted by Jules Buckley – fresh from his collaboration with Basement Jaxx and the

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– 18 March Every 17 Women’s

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Mar The Gaucho International Polo

Gaucho will host The Gaucho International Polo at London’s O2 arena, uniting high-octane polo interspersed with live world famous music to produce a unique event never seen before in

Britain. Following the triumphant inaugural year in 2011, Gaucho International Polo has now evolved into the ultimate celebration of Argentina’s sporting and cultural heritage at the O2 arena.

The 2012 event will consist of two international arena polo matches merged with exclusive performances from Grammy award winning band, Bajofondo.

Info: Doors open 5.30pm | Polo matches start 7.15pm with live performances from Bajofondo throughout | Afterparty starts 9.45pm | O2 Arena | www.gauchopolo.com

EWLE is something different, a diverse and exciting Expo that will have something to suit every woman.

Attending will be some of the top makeup artists, weaves, wigs and locksmiths, fashion shows, lingerie, jewellery, shoes and bag designers, healthcare experts, nutrition, weight management, style, makeup, massage, pedicure, manicure, eyebrow shaping, free goody bags and more.

There will also be an Alternative health area that

A mother’s day meal can be enjoyed at the restaurant with a champagne bar open all day, there will also be a special woman lead mothers day church service (11am – 1pm). In addition, there will be a section focused on grooming for today’s men.

INFO: 0

Due to ov Women’s Day celeb have some tribute to singers an

The nominated charity for this year’s events are the African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust (ACLT).

Info: Saturday at 12 7pm & Sunday 1 – 9pm | Fairfield Hall Croydon, London

Lime event review: Redd Rooms Words: Amica Anselm Redd Rooms, an event situated in the basement of club Arch Angel at trendy High Street Kensington, began with a row of black seats facing the stage where two mic’s were placed.

A variation of acts began to perform opening minds, inviting more ears to listen whilst a group of masseuse’s worked on each audience member as they enjoyed the display ahead of them; this made the event seem more like a showcase than a spa experience. The only clue that this night was going to be somewhat inimitable was that the music policy was house music, which was a strong indicator that this was not going to be a usual spa convention. In reality the night was an

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Massages at Redd Rooms

Rachel Kerr at Redd Rooms

incredible combination of spoken word, poetry, and music with optional massages exposing talents such as ‘George the Poet’ a Cambridge University student from North West London. The spa element was not an immense feature as they appeared as marginal as the canapés in comparison to the performances, but both were pleasurable options that most people

indulged in. Listening to the melodies of Rachael Kerr singing her amazing song “Hold my hand” the Thai and Swedish massage could not have felt more perfect and left me with the feeling that Redd Rooms was onto something big. Redd is a family based conglomerate company spelt with the initials of each members names, this event was organised by Rhoda a beauty therapy and makeup artist.

Info: Rhodaredd@gmail. com LIME MAGAZINE 2011

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REVIEW

Metropole Orkest, where he is Principal Conductor – the BBC Symphony Orchestra performs brand new arrangements by Jason Yarde and Ayanna Witter-Johnson as well as orchestral pieces (repertoire tbc). These new arrangements feature breakthrough anthems, top hits and exciting new material from the four urban artists, who also collaborate and perform on stage together. The Urban Classic concert will be simultaneously broadcast live on BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 1Xtra. Urban Classic forms part of Music Nation – a nationwide weekend of live music events across the UK on 3 & 4 March 2012. Devised and led by the BBC the weekend is the first nationwide countdown event to the London 2012 Festival.

Info: 7.30pm | Barbican Hall, Barbican Centre, London | www.barbican. org.uk

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includes aromatherapy, natural health therapies, cosmetics, creams, Indian head massage, Reiki, HERS SA women related issues.

THE BROT Workshops covering: Sund Empowerment, Business Croydon Housing/Letting, Time: 7.

Tickets Redundant? Advice on Box Offi how to start a new career. www.fai Photo: Paul Murphy

Conductor Jules Buckley, members of the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Ms Dynamite [image credit Mark Allen]

Lifestyle Expo™ “Every Women’s Lifestyle Expo” (EWLE) is a FREE women’s lifestyle show taking place for the first time, 17th & 18th March 2012 as part of International Women’s Month and Mother’s Day weekend, hosted by Janelle Oswald (TV fashion presenter).

EVENTS

lifestyle

Feb 54th Grammy Awards Adele, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Rihanna, J Cole, Nicki Minaj, Cee Lo Green are just some of the contenders who up for a much coveted Grammy award this year.

Info: www.grammy.com

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Feb 43rd NAACP Image Awards

The NAACP Image Awards celebrates the accomplishments of people of colour in the fields of television, music, literature and film and also honours individuals or groups who promote social justice through creative endeavours. Winners will be announced during the two-hour star-studded event. Nominees include Tatyani Ali, Reed Between the Lines, Idris Elba and Nick Cannon.

Info: www. naacpimageawards.net

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Feb 84th Academy Awards Honouring the best of films of 2011. Originally to be hosted by Eddie Murphy, instead Billy Crystal will host for the ninth time.

Info: www.oscars.org

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Tebbs Second Chances are hoping you will continue your generous support by donating stationery but instead of October they are aiming to complete this year’s project by in April.

Maranatha Primary School is one of five schools run

by Theophilus Jumu, located at Pipe Line, Regent Road, Hill Station.

It holds 560 students and has 11 classes in four classrooms. Maranatha is the only local primary school servicing this area, with the next local school about three miles away in the village of Regent. The school building is made of tin (Sierra Leoneans refers to it as pan bodi).

This gets hot inside during the day as the outside temperature increases, plus the classrooms are overcrowded with an average of 93 children in a class. The government has given them land to build on but they do not have the finances to do

The TEBBS SC team prepare stationery for distribution in The Gambia - Nov 2011

so. They need Stationery for the school, e.g. chalk, blackboard dusters and for the children. Tebbs Second Chances are asking 100 people to donate just £10 each or contact Karen at Kids Corner directly on tel: 01702 545 154; email: karen@kidscorner.me.uk ; www.kidscorner.me.uk/ index.php to purchase a

stationery pack. Each pack contains all the essential items that a child would need for an entire school year and only cost £2.

Info: www.tebbssc.com

NEWS

WORLD EVENTS

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Urgent appeal: Tebbs Second Chances 2012

is behind, or in front of the camera”” states Festival Director Mojisola Sonoiki of Iyalode Productions.

Info: www.wocaf.org

84th Academy Awards Poster

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-18 Mar Women of Colour Arts and Film Festival [WOCAF], Atlanta, US The Women of Color Arts & Film (WOCAF) is gearing up for its 7th annual festival. The

only one of its kind in the Southeast, Women of Color Arts and Film Festival (WOCAF) is a multi-discipline event that includes film screenings, a visual art exhibition and a music showcase - all celebrating women of colour artists and media makers. “The immense growth of the festival confirms a need for a platform that celebrates women of colour and their creativity. We are growing every year and are continuously impressed by the array of independent films out there that have a woman of colour in a key creative position whether it

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Jul – 12 Aug 2012 Olympic Games London will become the first city to officially host the modern Olympic Games three times, having previously done so in 1908 and in 1948. London was selected as the host city on 6 July 2005 during the 117th IOC Session in Singapore, defeating Moscow, New York City, Madrid and Paris after four rounds of voting.

The successful bid was headed by former Olympic champion Sebastian Coe. Info: www.london2012.com

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FOOD AND DRINK

REVIEW

Maggie’s Head Cocktail.

Maggie mania hits town

To instantly warm up we drank cocktails made by Barry the barman. It was Amaretto Sours [Amaretto, lemon juice and egg white] for me which tasted so good so don’t be put off by the egg white. For him, it was The Chase [Chase Vodka, honey, apple juice and a touch of whisky] a popular choice we’re told. It was a stiff drink to say the least and I’m sure one sip would put hairs on your chest. In fact, the drink’s recipient said it slapped him the face but in a good way.

The Hill Bar and restaurant were two weeks into their

Even after a strong tipple I still needed warming up so it was the Lobster Bisque for me, which was served with warm bread, always a bonus. The bisque was perfect and coupled with the intoxicating aromas it almost enticed me to have another one for my main.

The seared beef Carpaccio tasted fresh and light and was the perfect, light starter for my guest.

It was recommended that we try the ‘Overboard’ burger made with a heady mix of lobster, prawn and crayfish and a rich lobster mayo. I’m the ultimate seafood lover so I went for that. For him, it was the sticky baby back ribs marinated in honey and garlic BBQ sauce served with pommes frites. We wanted to try the gourmet macaroni cheese made with Canadian Lobster, which sounds, delicious, right? But that wasn’t on the menu that night so we’ll be going back to try that.

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Our bubbly and informative waitress, Gill recommended that I try the Maple Old Fashioned made with whisky, maple syrup and bitters although it sounded lethal it was said to taste like ‘candy’. I felt such a lightweight, as I needed to ask for extra honey.

The Hill Bar and Brasserie is going to become a regular for me – as it’s got it all – delicious tasting and well-presented food, an eclectic and adventurous menu inspired by the Pacific Northwest and a slick cocktail list.

Info: The Hill Bar and Brasserie, 94 Haverstock Hill, Steeles Village London NW3 2BD | http:// thehilllondon.com/

Super Mario (Monti) Arrives At Bunga Bunga

As the curtain falls on Italy’s notorious Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, Bunga Bunga, an Italian bar, pizzeria and karaoke venue are looking to the future and celebrating the arrival of new PM, Mario Monti with a new cocktail, the Super Mario (Monti) served in a replica

NEWS

As soon as my guest and I arrived at Belsize Park’s Hill Bar and Brasserie, the welcoming sparkly lights outside, cheery staff inside were the perfect tonic for a chilly, winters evening.

new menu and the variety was one of the things we liked most about the venue and the sultry jazz soothed the air as we relaxed into the candlelit surroundings.

of his head and complete with Super Mario cap and dungarees. The Super Mario (Monti) Cocktail is a refreshing mix of Cucumber, Hendrick’s Gin, Elderflower Cordial, Apple Juice and Cloves.

Info: Bunga Bunga 37 Battersea Bridge Road, London, SW11 3BA | www.bungabungalondon.com LIME MAGAZINE 2011

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NEWS

Lime restaurant review: The Hill Bar and Brasserie Words: Sophia A Jackson Lime rating: Pull quote: “…The bisque was perfect and coupled with the intoxicating aromas it almost enticed me to have another one for my main...”

British icon Margaret Thatcher has been thrust back into the limelight with the release of the new Hollywood film staring Academy Award-winner Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady.

1980s-inspired boutique nightclub Maggie’s has celebrated the arrival of ‘Maggie Mania’ with a full refurbishment and Margaret Thatcherinspired cocktail.

Info: Maggie’s, 329 Fulham Road, London, SW10 9QL www.maggies-club.com/ 020 7352 8512

FOOD AND DRINK

Guanabara: “When love is not madness, it is not love” Pedro Calderon de la Barca Guanabara brings you the best in Brazilian music and dance with an amazing Valentines performance from OiBrasil. With a Free dance class early in the evening you can impress your partner and bring some passion into the night.

Woo your boo at these romantic

restaurants

Kumo: One lucky couple will win a precious stone or diamond on Valentines night. The stone will be at the bottom of one of the bespoke, ‘Diamonds are Forever’ cocktail and whoever finds the gem gets to keep it.

Info: Guanabara, Parker Street (Corner of Drury Lane), Covent Garden, London, WC2B 5PW | www.guanabara.co.uk supperclub: If you dine at supperclub on 14th February you and your lover will not only dine in bed but will be handcuffed together for the duration of the evening. Couples will be made to feed each other and will have to stay handcuffed even when the call of nature comes.

Those who manage to stay attached to their loved one for the entire night will be offered a spectacular prize and those who choose to unlock themselves will be shown just how love can tear them apart.

Info: supperclub London 12 Acklam Road, London, W10 5QZ | www. supperclub.com 8 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

Info: Kumo, 11 Beauchamp Place, London, SW3 1NQ | www.kumoknightsbridge. com Bunga Bunga: This Valentine’s Day Bunga Bunga will be throwing London’s most romantic evening with a ‘Bella Notte’ theme. You and your loved one will be transported to an authentic candle lit Italian pizzeria straight out of one of Disney’s most iconic films, Lady and the Tramp. Bunga Bunga welcomes both couples for an intimate dinner and with Silvio’s approval

group parties wanting to celebrate love and romance in true Bunga Bunga style!

Info: Bunga Bunga, 37 Battersea Bridge Road, London, SW11 3BA | www.bungabungalondon.com

Archer Street: New sophisticated Soho bar with nightly pop up entertainment will be celebrating Valentine’s Day with the special Cupid’s Bow cocktail. The perfect way to show your loved one how unique they really are. There will also be live entertainment on the night with the talented bar staff serenading couples with a host of romantic songs.

Info: Archer Street 3-4 Archer Street Soho, London W1D 7A | www. archerstreet.co.uk

The Brompton Bar & Grill: The award-winning Brompton Bar & Grill will host an unforgettable jazz night on Valentine’s Day, the perfect way to serenade your loved one. This night will provide a different atmosphere for Valentine’s Day, rather than the normal silent dining rooms with the clicking of forks and knives.

Info: The Brompton Bar & Grill, 243 Brompton Road London SW3 2EP | www. thebromptonbarandgrill. com The Door: ‘Adore The Door’ bespoke Valentine’s menus and sultry cocktails at this sumptuous steak restaurant- the perfect place for City Boys to blow their bonuses on their loved ones.

Info: The Door Oyster Bar and Grill, 33 Cornhill, London EC3| http:// thedoor-group.com

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Bollywood Bling Smust have accessory for

FASHION/BEAUTY

Add a touch of

To Your Party Look with Beauty Inspired by Nindy Kaur mokey eyes are the

any fashionista who wants to get noticed this season.

So why not follow the likes of Beyonce, Eva Longoria and Hayden Panettiere and add a Bollywood twist to your party look this year?

Brit-Bollywood songstress Nindy Kaur can offer easy tips on how to get the perfect Bollywood Bling look that will set you apart from the rest of the party goers this season and add a touch more glamour to your night out?

and neck. You can check the shade on your jaw line first which will tell you immediately if it blends with your skin. A good base will help to keep the rest of your makeup.

HOW TO GET THAT LOOK

• Next you need to create a strong brow, use a lighter foundation or apply highlighter to the skin directly under the brown.

Shape your eyebrows using tweezers or threading which is more popular in India, then use a pencil to highlight the brows and create a strong shape. A perfect brow shape will frame the eyes and entire look.

• The first step in creating the Bollywood look is to create a perfect and flawless base. First apply a tinted moisturizer or foundation all over the face

• The most important part of the Bollywood look are the eyes which must be the strongest feature of your makeup to achieve the Bollywood look.

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with I Love Afro” an event for all those interested in Natural hair. Whether you are a newbie, oldie, transitioning, have locs, chemically treated hair or just want to learn more about what it means to be natural, please come along. Meet the creators of I Love Afro as well as other naturals and help support the cause. A selection of vendors selling handmade products, jewellery, clothing, multicultural books and more will be there so come and buy your goodies. Discounts on I Love Afro Products

Feb Buy My Wardrobe BuyMyWardrobe returns with a new line up of sellers opening the doors to their stylish wardrobes.

Each of the 20+ sellers will be given their own boutique style space to set up shop for the day.

Info: Adam Street, London | www.buymywardrobe. com

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Feb A Day with I Love

Afro To say thank you to all our customers and supporters we are holding “A day

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• Blend several eye shadow shades together to get the desired smokey effect. Start with the lighter colour on the lid and blend in the darker colours into the socket of the eye. Bring the shadow out to the end of the eyebrow to create the feline effect.

• Apply liquid eyeliner across the eyelid close to the lash line, and create an elongated tick at the end.

A great tip is to create the tick at the corner of the eye first, then sweep your line across the lid. Next, to create the sultry look, use black khol pencil in the inner rims of the eye to perfectly frame them, also use the kohl right into the inner corner of the eye to give the feline effect.

• False eyelashes are a available on the day as well as prizes and a Q&A session.

Info: 12-4pm | Charterhouse Bar 38 Charterhouse Street London EC1M 6JH | www. iloveafro.co.uk

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/12/25 Feb Jewellery Making Workshops Nsaa Nefateri will be running short courses and workshops for

must, use mascara on top to create the effect of thick lashes • If you can, wear colored contact lenses, they really add to the look.

For example green and turquoise eye shadows look amazing against brown eyes.

• Keep the lips natural with a nude coloured gloss that adds shine and volume. those of you who would like to learn the skills for making professional looking handmade cards and unique jewellery pieces.

These workshops will take place on a monthly basis at Nefateris’ workshop space in Hackney Wick and at The Hackney Attic, Top Floor, Hackney Picturehouse.

Info: www.nefateri cardsandgifts. com/workshopscourses/ LIME MAGAZINE 2011

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Rock the Kosibah

FASHION/BEAUTY

WORDS: AMICA ANSELM

Dress by Kosibah Lola | Model - Funmi | Photographer – Chris Williams | MUA/ Stylist – Zainab Rauf

The stylish world of award-winning fashion designer, Yemi Osunkoya

Tfrom the Republic of

he name Cosiba comes

Benin and is the day name of a female child born on a Sunday. The brand has global appeal from UK, and Nigeria to USA with clients including Sheila

Ferguson formerly of the Three Degrees and Hollywood actress Indra Ové Kosibah specialises in contemporary and elegant couture bridal, evening and formal day wear using luxurious fabrics and sumptuous embellishments.

You established the brand in 1991 and named the company after your mother, how important is this for you?

From a young age from about six/ seven-years-old, I realised that I could draw well and I’d go to weddings with my parents and I’d come back and draw the full bridal train with details, and fortunately for me especially coming from an African background, my parents were supportive of this, certainly my mother who would encourage me and show my work to her friends at work which then lead me to want to do more. When it came to the time for me to come up with a name for my label, which

Yemi Osunkoya founder of Kosibah [image Jemma Allett]

10 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

was about 30-years-ago, I realised that I wanted a name that was separate from myself. So my clothes can speak for themselves as I am a private person and I did not want “Yemi couture” or “Osunkoya fashion”. The person that played the most active part that got me to where I was at that time was my mother and I thought that was a good way to pay homage to her.

You completed your studies at the height of the recession in the 90’s what advice would you give a budding designer who is finding it hard during these tough economic times?

They are in a lucky position compared to the last recession because then there was no Internet.

That’s the most powerful tool they have now. The first thing they should do is get themselves a Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn account, and try to get signed up to a lot of these schemes. The government is keen for people to become self-employed.

Soak up as much advice as you can and from a fashion

“The main aims of Kosibah is to make the client in front of me look the best they can from their own natural beauty and the tricks of the trade that I can achieve through my dress

point of view, you have to remember it’s a business and if you’re talented that’s like a bonus but don’t take your eye off the ball that it is a business that you need to try and keep afloat. Now coming back to the Internet – you are able to promote yourself for almost nothing, you can get yourself a good website. It’s actually a time where if you grab the opportunity it’s not actually a disaster.

How many ‘bridezillas’ do you come across in an average month?

My dresses are all bespoke, so it’s not as if I sell it all off the peg so I deal with an average of 25 brides a year and what I say to myself is that I understand the pressures of a typical bride is immense, so whatever any body does to me I do not take it personally because I know that they don’t mean it at me.

So I sort of understand

Dress by Kosibah -Tulullah | Photographer – Chris Williams | MUA/ Stylist – Zainab Rauf

the ‘Bridezilla’ enthusiasm and I take it for what it is.

What made you want to feature your designs in Brides of culture? How important is an event like this to you?

I decided to feature my designs in Brides of Culture because I got to perceive the vision they had for their shows and thought it was a brilliant idea that is needed in a diverse city like London.

An event like this is important to me because it gives me another opportunity to show my designs to brides from a wide variety of cultures and ethnicities. As a black man, I’m happy to support what my black sisters are trying to do.

Have you looked into dressing any (gay) men for their commitment ceremonies?

No I don’t do men’s wear at all, early on I realised it wasn’t me, I didn’t get any artistic satisfaction from doing it and I promised myself that I am only going to do what brings me joy rather than doing it just for money.

When an impressionable first time bride approaches you, where do you draw your inspirations from to make her dress represent her personally?

I ask lots of questions, they may not realise what I’m doing. The main aims of Kosibah is to make the client in front of me look the best that they can from their own natural beauty and the tricks of the trade that I can achieve through my dress. After taking their body type into consideration I’ll ask questions such as where’s your wedding going to be and are there any culture or religious things she has to do. Lots of basic elements help to build up what will be a perfect dress. I also show two or three pieces of my design sketches so they don’t get confused.

FASHION/BEAUTY

Dress by Kosibah -Lukundo | Model – Samira | Photographer – Chris Williams | MUA/ Stylist – Zainab Rauf

Dress by Kosibah - Josie | Model - Samira | Photographer – Chris Williams | MUA/ Stylist – Zainab Rauf

What plans are in store for Kosibah during 2012?

I’m doing my first ever samples sale on the 1st of March in a hotel called Park Plaza of bespoke gowns from the past 20 years. They’re all samples from photo shoots and fashion shows that I held onto for sentimental reasons. This is a one off thing, sample dresses sold at reduced prices for a lot of people who wanted to wear Kosibah and could not afford it, and this is an ideal opportunity.

Is it better to love or be loved?

I think it’s better to love, because if you do its more likely that the feeling will be reciprocated and it’s a nice feeling as a human that makes you better. It would be sad to live your life to never have loved.

Info: www.kosibah.co.uk | Twitter: @YemiKosibah | By appointment only: Studio 7, 44 St Paul’s Crescent, London, NW1 9TN | 020 7424 8832 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

11

17 FASHION/BEAUTY

Feb – 23 Mar Expand your skills in the art of Braiding Through our passion we educate and equip our clients, whilst alerting them to issues surrounding the industry and creating awareness about the management of different hair types. Because of our commitment to the selfdevelopment of our clients, much of our syllabus is geared around building self esteem and confidence as we believe strongly in elevating our clients, not only in their plaiting ability but in their personal progression.

Info: www. nurtureacademy.co.uk

Brides of Culture Bridal Exhibition soon became a much needed addition to the e-channel; attracting wedding vendors who were keen to tap into this niche market. The Brides of Culture Bridal Exhibition held in October 2011 attracted over 300 delegates and 25 major wedding suppliers.

Info: 11am-7pm | Crowne Plaza Hotel, London Docklands, Royal Victoria Dock, E16 1AL | www. bridesofculture.com

01

Mar Kosibah Sample Sale Kosibah will be showcasing their first sample sale on Thursday 1st March 2012 - 6.30pm9pm in conjunction with The Primo Bar Ladies night at The Park Plaza Hotel Westminster Bridge hosted by Creative Cornucopia. Prices start from as little as £75 ranging to £600 and all samples are sold as seen.

This is an exclusive night not to be missed - reserve your space in advance.

Info: info@willbaforce. com | 07706 798 721

01

Apr Mahogany International African Caribbean Bridal Fashion Show

24 Show

-26 Feb National Wedding

For Spring 2012 the National Wedding Show has been given a makeover and unveils a fresh new look. The National Wedding Show is back and better than ever before!

Combining over 250 handpicked exhibitors and the UK’s largest collection of wedding dresses under one roof, the show offers everything you could need for your big day.

From stunning cakes to show stopping flowers and beautiful venues to bespoke dresses there is something for every bride and every budget. It’s your big day and all eyes are on you, so we want to make sure that you look and feel amazing with the dress you’ve always dreamed of.You will be spoilt for choice at the show with every style and fabric you could want from sleek and elegant to fairytale princess.

Info: London Kensington Olympia www. nationalweddingshow. co.uk 12 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

Brides of Culture Top Left to Right Abi Laditan and Kemi Osinloye Bottom Left to Right Jessica Laditan, Seyi Talabi and Sola Castano

10

Mar Brides of Culture’s Free African-Caribbean Bridal Exhibition‫‏‬ Brides of Culture (BoC) is back for the fifth instalment of its unique free Bridal Exhibition.

This African-Caribbean wedding exhibition is the only one of its kind in London. Brides of Culture is proud to announce that the award-winning fashion designer Yemi Osunkoya of Kosibah Couture Bridal and Evening Wear will be showcasing his phenomenal designs at the Spring Exhibition. Yemi established the Kosibah brand in London in 1991 and named the company in honour of his mother. The name “Cosiba” comes from the Republic of Benin and

The MBFS primarily focuses on the fashion element of getting married from wedding dresses to accessories and includes a small number of exhibitors that cover the other areas of getting married such as photographers, wedding planners, cake makers, makeup artists and so on.

The show will also include the world renowned Mahogany Fashion Show, which draws people come back year after year to see to watch this fantastic fashion show. There will also be a range of seminars taking place on the day covering such topics as bridal makeup, relationships and bridal etiquette. All visitors to the show would receive a goody bag, a show brochure, opportunity to attend any of the seminars (subject to space being available) as well as being able to watch the fashion shows.

Info: Holiday Inn Bloomsbury | www. mahoganybrides.com

is the day name of a female child born on a Sunday.

The Kosibah brand has become a highly sought after wedding dress label, with celebrities and brides from across the world walking down the aisle in Yemi’s beautiful pieces.

Also at 1pm and 4pm there will be Wedding Planning Masterclass with Seyi Olusanya, Cedar Events.

Founded in 2009, BoC aspires to be the largest Afro-Caribbean focused Bridal Exhibition in the UK. Its website provides useful tips, information and advice as well as details of local and regional vendors to meet the wedding needs of a diverse mix of brides and grooms; from across Africa, the Caribbean, and Asia. The Follow us on twitter @limewithus for free and discounted tickets to the best events in the city

Afridiziak Theatre News: for all the latest news, reviews and interviews from the world of AfricanCaribbean theatre. Join our mailing list: info@ afridiziak.com or visit www.afridiziak.com.

THEATRE

In association with

Love, Sax and all that Jazz 2 - the Mans Dem

SHOW OF THE MONTH

11

/ 12 Feb Focus Arts Promotions Presents Love Sax and all that Jazz 2 (Da Mans Dem) Love Sax and all that Jazz Chapter 2 (Da Mans Dem) is the sequel to the hit comedy play Love Sax and all that Jazz. Written

by Alan Charles, Da Mans Dem takes an informative and humorous look at men and relationships exploring those age old questions what do men want? Why do men cheat?

And what defines a man?

In chapter one the girls were explosive in chapter two Da Mans Dem will get their say. Get ready for another explosion of humour in this production that will inform, uplift and edutain the whole family.

Info: 7pm | Broadway Theatre - Rushey Green, Catford, London, SE6 4RU | www.focusarts.co.uk

23

Feb My Father and Other Superheroes

Directed by Benji Reid The day Nick Makoha realised he was going

Un

til 19 Feb UMOJA UMOJA is a musical celebration of South African song and dance.

Originally created by Todd Twala and Thembi Nyandeni as a way of a reminding a new generation of South Africans of their heritage, UMOJA, meaning ‘togetherness’ in Zulu, has won critical plaudits and collected multiple awards since its premiere in 2000.

From the potent rhythms of tribal music to the intricate steps of to become a father, he also realised he had no idea how to be one . . . .

Follow Nick’s journey as he discovers what it takes for a man to become a hero, and how a hero can be just a man. My Father and Other Superheroes is a moving and powerful story about the journey from childhood to fatherhood.

Set across continents and eras, it follows one man’s

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gumboot dancing, the jazz of Sophiatown, the joy of gospel and the pounding energy of contemporary kwaito, UMOJA unites 30 singers, dancers, drummers, marimba players and musicians, who represent the best of South Africa’s young performers, many of whom come from severely disadvantaged township backgrounds.

Info: Peacock Theatre, Portugal Street, Holborn, London WC2 | Tue - Sun at 7.30pm, Sat & Sun mats at 2.30pm | www. sadlerswells.com struggle to come to terms with the responsibilities of being a parent and his confrontation with his own father’s absence.

Info: 7.30pm | The Albany, Douglas Way, London SE8 4AG| www.thealbany. org.uk

23

Feb Actor’s Clinic You have thought of it!

You may have made the

decision?

Now act on it!

The Actors Clinic workshops are designed equally for beginners as well as those with some experience. Our acting workshops provide actors with modern on-camera acting techniques plus a foundation of acting training rooted in time honoured theatrical traditions.

Our instructors are acting coaches, professional working actors, directors and producers with a wealth of experience in film, theatre and television.

Each student is given personal focus and provided with the necessary advice and resources for launching a new career as an actor.

“It’s never too late to be what you might have been” George Elliott Info:[e]reggie@ rjopromotions.co.uk | 10am - 5pm| Lost Theatre, 208 Wandsworth Road London SW8 2JU

LIME MAGAZINE 2011

13

THEATRE

UMOJA UMOJA co-founder, Todd Twala shares the organisation’s 12 year journey

Epremiering in

leven years after

London, award winning musical extravaganza UMOJA is back with a vengeance for a run at Sadler’s Wells Peacock Theatre. The show’s co-creator Todd Twala describes the production; the experiences that led to its formation, the places the show has taken her and cofounder Thembi Nyandeni and what UMOJA means to her and her beloved homeland. With a laughter filled, oscillating voice and an incredible warmth this is a woman with an enormous heart, which she has poured into this production along with considerable soul to form a glorious celebration of South African culture and the people who make it.

How would you describe your show UMOJA? UMOJA is a collection of all the music and dance of South

14 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

Words: Gillian Fisher

Africa. It’s a celebration of every part of our music from gospel to jazz, to steel drums and the story of how it evolved. There’s a narrator that takes people through the show, explaining how the music grew from tribal music into acappella, then how it picked up English rhythms, and how and why it kept evolving and growing into South Africa’s music today.

This is UMOJA’s 12th year, has the show changed in that time?

The show hasn’t changed at its core, but because there’s so many South African songs, you know, once in a while we do alter the set list if we tour a country for a second time. Like in our London tour we have ‘The Dream’ instead of ‘Paradise Road’ for example. There are so many songs, that we can keep on rotating them a bit and keep people’s interest.

The show consists of 30 performers, how do you find them?

Now, they come to us.

In South Africa we have auditions every Thursday for UMOJA, so many young people want to be in the production. But we have a criteria. Now South Africa is free and has democracy, we want these kids to be educated.

These kids want to take part and be famous instead of going to school. But they have opportunities, and they need to use them, so when you join UMOJA, you have to have finished your Standard Twelve. We also check your background;

Was music and dance a big part of your childhood in South Africa?

Yes, yes! What we’re doing now in UMOJA represents what has been part of my life.

During Apartheid times, there was nothing we could do as South Africans, but there were a lot of concerts, music shows, a lot of things that involved music. That was the only thing that we had to keep us going. A lot of times there would be small productions or a small concert put on in a hall. In the weekend, you’d go and sing and find friends; music has always been part of my life. Music kept us going, that’s why I’m celebrating music with the concept of UMOJA. I wonder every day if we didn’t have music, how we would have coped? Music kept us sane.

You grew up just outside of Johannesburg, and had some horrific experiences during your childhood.

Yes I was born in an urban town called George Goch, but in 1968 we had to move, we just woke up and there was a bulldozer outside. We had to go to Soweto. They wouldn’t ask you where you wanted to go, they’d just give you a number, ‘This is where we’re taking you to, go get your things in the van.’ Then they’d go and dump you in Soweto.

THEATRE

see that you deserve the opportunities. A lot of kids in South Africa come from disadvantaged families, their parents are not educated and they are struggling to make their way. By being in UMOJA they have an opportunity to make a life for themselves.

It’s the same objective that we had when we started with UMOJA, of helping the disadvantaged kids.

“I think UMOJA is doing good justice to South Africa.

First because it’s run by two black women, and secondly it’s done by young South Africans who are genuinely doing it from their heart” What do you think of the current situation in South Africa?

I think it’s excellent. When I think of other countries that have just changed to democracy, some of them have the whole country run into turmoil, like look what’s happened in Iraq. In South Africa, we changed and things are going well. Ok there are hiccups, problems here and there, because you can’t expect things to be 100 percent smooth, but so far, 85 per cent of my country I’m happy with.

Apartheid was there for 300 years; you can’t expect things to be sorted out in ten years.

But so far, I’m happy with the changes. Today I have the freedom to educate my children in the way I want to. Today I’m a director of my own big production.

I’m a prominent businesswoman; I’m a respected citizen of South Africa now because of democracy. Today for the youth of South Africa there are opportunities and there is freedom. Now the problem is knowing how to use it.

When people are free, some of them don’t know what to do with that freedom. They expect the government now to take care of them, feed them, but it’s up to you now.

How do you feel UMOJA has served the cause of South Africa?

I think UMOJA is doing good justice to South Africa. First because it’s run by two black women, and secondly it’s done by young South Africans who are genuinely doing it from their heart. These aren’t kids from acting institutions; these are ordinary young people with raw talent who have been trained by Thembi and I. UMOJA is different from other shows I have done, in that it’s

completely authentic, it’s done by South Africans about South Africa, and it’s based on their own experiences, not based on unconnected peoples’ perceptions. Me and Thembi, we did our research and we lived that life that we portray on the stage. I grew up in that environment.

You’ve toured all over the world; do you have a favourite place to perform?

Yes, I do have a favourite place, for me it was New Zealand. I loved the landscape, the sheep grazing in the grass; it reminded me of South Africa in the villages. If I had to settle somewhere else in the world it would be in New Zealand. But South Africa will always be my home. I would never trade South Africa for anything! For me that’s the most beautiful country in the world. I believe there is a reason why God put me in that country.

Published courtesy of Afridiziak Theatre News: www.afridiziak.com/ theatrenews Info: Umoja is at the Peacock Theatre until February 19, 2012 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

15

23 THEATRE

– 24 Feb Collective Artistes presents ZHE: [noun] undefined

A new play by Chuck Mike created by Antonia Kemi Coker and Tonderai Munyevu This poignant and honest piece of theatre explores the lives of two British Africans living at the crossroads of culture, nationality, gender and sexuality. Journeying from childhood to adulthood and across continents, the play examines the joys and pains of coming to terms with the complexity of our many identities.

A humorous, thought provoking and haunting drama, this story is told by the characters whose lives are healed and celebrated through the experience.

Info: Canada Water Culture Space, 21 Surrey Quays Road, London SE16 7AR| www. collectiveartistes.co.uk

06

-10 Mar West Yorkshire Playhouse and Talawa Theatre Company present Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett

16 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

03

– 05 Feb Hackney Empire Youth Takeover Weekend part of Discover Young Hackney 2012 A weekend of great events including Creative Writing workshops with Eastenders’ Tameka Empson, Dance workshops led by Kat B and Comedy workshops with television comedian Hardeep Singh.

From Friday, February 3, to Sunday, February 5, at the Hackney Empire, Empire 2, Empire Café, The Harold Pinter Room and calling all 13 to 21 year olds who live in Hackney.

03 February: Alter Ego

spectacular featuring top artists alongside the best that young Hackney has to offer. Alter Ego will see Hackney’s young singers, dancers, rappers, actors and comedians all competing for the title ‘Alter Ego 2012’ 04 February: Youth Opportunity Fair 10:00 – 16:00 - FREE ADMISSION Ever wanted to get involved in performing arts as a hobby or a career?

Come and find out how you could get involved in the arts by meeting Hackney arts organisation to find out what activities are happening on your doorstep.

04 February: DJ Night @ The Empire Café 19:00 -22:00 - FREE ADMISSION Chill and listen to some great music played by some of the best DJs Hackney has to offer.

19:30 -21:30 - £2 IN ADVANCE // £4.00 ON THE DOOR Kat B (MTV Base) hosts an entertainment A funny, poetic and tragic masterpiece contemplating humanity and friendship, Samuel Beckett’s WAITING FOR GODOT is performed by an all-Black cast in a co-production by West Yorkshire Playhouse and Talawa Theatre Company. Premiering in the Playhouse’s Courtyard theatre before embarking on a national tour, this is the final play to be directed by Ian Brown as Artistic Director of the Playhouse. Jeffery Kissoon and Patrick Robinson take the roles of Vladimir and Estragon - two men waiting hopelessly, helplessly, haplessly for the elusive Godot - with Fisayo Akinada, Guy Burgess and Cornell S. John completing the ensemble. This coproduction is the first

05 February: Creative Writing with Tameka Empson and Susie McKenna 11:00 -13:00 - FREE ADMISSION (20 places) Waiting for Godot to be produced in the UK with an all-Black British cast.

Vladimir and Estragon are waiting. Two old men whose compulsion to wait for a visit from the indescribable Godot forces them to pass the time in the only way they can; with and for each other.

Stories are told, boots are abandoned, religion is debated, memories of better days are shared, jokes are made, suicide is contemplated, the fear of being alone is overwhelming – and time passes. Chance meetings happen, arguments take place, thinking occurs, violence is advocated, hats are exchanged, friendship is venerated – and time passes.

Interested in writing, but never tried it? Come along and meet Eastenders resident funny lady Tameka Empson and Susie Mckenna, writer and director of Hackney Empire’s legendary Pantomimes as they give you the golden rules of creative writing in a workshop that will be full of laughter and creation.

05 February: Speak to Me with Hardeep Singh 14:30 – 16:30 – FREE ADMISSION (30 places) Interested in comedy?

Think you’re funny?

Come and join TV favourite Hardeep Singh in a comedy storytelling workshop where all we need is one mic and your imagination.

Info: Hackney Empire | http://www. hackneyempire.co.uk | Discover Young Hackney | http://www. discoveryounghackney.com To Book for the workshops: projects@ hackneyempire.co.uk, 020 8510 4396. To Book Tickets for ‘Alter Ego’ contact the Box Office: 020 8985 2424 On a road with a single tree two old friends wait…and pass the time.

Info: 7.30pm | The Albany, Douglas Way, Deptford, London SE8 4AG | www. thealbany.org.uk

Un

til Mar 17 The Pitchfork Disney 21 years after it came kicking and screaming into the world, The Pitchfork Disney has come of age...

‘You know why the ghost train is so popular?

Because there

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When it premiered at London’s Bush Theatre in 1991, The Pitchfork Disney caused a sensation. WIth its barrage of barbaric and magical imagery, its gleaming dark comedy and catastrophic air of violence and sexual tension, audiences were left breathless, intoxicated and, in some cases, fleeing in terror.

Now director Edward

24

March

Sensual Africa Sensual Africa is Bawren Tavaziva’s choreographic response to an inspirational trip there.

Voyage with his company of Sensual outstanding Africa Photo.

Irven Lewis

dancers as they salute and pay homage to the fascinating Tumbuka and Chewa Tribes, injecting their own interpretation on the complexities of these intriguing tribes’ movements and music and the distinctiveness of the rituals that boys and girls go through to become men and women.

Info: Bernie Grant Arts Centre | www. berniegrantcentre.co.uk

21

-22 Apr B-Cos Productions in conjunction with ACLT presents You Haven’t Seen Nothing Yet When soul diva Bashiyra witnesses an unusual and distressing assault of her fellow backing singer, she runs out of town and

Lenny Henry as

This is your chance to see the sensational singer and songwriter Bashiyra in her new musical comedy play about love, dedication, self -belief, will and also a white rum drinking pastor’s unorthodox way of getting his message across to his church.

A brilliant selection of songs and belly-ache comedy to have you all standing up, dancing, laughing and maybe even crying too and with a special guest appearance by international soul artist Junior Giscombe, this production is a definite must see.

Starring: Wayne ‘Dibbi’ Rollins; Kane Brown and Tippa Irie.

Info: 8pm | Catford Broadway, London SE6 4RU | www. broadwaytheatre.org.uk

connects with the audience at every confusing turn helping us share his pain and laughs.

Afridiziak Theatre News review: Comedy of Errors, National Theatre | Words: Abiola Lawal | Afridiziak rating: Dominic Cooke’s current remake of the Shakespeare classic, Comedy of Errors, is a definite hit. It opens in dark tragedy setting the scene for the cause of what will later be slapstick, farcical mishaps that rival any Benny Hill sketch. The story starts when twin boys are split at birth, along with their twin slaves, and separated from their parents. They have grown up in different cities but in a stroke of adventure manage to find themselves in the same town of Ephesus where one gets confused for another and from there the comedy ensues.

takes refuge where she thinks she won’t be found, a Jamaican church.

THEATRE

Ten years ago something terrible happened to Presley and Haley. Since then they have lived alone in their dead parents’ house. But one night their safe isolation is shattered by the arrival of Cosmo Disney, who confronts them with the scariest question of all...what exactly happened to their parents.

Dick – following his critically acclaimed revival of Ridley’s The Fastest Clock in the Universe at Hampstead Theatre in 2009 - takes on this contemporary classic and reveals that Ridley’s dark and glittering vision looks today more like breathtaking prophecy.

Info: 7.30pm | The Arcola Theatre, 24 Ashwin Street Dalston, London E8 3DL | www.arcola theatre.com

A scene from The Comedy of Errors – foreground Lenny Henry (Antipholus of Syracuse) image Johan Persson

Antipholus of Syracuse does not lose any of his trademark funny man value, although the African accent he puts on is a bit dodgy it still gives you jokes. His right hand man Dromio played by Lucian Msamati, whom some of you may remember from the televised No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency, is a bundle of energy that will have you rolling in your seat. They are without a doubt the funniest comedy

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duo I have seen since the Two Ronnies; the onstage chemistry between them is fantastic. A much more serious Antipholus of Ephesus played by Chris Jarman manages to maintain some kind of dignity in the face of all the injustices served against him, giving as good as he gets when his life is flipped upside down through mistaken identity.

His main man Dromio, played by Daniel Poyser,

I am grateful that the use of language stays true to Shakespeare’s pen giving the comedy a poetic and theatrical tone, yet is set in a very contemporary world, reflected by the up-to-date WAG style worn by Antipholus’ wife Adriana and her sister, Luciana; it all adds to the humour.

This adaptation is a wonderful Shakespearean romp that I thoroughly enjoyed, with a tasty African-Caribbean flair to it that just made me smile.

Go see it!

Info: Comedy of Errors is at the National Theatre until April 1, 2012 at the National Theatre | www.nationaltheatre. org.uk | Printed courtesy of www.afridiziak.com/ theatrenews LIME MAGAZINE 2011

17

REVIEW

are no ghosts. Once you know that you can make a fortune.’

MUSIC

February’s new music releases

Feed your ears with this month’s hot new releases Out Feb 13: Our Version of Event by Emile Sande Emile Sande’s already had a cracking start to the year with her Critics’ Choice BRIT Award last month and after much anticipation, her debut album is released this month. You won’t be disappointed.

Out Feb 26: Fun Last Night by Encore Fresh from supporting Jessie J, Tinchy Stryder and N-Dubz on tour, hot new urban-pop sensations Encore release their brand new single ‘Fun Last Night’.

directed the majority of the tracks on the album.

Two-time Grammy winner Common will embark upon a new stage in his career when he releases his new album ‘The Dreamer, The Believer’ – the first under a new deal with Warner Bros. Records.

Out Mar 19: Radio Music Society by Esperanza Spalding With collaborations from Q-Tip, Lalah Hathaway and Billy Hart, Spalding’s fan are in for another treat with the release of her second album. The multitalented jazz artist has both composed and

Out now: Soul is Heavy

by Nneka Words: Semper AzeezHarris

ability to transmit her gamut of emotions and the production as usual is of a high quality.

Nneka’s latest album Soul Is Heavy cements her status as a great artist who will be on the musical radar for years. It’s an album that is a melting pot of reggae, pop, afro beat, a smattering of drum and bass and hip-hop through the fifteen tracks that make up this brilliant offering.

The distinct flavours are held together by Nneka’s vocals which always have that raw quality and

As the title suggest this is Nneka detailing pains and so the album in many respects is not light-hearted.

Even when sonically the tracks seem light hearted, the subject matter is powerful. In many respects the album has a certain

18 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

ability is not in question with telling subject matter her usual fodder. This I Know is song-writing of a high calibre and really displays an ear for music that has commercial clout without losing integrity.

Out Mar 5: The Dreamer, The Believer

by Common

Out now: Calm Her by Sonia Rao Words: Semper Azeez-Harris Sonia Rao is a gorgeous multiinstrumentalist from New Jersey.

An artist seeking to bring real musicality to the fore she combines her talent in the violin, piano and flute to create a musical feast for the ears.

Her album is simple music that traverses the genres of ballads, blues n Soul, pop and country music all over laid by her crisp and clean vocals. Her song writing catharsis particularly when she details her trials in love. In other tracks it is about engaging her audience to think particularly when it comes to Africa (and evidently Nigeria) and the problems inherent to the vast continent.

The collabos on the album only account for two of the tracks but they are well chosen. The UK’s

Currently Sonia is pushing her latest single She which sees her delving into the country music genre. I think it is always brave for artists to delve into country music when the artist is young. Country always seems to demand that the artists are a little older and wise enough to tackle country. Adele did it on her album 21 (need I say more?) and in truth Sonia pulls it off. Rather than get all-introspective or delve into how she was wronged in a relationship, this is an up-tempo number which has the “ye-haa” quality without being irritating. very own Ms Dynamite features on Sleep and their similarities are so uncanny that it was difficult at first to know who was singing and rapping at the different times on the track. Either way it’s a great track and the two spar purposefully over the reggae tinged number.

The other collabo with Black Thought on God Knows Why is essential hip-hop full of tight bars with a thought provoking message at its core, something that Nneka achieves throughout this brilliant album.

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Better the

WORDS: SEMPER AZEEZ-HARRIS

MUSIC

Devlin

you know

Devlin makes his return

Dhardest emcees

evlin is one of the

to come out of London mixing his barrow boy like swagger with an infinitely street flex to produce bars that are profound, brilliantly structured and authentic in the life they seek to convey of one Devlin and of course London Town.

His break out single to that effect has to be London City which was immediately engaging on so many levels and was hugely anthemic in that sound that seemed to capture London even without the need of Devlin.

Devlin as the man of infinite bars on that track was not so much the icing on the cake for that track but merely a cake made of icing, entirely: he was a huge sugar rush.

What followed were appearances everywhere and his talent and hard work ethic were vindicated by being signing to Island Records. After dropping his widely received album Bud, Sweat and Tears (2010) which featured the brilliant Runaway with Yasmin, Devlin has been quiet…..until now.

but as far as the music and the production we tried to keep it as musical as possible.” Devlin is rightly keen to stress musicality as our interview takes place at the iconic and steeped in history Maida Vale studios.

“I am on a new campaign after being in the booth for a little while but now it is back to the real world. We did Bud, Sweat and Tears and we did all the promo and performances for that meanwhile I was deep in the studio perfecting and crafting this new album.”

“I am on a new campaign after being in the booth for a little while but now it is back to the real world.

We did Bud, Sweat and Tears and we did all the promo and performances for that meanwhile I was deep in the studio really perfecting and crafting this new album.” Like so many highly anticipated projects timing and evidently marketing are key and so Devlin is understandably a bit cagey, “I cannot give you a name right now and I just want to announce this album properly so I do not want to say anything right now. I will say however that the album is quite epic with deep meaningful lyrics which I am renowned for anyway

Devlin and other “urban” behemoths like Ms Dynamite, Fazer and Skepta are involved in a project to perform at the Barbican Centre in March in the aptly named Urban Classics. With the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Devlin and others will perform some of their classic tracks backed by the symphony. It promises to be amazing and Devlin readily speaks of his pride in being involved in such a dynamic project.

“I got involved through Bigga Fish and my brilliant management really and to be honest with you I proper appreciated it, you cannot beat real music and I have just a lot of respect for those people that play those instruments and it is great to be part of this and I cannot wait to hear how the music translates.” And when I asked him about the challenges he faced at the rehearsals a few hours before the interview he was suitably gracious?

“It was not really challenging because it translates well because the music I do is already quite musical. Obviously my lyrics have not changed and my flow is still the

Fazer with Jules Buckley at the Maida Vale studios [image credit Mark Allen]

same so I have just got to spit, the orchestra have the hard job they have to learn the stuff” It’s good to see the man with those profound bars back in the musical sphere once again. Look out for his forth coming EP. “I have an EP dropping before the album called The Director’s Cut and that will be a five track EP to let people know am back so I will be dropping a few videos to go with that very soon”.

Info: Urban Classic | 3-4 Mar | Music Nation is a nationwide weekend of live music events across the UK devised and led by the BBC the weekend is the first nationwide countdown event to the London 2012 Festival | Feat. Fazer, Ms Dynamite, Devlin, Skepta and the BBC Symphony Orchestra | www.barbican.org. uk | www.officialdevlin. com www.twitter.com/ devlinofficial LIME MAGAZINE 2011

19

02 MUSIC

Feb Loick Essien | L Marshall | Luke Bingham

entertainment which highlights the true Senegalese spirit. Expect music, fun and special performances.

Info: www.theo2.co.uk/ indigo2

03

Feb Youssou N’Dour Presidential Fundraiser This night of live music and DJ’s promises to deliver some incredible

Feb Roots Manuva

03

/5 Feb D’Angelo + Bluey Robinson

Loick Essien worked as a child actor before a chance meeting with Big Brovas producer Skillz at a video shoot saw him channel his talents into music. His single ‘How We Roll’ hit no.2 on the UK Singles Chart last year, and his debut Identity lands in March.

Info: 7pm | Jazz Café, 5 Parkway, London NW1 7PG

04

With sell out shows at Brixton Academy, his contribution to the Gorillaz album and tours to follow, Roots Manuva has established himself as a major player in the UK music scene.

Info: www.roundhouse. org.uk

REVIEW

12

Feb Vieux Farka Touré to return to the UK

08 For the first time in over 10 years Grammy awardwinning D’Angelo will perform in concert with a full live band.

Info: 7pm | Brixton 02 Academy | www. o2academybrixton.co.uk

Feb Ruby and the Vines + Bumi Thomas RATV fuse influences as diverse as Jazz, Rock, Afro-beat and Reggae.

Experience soulful frank vocals and deftly melodic bass lines with a meticulous groove. Bumi Thomas is a dynamic contemporary African, acoustic Jazz-Folk-Soul singer-songwriter whose style is inspired by her

The 90 minutes Boyz II Men were on stage at the O2 Brixton Academy was a veritable feast of saccharine, emotiondrenched ballads for the “many Boys II Men babies in da house tonight”. The voluble crowd sang their hearts out to classics ‘End of the Road’ and ‘I’ll Make Love To You’ as Nathan, Wanya and Shawn threw red roses to select ladies in the audience. The vibe was both joyful and genial, and of course wholly devoid of ‘attitude’. With their crisp white shirts, dapper waistcoats and debonair neck ties, the group transported the audience back to a time of sartorially elegant, clean-cut, mid 90s R & B. They even played tribute to UK band Take That by singing their No 1 hit ‘Want You Back For Good’. However, for all of the show’s uplifting energy and harmonious vocal pyrotechnics, Boyz II Men are undoubtedly suffering from the departure of Michael McCary, their Barry White-esque bass whose sultry sound underpinned almost all of their

Malian singer, songwriter and guitarist Vieux Farka Touré returns to the UK with British blues singersongwriter Oli Brown’s trio opening.

Info: Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre, 0844 875 0073 | www. southbankcentre.co.uk

14

Lime gig review: Boyz II Men, 02 Academy Brixton, January 28, 2012 Words: Lindsay Johns

20 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

multicultural heritage. Her music explores identity, sensuality, spirituality, retrospective and crossculturism.

Info: 7.30pm | Hackney Picturehouse, 270 Mare Street, London E8 1HE | www.picturehouses.co.uk

early tunes. Without ‘Mike’, the ballads sounded too light and fluffy, as opposed to earthy and sexy. Sadly, the Boyz also appeared to have put little thought into the stage show. They had no live backing band and every tune sung was a ballad until they finally got to the end of the show and blasted out their popular New Jack Swing classic ‘Motown Philly’. A memorable night for lovers of smooth crooning, to be sure, but the Boyz could have tried a bit harder to really make the fans go buck wild.

Info: www.boyziimen.com | The new album Twenty is out now.

Feb Eric Roberson Eric is a regular at the Jazz Café, where he has performed numerous live shows and hosted many tributes over the years.

Top of FormBottom of Form.

Info: 7pm | Jazz Café, 5 Parkway, London NW1 7PG

14

Feb Joe

Multi talented singer, song writer and record producer Joe will be getting us in the mood for love as he will be serenading us on a special Valentine’s Day show.

Info: www.theo2.co.uk/ indigo2

For free tickets/info to the hottest events, sign up to our newsletter: subscribers@comelime.com

Feb Omar + DJ Paul Aaaron UK soul legend returns to Jazz Café for special Valentine’s show to showcase his new album.

Info: 7pm | Jazz Café, 5 Parkway, London NW1 7PG

19

Feb Nicole Scherzinger first solo tour

Looking forward to wow-ing her fans with her flawless stage shows as she visits cities across the UK, the multi-talented Nicole Scherzinger will prove why she has become one of the most successful artists in the UK. Info: Hammersmith Apollo | www.nicolescherzinger. com

21

Feb The Brit Awards The 2012 Awards will see winners presented with an exclusive trophy designed by Sir Peter Blake, for one year only.

Info: www. theo2.co.uk

23

Feb Speech Debelle ‘Freedom of Speech’ album launch party

Speech Debelle’s new album is outward-looking, high energy, powerful and engaged.

Info: 7pm | Jazz Café, 5 Parkway, London NW1 7PG

24

Feb YolanDa Brown After several years on the world’s jazz circuits, double Mobo Award winning saxophonist and singer YolanDa Brown, one of the UK’s most exciting and in-demand live performers, brings her unique style, fusing jazz with soul, R&B, gospel, reggae and Latin, to the Millfield stage.

Info: Millfield Theatre Edmonton | www. millfieldtheatre.co.uk

29

Feb The MOBO Tour 2012: Clement Marfo & The Frontline + Starboy Nathan Clement Marfo & the Frontline have gone from underground rumblings to seismic moves in the commercial world.

Info: 7pm | The Garage, 20-22 Highbury Corner, London N5 1RD | www. hmvtickets.com

05

Mar Dot Rotten BBC Sound Of 2012 tip Dot Rotten is breaking out from the grime scene, producing himself entirely and opting against featuring other artists.

Whilst his set up single Keep It On A Low was added to Radio 1’s In New Music We Trust playlist, his new single ‘Are You Not Entertained’ (out 5th March, Mercury Records) looks set to announce the savvy 22 year-old to the wider listening audience.

Info: Koko, London | http://itsdotrotten.com/

12

Mar Lloyd This March sees Lloyd hit the UK in a short and exclusive limited tour.

Info: 7pm | Jazz Café, 5 Parkway, London NW1 7PG

Are we friends? Like us and get free tickets to the best shows across the captial. www.facebook.com/limemagazine

15

/16 Mar Rizzle Kicks Combining an old school hip-hop sound with a forward thinking pop mentality, Harley Alexander-Sule and Jordan Stephens are two of the most exciting teenage talents to emerge from 2011.

Info: www. o2shepherdsbushempire. co.uk

23

-25 Mar JLS – 4th Dimension Arena Tour Pop sensations JLS return all guns blazing with a brand new arena tour.

Info: www.theo2.co.uk

26

-27 Mar Drake Grammynominated superstar, and without question one of the most interesting rap artists to emerge in years, Drake, follows his first UK Top 10 single, “Take Care” feat.

Rihanna, with the news that he is bringing his live show to the UK for dates in the spring 2012.

Info: www.theo2.co.uk

11

Apr Snoop Dogg plus guests Global icon and legendary hip hop superstar, Snoop Dogg comes to West London for a special show.

Don’t miss your chance to see the skinny kingpin from Long Beach perform classic hits from his longstanding career as Tha Doggfather of Hip Hop. Info: HMV Hammersmith Apollo, London

16

Apr Emeli Sande Having written for everyone from Susan Boyle to Leona Lewis, Emeli Sande finally broke through in her own right with a pair of mega-hits, Heaven and Read All About It. Info: www. o2shepherdsbushempire. co.uk

25

-28 Apr Dwele + DJ Paul Aaaron Dwele is a spontaneous and organic creator who weaves a storyline from the songs he selects and sequences for the album.

Info: 7pm | Jazz Café, 5 Parkway, London NW1 7PG

MUSIC

18

09

May Wretch 32 Notching up an impressive list of fans such as Adele, Nicki Minaj and Liam Gallagher, ‘The Metaphor Man’ has lived up to the hype.

Info: www. o2shepherdsbushempire. co.uk

19

May Keith Sweat and Kut Klose Info: www.theo2.co.uk/ indigo2

15

-17 Jun Lovebox

The festival destination for London’s music, fashion and art lovers, will be spreading a decade of love on its return for an epic tenth year to its cultural home in the East End. A musical extravaganza beyond belief.

Info: www.lovebox.net

23

-24 Jun 2012 Olympic Games: Radio 1 Hackney Weekend Tinie Tempah has been added to the bill for the BBC’s biggest ever free live music event which is part of the Olympic celebrations. He will join Leona Lewis and Plan B along with over 100 UK and international artists, bands and DJs performing in front of 100,000 music fans over two days.

Info: www.london2012.com LIME MAGAZINE 2011

21

MUSIC

Discover

Etta

Smith WORDS: SEMPER AZEEZ-HARRIS

22 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

he sad passing

January signalled the end of a magnificent and illustrious career spanning numerous decades. So into the fold comes another Etta who would take even a miniscule amount of the former’s success in her burgeoning career.

Coming straight from Newcastle this young lady is akin in many ways to Alicia Keys being blessed with a great voice and beautiful tinkling on the keys. With her EP soon to drop Lime caught up with Etta for a short one to one.

So music, is it an allconsuming passion?

I have always been interested in music my parents were always playing music to me like my dad collects old Northern Soul records and I would listen to my mum’s disco tapes and she sings around the house not professionally but she loves singing.

right balance.

Your parents have had a big influence on you but have you always wanted to be a singer?

I have always loved singing and I started playing the piano when I was nine. When I was 14 or 15 I started writing songs and then when I was 16, my parents bought me a recording session.

That’s great you obviously used that session to its full potential.

Yes I did, I put the music up on MySpace and people really liked it.

From there people then stated to ask me to do gigs and stuff and it has just been word of mouth really, you do a gig here and a gig here.

How did you get involved with BGM who are pushing the rising Hatty Keane?

A venue called the Sage in Newcastle and then I did the Evolution festival.

Yes I am living in London as well where I am at university and I am studying Music Technology with Pop Music Performance because I want to do it all, perform and produce so I can add in drums strings and stuff so I can be more creative.

So explain your creative process.

When I first started writing songs I would use the piano to come up with a melody and build up the chords but now I am more writing the lyrics first and then I create the melody. Just writing the lyrics first then it allows you to be freer and not be restricted because you have built say a track that are mournful then the lyrics have to fit that sound.

And who are your inspirations I take it Alicia Keys must be one of them?

I love Alicia Keys because she sings and plays the

“I love Alicia Keys because she sings and plays the piano and so she was a big influence on me and listening to her made me want to sing and play the piano” And how supportive were they in your formative musical aspirations?

My mum and dad would always telling me that I was a good singer but I am getting more confident as I do more gigs. I believe in me but sometimes I need someone to tell me I am good but it is about the

Lucky enough, I was approached by a music company called Generator and they put me in touch with Michael King at BGM and I have been working with him ever since.

And now you are living in London what are you doing aside from music?

piano and so she was a big influence on me and listening to her made me want to sing and play the piano. I love Adele I love all of her music and I really love Jessie J. How would you describe your sound?

It is difficult to put myself into a genre because I just write but I would say it is soulful with a pop edge I expect but I cross genres really.

I know you did a cover of a Minnie Riperton classic?

Yes I did a cover of Inside of Me. We decided to go with that because we wanted a content video to use to promote my EP but Minnie Riperton is just amazing. There are a number of versions of that song being the Minnie Riperton original and then amore dancy version but we decided to go for something a little in between all of that and do our own twist on it.

MUSIC

Tof Etta James in

And give me some info on your EP soon to drop.

Discover Me which is also one of the names of the tracks is my EP and all of the tracks are written by me and there will be six tracks on that EP. I have songs like Sold and Discovery which are slower and more meaningful and there is a song called LDN to NYC which I wrote when I went there and I was inspired by the bright lights. It is about living that lifestyle of jetting from London to New York; it’s kind of what I hope to be doing in part in my career for years to come!

Is it better to love or be loved?

It’s better to be loved.

Info: www.facebook. com/ettasmithmusic | www.twitter.com/ ettasmithmusic | www. ettasmithofficial.com

LIME MAGAZINE 2011

23

GALLERY

WORDS: Adelaide Damoah

Love and art.

A personal perspective La simple word, yet a ove is... Love, such

word which has so many different connotations for different people. A word that has fascinated humans for a millennia and inspired so much beautiful art all over the world.

Love, passion, desire, lust, longing. Before I even understood what those things were, Frida Kahlo taught me how one could use art to externalise them, to express them in a visual way. I remember studying her work at GCSE level, at about the age of 15. I was fascinated and astounded 24 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

by her ability to punctuate all of her life experiences, the painful and the joyful in such a beautiful way through her work. She was a woman of great passion with many lovers, both male and female, but the one person who always showed up in her work was the great love of her life, Diego Rivera. She was his “chicuita” (little one) and he was her frog prince.

Their turbulent yet deeply affectionate and passionate relationship influenced a lot of her work. For me, some of her best pieces are those, which are about him or their relationship

in some way. Those pieces speak deeply about their relationship, which was so much a part of her life and her being.

Consciously or unconsciously, Kahlo’s way of depicting that love has had a profound effect on the way in which I choose to depict or express my own feelings about my personal relationships. During my first relationship, in my late teens, my boyfriend at the time asked me what it felt like to be in love with him. We thought we were deeply in love you

love. 2005.

Adelaide Damoah.

Abstract series

The ideal scenario for me is to love and be loved back. Fully, madly and deeply. There is nothing better than that see! Mainly because my father was not a fan of the idea of his daughter entering into a relationship, but that is another story.

Forbidden love always inspires such exaggerated intense emotions. We thought we were a modern day Romeo and Juliet!

We would meet in secret, but my dad always found

GALLERY danad. 2008. Abstract series

Diego and I - 1949 Frida Kahlo

out, oh the drama!

It is funny when I think back on it now, but at the same time, what I came up with astounded him and me, as I did not realise my imagination could produce what it did.

I made a painting of my own stomach.

Looking at the Frida Khalo Frida Kahlo painting, it was as if Diego on My Mind. Self my own hands were portrait as Tehuana. 1943 opening up my belly to reveal a head with two laughing mouths been and wings for ears punctuated by some piece about to fly out of the belly, of artwork. This was not which was heaving with something I consciously the fire of our passion! made an effort to do. If There were two humans someone moved me to facing each other, joined the point where I felt at the head, arms and feet passionate love for them, representing myself and I was always moved to my forbidden lover. I still draw, to paint, it was have the painting. My almost a compulsion. It description of it probably was as if I had to. Not sounds ghastly to some, always something abstract, but he loved it and he kept like the first one, but it until we broke up when always something, which he kindly gave it back to represented how I felt me. Fast forward to the about them. first real love I experienced as an adult and every Love drove me to produce significant relationship I the majority of the works have had since then, have in my abstract series of

Black Lipstick number 5. 2008. Adelaide Damoah

works. Obsessive love, rejection, pain and passion inspired me to produce the dark Black Lipstick series.

Love, one of the most powerful, mystical and puzzling of all human emotions, can drive people to acts of compassion and selflessness when reciprocated, but when lost, or unrequited, can drive seemingly insane acts of obsession and completely reckless crazy behaviour. It is amazing to me that when channelled, this same emotion can inspire some of the most beautiful art known to man kind.

Is it better to love or be loved?

Adelaide Damoah: Assuming we are talking about romantic love, I would rather not

be mutually exclusive.

What I mean by that is, both positions are pretty miserable positions to be in. To be in love with someone who does not love you back is soul destroying, depressing and can really wear down your self-esteem if you are not extremely strong. To have someone in love with you and I am talking about seriously in love with you, to the extent that they are making all sorts of heart felt declarations can be flattering at first, but after a while can be equally bad.

No decent person wants to be the cause of pain for another human being.

For the person who loves and is not loved in return, all there is is longing and pain. Neither of the two are good options for me and I have been on both sides of the fence. The ideal scenario for me is to love and be loved back. Fully, madly and deeply. There is nothing better than that.

Info: www.damoaharts. com LIME MAGAZINE 2011

25

GALLERY

EXHIBITION OF THE MONTH

Un

Taylor Wessing, Photographic Portrait Prize | Wen, 2011

by Jasper Clarke, NPG [copyright Jasper Clarke]

Un

til 12 Feb 12 Taylor Wessing, Photographic Portrait Prize The Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize offers a unique opportunity to see 60 works by some of the most exciting contemporary portrait photographers from around the world.

Through editorial, advertising and fine art images, the entrants have explored a range of themes, styles and approaches to the contemporary photographic portrait, from formal commissioned portraits of public figures to more spontaneous and intimate moments capturing friends and family.

Info: National Portrait Gallery | www.npg.org.uk

faster? And where would you draw the line between fair play and downright cheating? Beautiful Games is a family-friendly exhibition created by Museums Sheffield in partnership with Sheffield Hallam University which answers these questions and many more.

Info: V&A Museum of Childhood, Cambridge Heath Road London E2 9PA | www. museumofchildhood.org.uk

Un

til 15 Apr Hajj: journey to the heart of Islam‫‏‬

31

Mar – 9 Sept Beautiful Games

As the London 2012 Olympic Games approaches an exhibition about the science behind sport. How many hours of training does it take to win a gold medal? Will a shark skin swimming suit really make you swim 26 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

Hajj: journey to the heart of Islam will be the first major exhibition dedicated to the Hajj; the pilgrimage to Mecca (Makkah) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia which is central to the Muslim faith. The exhibition will examine the significance of the Hajj as one of the Five Pillars of Islam, exploring its importance for Muslims and looking at how this

til 26 Feb Everyday Portrait Exhibition

by Oat-Chaiyasith at SUDA restaurant Following on from the success of its ‘Thai Rice, Thai Life’ rice exhibition, SUDA Thai restaurant in Covent Garden will host monthly art exhibitions to showcase work from up-and-coming artists. In February, SUDA will be showcasing a selection of works from awardwinning photographer and columnist Oat Chaiyasith, official photographer to the Thai royal family. The highlight of the collection on display at SUDA will be ‘365 faces’, Chaiyasith’s personal, interactive project which involved shooting a different person every day for a year. 364 images will be on display, and SUDA customers can add their faces to the 365th space, making them part of the project.

Info: SUDA Thai restaurant, 23 Slingsby Place, St Martin’s Courtyard, LondonLWC2E 9AB | www.oatchaiyasith.com | www.suda-thai.com spiritual journey has evolved throughout history. It will bring together a wealth of objects from a number of different collections including important historic pieces as well as new contemporary art works which reveal the enduring impact of Hajj across the globe and across the centuries. The exhibition which has been organised in partnership with the King Abdulaziz Public Library Riyadh will examine three key strands: the pilgrim’s journey with an emphasis on the major routes used across time (from Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East); the Hajj today, its associated rituals and what the experience means to the pilgrim; and Mecca, the destination of Hajj, its origins and importance.

Info: British Museum Great Russell Street London WC1B 3DG |www.britishmuseum.org/

Un

60s who moved to the UK from the commonwealth, conceptual artists who considered themselves ‘stateless’ global citizens rather than tied any one place, and groups such as the Black Audio Film Collective, whose work sought to unearth the possibilities of being both ‘Black’ and ‘British’ in the 1980s, will show how British art has, directly or indirectly, come to reflect a much wider international stage over time. The exhibition will feature recent work by contemporary artists who use the moving image as a versatile tool for both documenting and questioning reality, including Zineb Sedira’s 14 screen installation Floating Coffins 2009 and Steve McQueen’s Static 2009, which probes ideas of freedom and migration through the potent symbol of the Statue of Liberty.

Info: Tate Britain, Level 2 Galleries, Millbank, London SW1 | www.tate. org.uk

til 15 Aug Migrations: Journeys into British Art Artists from the 50s and For free tickets/info to the hottest events, sign up to our newsletter:

subscribers@comelime.com

The Creme of Nature Community Action Award is all about giving

01

Feb The Prison Industrial Complex.

What it is and how it works.

NEWS

De

The first Award in 2008 was presented to Be Totally You who created a Hair Training Salon in Bromley followed in 2009 with the Award going to the Shern Hall Methodist Youth Steel Band who

Info: Applications for the 2012 award can be made now. Apply at www.communityactionaward.com or if you have any questions call the Creme of Nature Community Action Award Team on 0207 1483 933.

imprison large numbers of black men and profit from it.

Info: 6.45-9pm | Blue Room, BFI Southbank, Belverdere Road, London SE1

07

In the run up to the all day event on the USA’s own Mandela, Mumia Abu Jamal, we present a unique analysis of what Angela Davis exposed how the US legal system was deliberately set up to

had been waiting for over 4 years for a set of their own pans. In 2010 the Award went to Student Action in Manchester to enable long term development work to be started with marginalised women and the Award stayed in Manchester in 2011 when Victory Outreach scooped the £10,000 to make their dreams of helping local disadvantaged people a reality.

Feb London 2012 Recruitment Event This is a recruitment event to find out about paid roles available to be involved in the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. You will have the opportunity to find out about roles in catering, retail, security and cleaning as well as working within the London Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG). The University

adline 3 Feb Apply for the 2012 Lambeth Business Awards The Awards have been developed in order to reward and celebrate the many dynamic and innovative businesses in the borough.

Info: www. lambethbusinessawards. co.uk Are we friends? Like us and get free tickets to the best shows across the captial. www.facebook.com/limemagazine

COMMUNITY

Now into its fifth year, the Creme of Nature £10,000 Community Action Award is focused on those individuals with great ideas and vision who work in voluntary, faith and community groups and whose primary objective is to support and encourage women.

This nationwide Award is dedicated to community cohesion and social inclusion and has made great ideas and dreams come true. Final applications must be in by the 31st March 2012.

something back to the communities up and down the country that has supported one of the most well known brands in the hair and beauty market for the past 30 years. If you or your organisation has a dream, now is the chance to make it a reality. Imagine what £10,000 cash could do and what it could achieve. Applications are welcome from individuals to small groups, but priority will be given to those who have an annual turnover of less than £50,000.

The Creme of Nature Community Action Award is all about making a real difference. So if you’ve got a big idea that needs funding, this Award could be just what you need to make your dream come true and start to make a real difference to the community you serve.

of East London will be on hand to provide information about learning and training opportunities and the local borough job brokerages will be providing information and support on getting people into work.

Info: 10am-3pm | Stadium Suite, John Lewis 3rd Floor, Westfield Stratford City, Stratford, E15 | Shanaz.Begum@ london2012.com

18

Feb What Next: Know how to develop your entrepreneurial mindset

• Transform yourself into a top earner • Make yourself recession proof • Turn yourself into a leader in your business, profession or community • Introduction to some confident people taking action to achieve the life they have always wanted Info: 9.30am-1pm | Grange Fitzrovia Hotel, 20-28 Bolsover Street, London W1W 5NB | www.one handcant clap. co.uk

OBE awarded to ACLT Co-founder Orin Lewis

Co-founder of leading UK Leukaemia charity, African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust (ACLT), Orin Cadogan-Lewis, was awarded with an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the Queen’s New Year’s 2012 Honours List by the Prime Minister and Cabinet Secretary in recognition For services to Healthcare.

Orin Lewis said: “I am deeply touched and

ever so proud of being awarded this honour by Her Majesty the Queen for my services to Healthcare in Britain. I feel extremely honoured, and accept it on behalf of my children, family, and everyone associated with the life saving work of the ACLT. Info: www.aclt.org LIME MAGAZINE 2011

27

NEWS

NEWS

£10,000 available for community projects that focus on great ideas

LITERATURE/SPOKEN WORD Words: Vernia Mengot

G.R.E.Ed.S Lime magazine catches up with multi-talented performer, poet and entertainer G.R.E.Ed.S

I‘Ready’ EP we caught n celebration of the

up with G.R.E.Ed.S (Generating Rhymes to Engage the EnlighteneD Soul) to talk all about his work within the London poetry scene. His rhythmic journey through spoken word, writing and his thoughts about the month of love...

Tell us about your younger years and how your journey initially took off as a multitalented artist?

So my mum has always told me that I’ve always had something. I was originally born in Nigeria; I made my way to England aged six. She told me I was always inclined to be 28 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

involved in entertainment.

I have always been into music, but it all started from DJ’ing, from there I wanted to start in other areas of music such as writing and producing.

I started writing and it blossomed as the years went by. In terms of poetry it got serious in 2007.

you have to come and experience live. The EP is indie; it’s rock and hip-hop.

I feel like we have grasped this at a good time. The Remedies play for other artists but when they play for G.R.E.Ed.S it’s a different sound. The way people react is off of the back of that.

You recently took to the stage with The Remedies to perform your spoken word hiphop show, what makes you stand out from others in the London poetry scene?

I think G.R.E.Ed.S and The Remedies as a sound is doing something very fresh and vibrant. There’s a certain energy that

How did you come about your collaboration with The Remedies?

Well in 2008, I was approached to perform and it was suggested that I should put my poetry with music. Ash heads The Remedies. So initially I was going to do poetry with him playing the sax. Then I was booked again for

You have been included in the shortlist for MTV Brand New Unsigned 2012. How much does this mean to you?

It felt good. It was surprise; the thing is not to sound negative. I knew it would be a long shot to win, as there were people that have been doing this for a while so their fan base is insane. It was good to be in that position; win or lose. It was a good feeling.

It was a bigger step. It was pushing the envelope for poetry/ spoken word as it is underground. It was going be a hard task just to get people to understand poetry/spoken word for what is.

Tell us about your track ‘Ready’?

I had the original beat made by Nutty P for roughly seven months and I didn’t know what to do with it. Then one day I had enough; I locked myself

How did you come up with the name for your debut album ‘Volume of Silence’?

I felt like even the quietest person can still have a lot of volume. The title is for everyone and the imagery of the album cover also has a lot to say.

So far on your journey what has been your biggest challenge?

Wow, my biggest challenge I’ll say for the best part is the motivation. When I’m performing; trying to break down what poetry means and how it is received.

People listen to some of my music, but they won’t be open to playing it on radio because its poetry and spoken word, so it’s hard for me to market.

Nobody would know what to expect. It’s those kinds of pre judgements; because it’s not mainstream it is hard to embed that into people’s heads that poetry is quite cool; you can play it on your iPod like any other music.

“poetry is quite cool; you can play it on your IPod like any other music.”

Musically, who inspires you and where do you draw inspiration from?

I listened to a lot Busta Rhymes from way back in the day, 2pac, Jay Z, Mos Def and Common. I like different styles and different artists. UK wise after I was familiarised with the scene, when I heard Ty I was thrown back, his album made me think whoa he’s like me. I thought I can literally listen to you and relate to you. A side from that in terms of spoken word and poetry; I’m thankful for the senior poets who acknowledge me and talk to me. It’s another thing to come and do your thing but it’s another to pay respect to those who have been on the scene for longer.

Definitely the senior poets inspire me as well as my common peers.

What does 2012 hold for you?

I want to take my writing and approach theatres and see if they can take

it on and produce it into something beautiful. I have neglected my blog so much. People don’t see as much of my poems. So definitely want to focus on the writing. Music is not a priority. But I am featuring on some songs with other artists.

LITERATURE/SPOKEN WORD

another set, this time rather than just use Ash, we thought why not just use the whole band. It was one of the most of standout performances. It was the starting point of progression with music.

That was a journey from dead on really and the rest is history.

in my room and I started playing it over and over. I had a piece that I had written already and it went well with the song. I played it to the guys and they composed the produced version. The first time we previewed the song I didn’t want to get off stage. People loved it.

What can your fans expect in the future?

I have a title for an album but I’m not going make it this year. One thing people can expect is progression because I’m not going to repeat what I’ve done already.

Being Valentine’s Day this month, any special plans?

No, Not yet. Soon and closer to the date there might be. I’m currently in love with the launch at the moment.

Is it better to love or be loved?

It’s better to love. If you have an understanding then your heart is purer.

For me to be loved your just receiving it so you may not understand it, if you know how to love there is more of a balance.

Info: G.R.E.Ed.S and THE REMEDIES |www. iamgreeds.com | @iamGREEdS

LIME MAGAZINE 2011

29

LITERATURE/SPOKEN WORD

A Poem

by Dean Atta‫‏‬

Rremember that’s one of the last words Stephen appers when you use the word “nigger”

Lawrence heard, so don’t tell me it’s a reclaimed word.

I am nobody’s nigger So please, let my ancestors rest in peace Not turn in their graves in Jamaica plantations Or the watery graves of the slave trade Thrown overboard into middle passage Just for insurance claims They were chained up on a boat As many as they could manage and stay afloat Stripped of dignity and all hope Awaiting their masters and European names But the sick and the injured were dead weight to toss And Lloyds of London would cover that cost.

I am nobody’s nigger So you can tell Weezy and Drake That they made a mistake I am nobody’s nigger now So you can tell Kanye and Jigga I am not a nigger... in Paris I’m not a nigger in London I’m not a nigger in New York I’m not a nigger in Kingston I’m not a nigger in Accra Or a nigger with attitude in Compton Cos “I don’t wanna be called yo nigga”

I Am Nobody’s N*gger

How were you raised on Public Enemy And still became your own worst enemy?

You killed Hip Hop and resurrected headless zombies That can’t think for themselves or see where they’re going Or quench the blood lust because there’s no blood flowing In their hearts, just in the streets They don’t give a damn as long as they eating Their hearts ain’t beating, they’re cold as ice (bling) Because they would put money over everything Money over self respect or self esteem Or empowering the youth to follow their dreams Stacking paper cos it’s greater than love it seems Call me “nigger” cos you’re scared of what “brother” means To know that we share something unspeakable To know that as high as we rise we are not seen as equal To know that racism is institutional thinking And that “nigger” is the last word you heard before a lynching.

Info: Dean Atta | +44 7510 376 345 | (e) deanatta@ hotmail.com | www.deanatta.co.uk

HEADS UP

09

Feb London Liming Tilt’s London Liming presents a Come Rhyme With Me special spoken word, music, food and carnival under one roof with • Inua Ellams

30 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

• FLOetic Lara • Jasmine Cooray • Dean Atta (co-host) • Deanna Rodger (co-host) • Melanie Abrahams (cohost) and special guests • James Massiah • Dougie Hastings It’s one of the best ways for newcomers to be introduced to literature

and spoken word, through a night that offers a range of styles and sensibilities within a convivial vibe.

Info: 7.30pm | Rich Mix, 35-47 Bethnal Green Road, London, E1 6LA | www. richmix.org.uk

08

/ 9 March Queen Pokou A new play by Dean Atta with music by Brenda

Rattray. A Black Madonna, a West African hero or a Sovereign willing to do anything to reign? A new play based on the life of Ashanti Princess Abla Pokou and her legendary journey to create a new nation.

Info: Stratford Circus, Theatre Square, London E15 1BX | www. stratford-circus.com

REVIEW

Words: Olakumbi Akiwumi The pushed back launch of one of Poetry’s charismatic persona, GREED’S released his anticipated Ready EP. The launch took place at Whitechaple’s Rhythm Factory where small bites of Puff Puff a Nigeria delicacy was handed out by the man of the moment himself.

Lime book review: Bageye at the Wheel, Colin Grant by Jonathan Cape (published April) | Words: Tricia Wombell | Lime rating: 4 stars I have been looking forward to reading Colin Grant’s memoir Bageye at the Wheel for ages.

A chapter, Lino, appeared in Granta 111 in Summer 2010, and the book is due out in April. Grant, a producer at the BBC, is best known as a historian, both his biographies Negro with a Hat: Marcus Garvey (2008) and I & I: The Natural Mystics: Marley, Tosh and Wailer (2011) have been well received. In Bageye at the Wheel, Grant takes his forensic gaze closer to home and presents us with his family, focusing particularly on his tartar of a father. Known as Bageye, on account of the bags under his eyes, Bageye works nights at Vauxhall Motors in Luton, and seems surprised that he has a growing family, and a disappointed wife.

While the family is close, the children in particular are united by their fear of

The crowd witnessed GREEDs getting lost into him performance of “Only You”. The night was filled with a fuse of dubstep tunes and well written poetic prose. The eclectic combinations saw GREED’s transition into music and free flowing ambience of the night.

From the live set witnessed at the launch is anything to go by, GREEDs will have you going through and tapping into thoughts and emotions you might have forgotten about. The EP which is now available

G.R.E.Ed.S & The Remedies present The Ready EP Launch

on iTunes is a must in your collection. Highly recommended.

Rum Punch is back 07Feb

upsetting Bageye. An uneasy peace descends when he is away from home. Grant gives us a warts and all view of a Jamaican marriage.

Blossom and Bageye are together, but not united.

On reflection, this is a startlingly gentle read with a surprising ending.

I felt echoes of Garrison Keillor’s Lake Wobegon Days, it feels as though nothing much happens, but dreams and ambition are what drive this story.

Grant is to be applauded for setting out how small town black life worked in the 70s Britain.

Info: Tricia Wombell blogs at Black Book News | www.triciablackbooknews.com

Are we friends? Like us and get free tickets to the best shows across the captial. www.facebook.com/limemagazine

The monthly acoustic, invigorating blend of entertainment consisting of a generous quantity of poetry & spoken word, an ample measure of singing, one part comedy, with a splash of open mics, poured liberally into a cool venue and garnished with a sprinkling of great music, guaranteed to leave your creative taste buds refreshingly intoxicated and yearning for more.

Info: 7pm-10:30pm | Juno Bar, 134-135 Shoreditch High Street London E1 6JE | www.onitpr.co.uk Feb Un-Convention: 11 Voices ft. Africa Express “Un-Convention: Voices” looks at political voices and social messages through spoken word, hip hop, social media, art and culture. The day explores the sounds, ideas and projects that help change the world and society and make people think differently. Panellists include: Soweto Kinch, Mark Antoinne Moreau (Amadou and Mariam manager), Gilles Peterson (BBC Radio 1 and 3), DJ

Info: www.twitter.com/ iamGREEdS | www. iamGREEdS.com Edu (BBC Radio 1Xtra), Caspar Llewellyn Smith (Music editor of The Observer and Guardian), Dizraeli, Blak Twang, Ian Birrell (ex editor of The Independent and Africa Express co-founder), Stephen Budd (Stephen Budd Management and Africa Express), plus many more.

Info: 10am-7pm | Roundhouse, Chalk Farm Road, London NW1 8EH | http://www. unconventionhub.org

LITERATURE/SPOKEN WORD

REVIEW

G.R.E.Ed.S & THE REMEDIES - ‘Ready EP’ Launch Event 12 January 2012‫‏‬

Mar Black Book Swap 03 Get together with book

lovers to swap books, and meet authors and writers, who will be talking about their books and what inspires them.

The programme includes Colin Grant, Alex Wheatle, Dreda Say Mitchell, Bim Adewunmi and Sonja Lewis.

Info: 1-5pm | Cottons Caribbean Restaurant, 70 Exmouth Market, ECI www.triciablackbooknews.com

Jun Black Reading 30 Group: The Caine Prize

for African Writing special event The Black Reading Group will host an event for the shortlisted authors of The Caine Prize for African Writing. More information to follow soon.

Info: www.triciablackbooknews.com LIME MAGAZINE 2011

31

LITERATURE/SPOKEN WORD

Top 50 Black Fhave been

Words: Tricia Wombell

or a while I

wondering what a must read Black British book list would look like. This Top 50 is the result.

One book - one author and published by a UK-based publishing company.

No anthologies or compilations. It did not have to be literary fiction, but it had to be the written word, so plays, poetry, biographies and even academic publications are included.

I have opted for the prize winning book, for example Andrea Levy’s Small Island, rather than my favourite – Every Light in the House Burnin’; Dreda Say Mitchell’s celebrated first book Running Hot, won the top crime writers fiction award, and Ben Okri’s Booker prize winning The Famished Road, even though in both the latter cases their more recent work would be considered the much more admired. In other instances, my friends on the project, made strong cases, and so I have I stuck with that selection, for example, Aminatta Forna’s first book, the memoir about her father, rather than the

32 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

more recent, Commonwealth prize winning, Memory of Love.

I’d heard of Oladiuah Equiano’s book – the oldest on the list, first published in 1789, but I only came across Mary Prince’s book, published in 1831, as I was researching the list. Alex Wheatle’s sequel to Brixton Rock, Brenton Brown is the newest title on the list as it was published last spring.

The “where are they now section?” includes: Buchi Emecheta, Diran Adebayo, Victor Headly and Patrick Augustus.

Others, I imagine will always be on lists such as this: Zadie Smith, Andrea Levy, or Caryl Phillips.

At the same time those that sell huge amounts Malorie Blackman Mike Gayle, Dorothy Koomson & Benjamin Zephaniah are critical to this list, as their

books are so widely read. I would say that the ones to watch are Helen Oyeyemi, Yvvette Edwards, Nadifa Mohamed & Diana Evans – and I am looking forward to seeing future work from them. The authors I admire most are the ones who also take the time to nurture and encourage

others, while still creating their own work, Courttia Newland, Nii Ayikiwei Parkes, Alex Wheatle and Bernadine Evaristo. I can imagine how hard it would have been trying to get published in George Lamming and Sam Selvon’s days - incredible works, that define the

Here are the books in alphabetical order,

Caribbean experience in 1940s & ‘50s London, but even harder to create the book that Doreen Lawrence has done about the murder of her son Stephen.

Doreen’s book describes her life in rural Jamaica and early married life in the London of the 70s and it is so beautifully written.

Like Doreen, Oona King is not strictly a writer, but I have included her book here, not only because I thought that she was a very good hardworking MP, but because this book is an honest look at the demanding area of British politics at national and local level during the Blair years. As with the Doreen’s book, Oona also details the very private areas of her personal life.

I hope that you will agree that this is a rich and varied list, spanning over 200 years of writing. I

think that the sharing of a Black British literature cannon is important and we should make more effort to discuss it and let people know it exists. I believe that this set of books should be available in all public libraries.

Info: Black Book News | www.triciablackbooknews.com

1. Diran ADEBAYO: Some Kind of Black 2. Sade ADENIRAN: Imagine This 3. Bola AGBAJE: Not Black & White 4. Patrick AUGUSTUS: Baby Father 5. Nii AYIKIWEI PARKES: Tail of the Blue Bird 6. James BERRY: When I Dance 7. Jean BINTA BREEZE: Riddim Ravings & Other Poems 8. Malorie BLACKMAN: Noughts & Crosses 9. E.R. BRAITHWAITE: To Sir With Love 10. Constance BRISCOE: Ugly 11. David DABYDEEN: Black British History 12. Fred D’AGUIAR: Bill of Rights 13. Yvvette EDWARDS: A Cupboard Full of Coats 14. Buchi EMECHETA: The Joys of Motherhood 15. Olaudah EQUIANO: The Interesting Narrative & Other Stories 16. Diana EVANS: 26a 17. Bernadine EVARISTO: Blonde Roots 18. Aminatta FORNA: The Devil That Danced on Water 19. Mike GAYLE: Brand New Friend 20. Beryl GILROY: Black Teacher 21. Paul GILROY: There Ain’t No Black in The Union Jack 22. Colin GRANT: Negro with a Hat: Marcus Garvey 23. Victor HEADLEY: Yardie 24. C.L.R. JAMES: The Black Jacobins 25. Jackie KAY: Trumpet 26. Oona KING: Oona King Diaries: House Music 27. Dorothy KOOMSON: The Cupid Effect 28. Kwame KWEI-ARMAH: Statement of Regret/ Elmina’s Kitchen 29. Linton KWESI JOHNSON: Tings an’ Times 30. George LAMMING: The Emigrants 31. Doreen LAWRENCE: And Still I Rise 32. Andrea LEVY: Small Island 33. E.A. MARKHAM: Hinterland 34. Nadifa MOHAMED: Black Mamba Boy 35. Courttia NEWLAND: The Scholar: A West Side Story 36. Ben OKRI: The Famished Road 37. Helen OYEYEMI: The Icarus Girl 38. Caryl PHILLIPS: A Distant Shore 39. Trevor & Mike PHILLIPS: Windrush: The Irresistible Rise of Multi-Racial Britain 40. Hannah POOL: My Father’s Daughter 41. Mary PRINCE: The History of Mary Prince, A West Indian Slave 42. Dreda SAY MITCHELL: Running Hot 43. Sam SELVON: The Lonely Londoners 44. Zadie SMITH: White Teeth 45. Debbie TUCKER GREEN: Random 46. Alex WHEATLE: Brenton Brown 47. Precious WILLIAMS: Precious 48. Roy WILLIAMS: Starstruck 49. Gary YOUNGE: No Place Like Home 50. Benjamin ZEPHANIAH: Refugee Boy

LIME MAGAZINE 2011

LITERATURE/SPOKEN WORD

British Books

33

SCREEN

Words: CASSAM LOOCH

The Woman in Black Lime Rating: Release date: 10 February Starring: Daniel Radcliffe and Ciarán Hinds Chronicle Lime Rating: stars Release date: 1 February Starring: Dane DeHaan, Michael B. Jordan and Alex Russell

We thought the big superhero films of the year were coming out later, but the bar has been set high by this outstanding reinvention of the genre that belies its humble origins to spectacular effect.

When three teenagers

stumble across a mysterious object in the ground their lives change forever. Slowly they develop a series in incredible abilities that make them unstoppable, but where is the line between good and evil?

It’s a simple enough concept, one that applies to nearly all films of this ilk, but it is in the execution that director Josh Trank deserves all the credit.

The hand held footage idea has been done before - most notably in ‘The

Blair Witch Project’ and ‘Cloverfield’ – but somehow the writing and direction feels fresh and inventive throughout ‘Chronicle’.

The performances convey teen angst without too much navel-gazing, and when the characters finally show their true colours there are several moments of high drama that will take your breath away. An outstanding film, which will soar at the box-office given the amount of buzz it is already generating.

LIME’S FEBRUARY

FILMS reVIEWS The Muppets Lime Rating: Release date: 10 February Starring: Amy Adams, Jason Segel and Chris Cooper

Whereas our Muppets 34 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

The terrifying play has been spooking the West End for years now, and it was only a matter of time before it hit the big screen.

Radcliffe might lack the physical maturity for the role of a widower but there is no faulting his acting prowess. Male stars always have a tougher time in films like this, it is much easier to place a damsel in distress, but the former-child star excels.

The plot is essentially a standard ghost story; no pretensions are made to updating the classic clichés we expect to find. The film works all the better for our own familiarity with the material, the gothic sets and drained colours look beautiful on screen.

The script never feels like it belongs on the stage, and that is arguably the biggest success of the movie.

Looking for another dose of retro satisfaction? Well we’re delighted to report that ‘The Muppets’ deliver on the front and then some.

Whether you grew up with the puppets or not (we’re more of the ‘Muppet Babies’ era than the earlier TV shows), this film will put a wide smile on your face. It’s funny, musical and even touching in places, and that’s in no small part to the human stars.

Post-Potter chills are the order of the day, and Daniel Radcliffe is the man for the job. The pint-size star still looks like a sprightly secondary school upstart, but this dark story delivers frights by the bucket-load.

have a relatively easy time of convincing the audience about their credentials, it’s the human stars that have the real task ahead of them.

Self-confessed super-fan Jason Segel is great fun, but it’s Amy Adams who steals it with a charming performance reminiscent of her outstanding turn in

Disney’s ‘Enchanted’.

The musical numbers are all good, and there are some incredibly clever cameos scattered throughout the movie.

Yreading this in

ou’re probably

Awards SEASON Words: Cassam Looch

IT’S

Documentary to Beats Rhymes & Life: The Travels of a Tribe Called Quest.

We’re yet to see this film, but hopefully this win will give it greater exposure in the UK.

the middle of the of the traditional awards season. The Golden Globes have been and gone, with little surprise, the Oscars and BAFTA’s are upon us and there are a slew of other ceremonies to keep an eye out for.

Basically this is the year of The Artist. It’s momentum has built since Cannes last year, and by the time we saw it at The London Film Festival the hype was deafening. Ironic for a silent film.

Elsewhere George Clooney has been storming many lists with his performance in The Descendants. He’s front-runner for Best Actor, although our outside bet is Brad Pitt for Moneyball.

The Help is doing well. Of all the main contenders it is easily the most commercially successful and the strong female ensemble have picked up several nominations

SCREEN

From the BAFTA’s to the Oscar’s get fully up-to speed on this year’s gong fest

Congrats to Brit actor Idris Elba for his 2012 Golden Globe for Luther

and a handful of wins along the way. Have some celebratory chocolate pie to celebrate ladies... actually, maybe not.

The Producers Guild of America managed to pull off one welcome surprise by giving Best

The omissions have been just as notable as the eventual winners. There appears to be little love for the brutal but brilliant Ryan Gosling vehicle Drive, and Warrior has been similarly overlooked in the main categories. A bigger surprise is the snub for We Need To Talk About Kevin, Tilda Swinton wipes the floor with Meryl Streep’s OTT Margaret Thatcher turn in The Iron Lady.

uncompromising study of sex addiction that Steve McQueen and Michael Fassbender offer up.

Amazingly we might still get The Muppets at the Oscars! When Eddie Murphy walked out as host last year, the puppets were favourites to get the gig, well amongst fans at least, but it went to Billy Crystal (yawn) in the end. Never mind though, the best song category is there for the taking.

Shame has fared badly stateside, but the Brits seem to be redressing that balance. Big wins at The Critics Circle awards and a number of nominations at the BAFTA’s are great reward for the

Octavia Spencer wins the 2012 Golden Globe for Best Support Actress for The Help

Bridesmaids is nominated for the 2012 BAFTA for Original Screenplay

LIME MAGAZINE 2011

35

SCREEN

Why I love Mad Men

The love issue:

WORDS: NICKE ADEBOWALE

Oshouldn’t adore this n paper I probably

US import as obsessively as I do.

It’s not that I can only empathies with characters familiar to me, but I do normally need to relate on some level. The fact that I became so taken with these chauvinistic and frequently racially offensive middleaged men was a little surprising.

I remember the first trail I saw for the show on BBC Four. It was set to the Amy Winehouse song ‘You know I’m no good’ and was a montage of some of the characters. The dresses were colourful, the suits were sharp and the focus was a devilishly handsome fellow. I would soon find out his name; Don Draper.

I did a little digging and read that it had been well received by American critics for a show on a small cable channel with no famous faces. I made a date to watch and was hooked after those first 50 minutes.

The Guardian columnist 36 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

Charlie Brooker wrote ‘you don’t really watch Mad Men: you lie back and let it seep into you. It works by osmosis.’ That essentially sums up how you should approach the show.

The pace is slow and the plot is left to gently unfold.

The writing, performances, design, and direction – everything is an example of people working to the top of their game.

Astonishing detail has gone into what you see and hear on screen and you have to savour every minute.

We first meet Don in 1960, in a bar, and he’s smoking a cigarette. He’s alone, thinking and scribbling notes on a napkin. An elderly black bus boy comes over to clear the table, and Don asks for a light. Then he strikes up a conversation about cigarette brands. The bus boy is clearly taken aback, as if he’s been asked a trick question. Within seconds it becomes clear why; his white supervisor suddenly appears and asks Don if Sam is ‘bothering him’ as he can be ‘a little chatty’.

Don explains they are just having a conversion and the supervisor backs away.

Once gone, Sam opens up a little and he and Don even share a laugh over how much ladies love ‘Readers Digest’. Don jots down a few things Sam has said and appears to be satisfied with this short exchange.

The whole scene lasts less than three minutes and tells us of what is to come.

Don is alone and drinking.

His focus is work, he side steps social norms to talk to Sam for some jolt of creative inspiration. The smear of lipstick (or is that a kiss?) is an omen of how big a role the female sex will play in what we shall see of his life.

Those three minutes also perfectly exemplify one huge hurdle I had to overcome early in my relationship with Mad Men. The issue of race.

Yes I know the show is reflective of a specific time and place but boy did it hurt seeing the look on Sam’s face as he was dismissed as ‘chatty’. His body language screamed subservience and his initial look of suspicion and

confusion when Don first spoke to him made me freeze.

I’m a black woman of the 21st century, I know how things were less than 50 years ago, and I didn’t want to watch it on screen.

But I made it through and I’m glad I did.

In my opinion Mad Men is among the best television dramas ever. 2011 was a poorer year without it, but roll on March 25th which is when the new season is due to premiere on AMC in the US. Sky Atlantic has vowed to screen episodes as soon as possible after their US debut so April should be a good month indeed.

Africa Ranked as the BBC’s highest-rated factual show ever, “Lost Kingdoms of Africa” comes out on DVD release on 6th February. A powerful four-part documentary that casts new light on a long-neglected area of the world’s cultural heritage.

A narrative that reaches back in time to explore ancient tales, such as; the long-lost kingdom of Nubia and the magnificent Benin bronzes.

NEWS

We are pleased to hear that Menelik Shabazz’s The Story of Lover’s Rock will be released on February 13, 2012. This is the perfect movie if you want to snuggle up on the sofa with a loved one.

Info: www.vivaverve. com/product.php/169/2/ the_story_of_lovers_rock

Un

til 2 Feb The Nine Muses

by John Akomfrah

This new film by John Akomfrah explores themes of migration and memory.

Akomfrah was inspired by the Greek Myth of Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory, who gave birth to the nine Muses. His film interweaves archive of migrants in 1950s Britain with abstract sequences of a figure wandering through a snowy landscape to raise questions about journeys, homelands and identity. John Akomfrah talks about his desire to find a new way of using archive material as art, rather than documentary.

Info: Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) The Mall, London SW1Y 5AH |www.ica.org.uk

Ou

t 2 Feb Best Laid Plans

Two men, a unique friendship, a violent world.

Danny (Stephen Graham) is a scruffy small-time chancer, small in stature, but with a sharp eye for a scam. Joseph (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) is a giant of a man, but with the mental age of a seven-yearold and gentle as a lamb despite his extraordinary strength. Living together in their squalid inner-city flat, this odd-couple are opposites who can’t live without each other: they pull petty thefts, go fishing and drink beer. They’ve been friends for years – but their relationship is about to be pushed to the limit.

04

Feb Mumia Abu Jamal all dayer

A day of films and discussion about Mumia Abu-Jamal, civil rights campaigner currently serving a life sentence in the US. Films include Justice Denied and In Prison My Whole Life.

Info: 11am – 5pm| BFI Southbank, Belvedere Road SE1 | www.bfi.org.uk

Are we friends? Like us and get free tickets to the best shows across the captial. www.facebook.com/limemagazine

07

Feb The Family Legacy

The Sickle Cell Society and NHS Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Screening Programme in collaboration with the Africa Centre and 100 Black Men of London present a special screening of ‘The Family Legacy’ an educational and entertaining BritishNigerian DVD drama which raises awareness of sickle cell disease, testing and associated beliefs. The NHS will launch its new leaflet ‘Tests for Dads’ and some discussion will focus on men’s engagement with screening, their awareness of sickle cell disease and communication barriers that might exist.

Info: 6pm|The Africa Centre, 38 King Street, London WC2E 8JT | RSVP: events@africacentre.org.uk | www.sicklecellsociety. org

05

-17 Mar Legacy Media Institute Filmmaker’s Workshop Tim Reid (sitcom Sister Sister) the award winning and acclaimed African-

American actor, writer and director will launch his inaugural LMI Workshop in London in March. In conjunction with the British Film Institute (BFI Southbank), Tim will host a two week masterclass for 12 black British filmmakers covering practical and strategic aspects of filmmaking. Attendees will be coached by a number of experienced facilitators, most of whom will travel from the US to participate.

Info: www. legacymediainstitute.org

SCREEN

t 6 Feb Lost Kingdoms of

Ou

t 9 Mar Ozwald Boateng: A Man’s Story

A Man’s Story is a fulllength documentary film covering the last 12 years of Ozwald Boateng’s life.

Capturing the journey and evolution of Ozwald Boateng as a man as well as a designer.

Info: www.ozwaldboateng. co.uk/a-mans-story

BBC One seeks Caribbean family to step back in time‫‏‬

Would you and your family like to follow in your ancestors’ footsteps in a unique living history experience? BBC One’s hit living history series Turn Back Time is back.

Last year they sent shopkeepers back in time on the British High Street.

This year they’re looking at family life through the ages and they’re on the hunt for families to experience life in a different decade.

Info: Ingrid.oreilly@ walltowall.co.uk

LIME MAGAZINE 2011

NEWS

Ou

DVD release: The Story of Lover’s Rock

37

SCREEN

WORDS: GILLIAN FISHER

NINE MUSES JOHN AKOMFRAH DISCUSSES HIS NEW MOVIE THE NINE MUSES.

Hdescribe your film ow would you

‘The Nine Muses’?

It’s an attempt to tell the story, the Windrush story of migration using Homer’s Odyssey as a guide.

You used a great deal of archived footage, what period is most of it from?

The task we set ourselves was to find material from the beginnings of migration, essentially from the forties and fifties, which sort of reaches its climax in the seventies. I wanted to concentrate on that because it seems to me most of the drama of migration gets played out in that period, after that everything was sort of a rerun of the same sort of 38 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

issues or a very different story. After that these people begin to have kids so I wanted to tell the story of the people who came over here rather than people who were born

here.

Where did you find most of your footage?

The bulk of it came from the BBC; the BBC has a fantastic ranger of

researchers. Then about eight percent then came from ITV archive library called MACE, really just from the west midlands.

Really when the project initially started off I was

SCREEN The Nine Muses is out now

representative of the migration timeline?

In the last third of the films there’s a lot more emphasis on Asian families migrating.

I wanted very much for it be the story of post colonial migration from the commonwealth, so it was very important to have materials that reflected the patters of migration.

What you find so often is materials on the peak of migration, so even though there clearly was a lot of migration from the Indian subcontinent there was very little imagery in the archives until the 1960s.

So the film also reflects the current state of the archives on migration.

looking almost exclusively at the midlands region, Birmingham in particular. I think about eighty percent of the footage is from that area.

The film begins with scenes of people migrating from Africa and the Caribbean and then there’s a shift showing more Asian families. Was that

A lot of the imagery is used from Alaska and snowy scenes from urban Britain. Why was snow and barren landscapes such a central feature of the film?

One of the things that I’ve done over the years making documentaries is interview lots of first and second generation migrants from this country, it just struck me that they always talk about it in terms of the extreme climatic conditions that

they felt they were coming into.

It didn’t matter if people came in the summer of the winter, so I realised that it was more of a psychological state; how cold metaphorically they felt this place was, so Alaska seemed to reflect some of that internal visual imagery that came back to me as I spoke to people.

Another thing they kept mentioning is that they felt very alone, which is unusual as if you’re coming into the country in plane loads, but in this new place they still felt completely isolated. The final thing that kept getting brought up, particularly by people from the Indian subcontinent was that they felt very colourful in this rather barren land. What I liked about Alaska and that landscape is that despite being cold and lonely it was eerily beautiful.

Similarly a lot of the people I interviewed said that coming over to this country they found it cold and lonely but were also very attracted to it. So Alaska seemed to encapsulate that beautifully.

Info: The Nine Muses is at the ICA until February 2, 2012 | www.ica.org.uk LIME MAGAZINE 2011

39

CLUBS

“Study the music, watch the crowd and do not rush the party by playing the big Bangers at the beginning of the night”

The DJ interview with CEE-SIX

WORDS: Sophia A Jackson

Following in his father’s footsteps, Colin Aldridge, aka CeeSix of Blaze It Up Entertainment shares his DJ story with Lime. remember how nervous I was. I learnt so much that night but it was clear to see that I had potential. Fast forward a few years and now you have Blaze It Up Entertainments.

Wstory? How did hat’s your DJ

you get into it?

I was fascinated with DJ’ing from a young age.

My dad was in a reggae sound system (Taurus Hi Power), and I wanted to follow in his footsteps.

I remember watching him and his friends and studying their every move so that I could emulate them with my brother. I started to buy records when I was around 15, I used to save my pocket money and would buy allsorts to try and mix. My first gig was a family gathering and my dad let me play the music most on the night, I was 16 and to this day I can

40 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

What tips would you give to a budding DJ? Study the music, watch the crowd and do not rush the party by playing the big Bangers at the beginning of the night.

What’s the one track that’s guaranteed to get the party started?

It depends on the genre, but Cameo’s Candy is always a winner.

Why don’t you think more women become DJs? Historically, it has been a male-dominated industry.

But hey it’s 2012. I would encourage much more women to get involved.

It must be hard resisting all the female attention that comes with being a DJ. The attention is flattering, but I’m serious about my craft + I have a wonderful woman at home.

What was the highlight of 2011?

Wow 2011 was a busy year, DJ’ing every weekend. I had a DJ gig in Scotland in March and I had a few DJ gigs in Jamaica in May. But my real highlight, was DJ’ing at my friend’s 30th birthday party, that was so nice to give back to those who have supported me throughout the years. We were also DJ’s at the Afridiziak Gifts and Occasions Christmas shopping event.

What’s new for you in 2012?

Well we have recently launched our website www. blazeitupents.com. I hope we continue to grow, maybe get a residency and a big established event or venue or maybe getting a show on a leading radio station.

Which artists do we need to have on our radar who we might not be aware of yet?

I would have to say UK hip hop artist – Dezert.

He has got the flow and the charisma that I feel will take him to the next level. Check him out on youtube (darksidemusic1) or follow him on Twitter @

Dezertmusic.

Is it better to love or be loved?

I would say its better to love. You feel all the sensations and warmth that loving someone brings, but being loved is only nice when its wanted.

It’s Valentine’s Day this month; what three songs do you recommend as babymaking anthems?

1. H-Town - Knocking the Boots 2. Jodeci – Feenin’ 3. Trey Songz - Neighbours Info: Twitter: www. twitter.com/ceesix | www. blazeitupents.com | Catch Cee-Six on Whoa 90.4fm Saturday (8pm - 10pm) Sunday (10am-1pm) • Feb 11th - My Love is like Whoa, Zanzibar, Sydenham • Feb 14th - The Joe Concert after party @ Sound, Leicester Square • Feb 18th - Mix Master B’day Bash @ South Beach, Brixton hill

Feb Heroes including Pop Up Valentine’s Dinner and Dance in the EGG restaurant With Valentine’s Day turning all things red during February, love is certainly in the air at Heroes, Egg’s monthly club night that combines glamour and quality dance music. As well as inviting international DJs hailing from two countries renowned for romance, love and untamed passion, Egg is also creating a Pop Up Valentines Dinner and Dance, a pop-up restaurant for one night only. The Spanish are infamous for their passion and Oscar Mulero is no exception.

His love of music has established him as one of the most relentless techno producers and remixers around today. Upstairs in the terrace comes Alexander Fog from Italy, the romance capital of the world. With an impressive series of releases and remixes for quality labels, he is rapidly becoming a strong name in tech house music.

Info: 10pm – super late | Egg, 200 York Way, Kings Cross, N7 9AP| www. egglondon.net

EV

ERY THURSDAY Purple Kisses cocktail party The brand new Thursday night At London’s newest bar strictly for sophisticated, mature music and drink lovers.

There are delicious, indulgent cocktails for the ladies plus tasty and daring shots and shooters for the guys.

Info: 5pm-1.30am | Curve Bar, 199-201 Lewisham Way, London SE4 1UY | events.curve@gmail. com

EV

Funk Blending the best in Brazilian and South American music with soul, Baile Funk, House and Latin beats are resident DJ’s Limao & Moishe rocking the decks till late with their eclectic selection. Its ‘all night party” vibe reflects the mash up of styles currently dominating the latin music scene and expect hot edits and remixes plus classic dancefloor rhythms, all topped off with a 7 piece Live Band to bring the soul and funk to the night.

Getting everyone in the mood is the acclaimed Sax Player, Renato D’Aiello, Live! and it’s a perfect example of the rhythms that make Brazilian music famous worldwide.

Info: 5pm – 2.30am MonSat | Guanabara, Parker Street (Corner

Low Members Club Launches in St. James

NEWS

ERY THURSDAY Thursday

Low promises a return to nightclubs that are all about dancing, offering a truly underground experience for those in-the-know. Brought to London by David Serlui (Aura founder) and Andy Giorgini (ex-Brompton Club partner), Low will be the West End’s best kept secret accessed through the back entrance of a restaurant and tucked away down a hidden staircase. Guests will not know the new club is there until they enter it, Are we friends? Like us and get free tickets to the best shows across the captial. www.facebook.com/limemagazine

IN A ION W T I T E P COM

DINNER

CULBS

11

WIN DINNER FOR TWO AT GUANABARA

17

- 22 Feb Carnaval 2012 at Guanabara – six days of music and happiness Feel the beat of Rio Carnaval 2012 at Guanabara!

Showcasing 6 days of hardcore partying in authentic Brazilian carnival style – no other party in town can compare. With an exhilarating line up of live bands, percussionists, sassy samba dancers, highly energised capoeira perfomers and beat-fuelling DJ’s – Guanabara is the place to party this month. Highlights include: • Full Carnival Parade led by Ritmos De Cidade • A Masque Ball featuring Paraiso Samba School and DJ Limao’s samba marathon • A fantastic night of Forro featuring Zeu Azevedo & Forródaqui Band • Carnival Carioca (Rio’s Carnival) with a performance from Minibloco & DJ Fred Salgueiro • To close the Carnival there’s the fantastic Micareta Da Bahia (Bahia Carnival) complete with live music from Salvador’s Tribo, and singer, Elizangela De Bahia – Axé (the rhythm of Bahia) The lucky couple can dine between 17 to 22 February, 2012. To enter, email competition@comelime.com with Guanabara in the subject header by February 10, 2012.

Info: 5pm – 2.30am Mon-Sat [17th, 18th & 19th: Open 5pm-4am] Guanabara, Parker Street (Corner of Drury Lane), Covent Garden, London, WC2B 5PW www.guanabara.co.uk

of Drury Lane), Covent Garden, London, WC2B 5PW www.guanabara.co.uk

building the sense of surprise and suspense surrounding it.

Music is truly the central ethos behind Low, and international DJs will be spinning the decks on a weekly basis. Cocktails at Low fuse the classic with the contemporary using the freshest ingredients. There are also innovative drinks Combos offering packages of bottles and shots which just keep on coming, as well as the delicious Low Club sandwich for the perfect midnight snack.

Info: Low Members Club, 91 Jermyn Street, London, SW1Y 6JB | www. lowmembersclub.com

EV

ERY THURSDAY SOCA Central Non-stop SOCA music Info: 6.30pm-1am | Club Surya, 156 Pentonville Road, Kings Cross, London N1 9JL | www. releasedriddim.com

EV

ERY SATURDAY Fame Resident DJ’s will be playing an eclectic mix over four rooms...

Info: 9pm-3am | Sway Bar, 61-65 Great Queen Street, Holborn, London WC2B 5BZ |e. sha@ceriseentertainment.co.uk

LIME MAGAZINE 2011

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CLUBS

Blaze it up

In this exclusive interview Lime Magazine caught up with Nathan Lindsay otherwise known as DJ Houdini who tells us all about Blaze it Up Entertainment.

Steen, DJ Houdini

tarting out as a young

Words: Vernia Mengot

donned his name from a friend, and teamed up with DJ Cee-Six to create a sound, playing r&b and hip hop at top London venues. Houdini talks to us about moving on to bigger and brighter things, youth workshops and making their name heard in the rest of the UK. When did you start out as a DJ? Well I started DJ’ing from when I was about 15/16. My brother’s a DJ, so I suppose since he started I’ve always been interested in it. I started going to his events and stood alongside him and I used to help bring the equipment and just learnt basically.

Who taught you how to mix?

The person that taught me how to mix was a guy called Collin at a youth club I used to go to and he taught me how to mix everything. So it started from there.

How did you decide on your DJ name?

I had another name first; which was DJ Shades that came about because of my purple tinted sunglasses.

Later my friend gave me

42 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

“We want to make our name heard a bit more and branch out”

the DJ name Houdini.

Houdini stuck with me from there.

Has playing music always been your sole career?

I do youth work; I do music workshops, in Putney for 10-18 year olds. There are a lot of young people that are aspiring to be DJ’s, but they don’t have people to talk to for advice on how to go about it and do it. You don’t have anyone guiding you to tell you the dos and don’ts.

What kind of music do you prefer to play and what would you say is your favourite genre of music?

I’ve always been interested

in r&b and when I first stared it was ragga not bashment; they were the main types of music I started from. My favourite genre is probably r&b, I can play r&b all day long.

I’ve always been a fan of Mary J Blidge, Donnel Jones and R Kelly. For the reggae probably, Sanchez.

What does Blaze it Up Entertainment do?

We do events; we do raves, showcasing new talent.

We mostly play at Clubs and bars, and family events like weddings and christenings. We try and make everything individual to the person that we are playing it for. Blaze it Up entertainment do various things. There are two of us DJ Cee-Six and myself.

I also do a radio station called On Top FM based in south London, been doing that for three years. I do two shows on Tuesday between 10-12pm called ‘Swagger

Overloaded’ which is strictly r&b, hip hop and slow jams. We showcase UK talent with interviews.

The Sunday Show which is called ‘Take me back Sundays’ is rare grooves and old soul; tunes that you don’t hear anymore. There were originally three people that where in my sound. We were called ‘THD’ stands for The Horny Devil’s; it was me and three of my close friends. The sound kind of fizzled out.

What can we look forward to seeing from you this year?

We want to try and move out of London because we’ve done a lot in London.

So we want to make our name heard a bit more and branch out. We have a new website launching later this year, too.

Info: www.blazeitupents. com |Twitter: www. twitter.com/djhoudini

Feb Credit Crunch Comedy Pt.6 – Show and After Party Acts include Kevin J, Kat, Felicity Ethnic, Rudy Lickwood, Annette Fagon, Jamie Howard, Mr Cee and Aurie Stylah. Afterparty at the Inc Club, 02 with Stamina and Suey, Milktray, Love Connexion, Celebrity Supa, Big Business and Conspiracy & Godfather.

Info: 7pm | Broadway Theatre, Catford, London SE6

12

Feb Comedy Warehouse – West Indies vs Africa Come and witness the clash of the clashes.

Africa team with Eddie Kadi, Funmbi, Prince Abdi and BabaTunde West Indies with Mr Frasier, Kane Brown, Tony Hendriks and Axel. Referee – Kevin J. Info: O2 Shephards Bush Empire, London W12 8TT

26

Feb Africa Centre Comedy on Sundays The best in African & Caribbean Comedy from the UK & beyond.

Our brand new comedy night in partnership with top secret comedy club, offering a dazzling selection of the best comedians from the African continent and diaspora with Lateef Lovejoy, Ava Vidal and Annette Fagon. An evening’s entertainment plus special drinks and food offers (such as jollof

rice, jerk or barbecue chicken, veggie options) all night.

Info: The Africa Centre, 38 King Street, London WC2E 8JT | www.africacentre. org.uk

A beginner’s guide to STANDUP COMEDY

Sin front of a thousand tanding up on stage

people being humorous is different to telling a couple of lame jokes to your social circle but new comedians are popping up on a regular basis and taking advantage of the rise of comedy shows in the UK. So how do you make it big in the competitive world of comedy?

1. Develop the skin of a an arrogant rhinoceros You need to be an arrogant person and believe you have a right to stand on stage and be paid to make people laugh, say Richard Blackwood. The comedian and radio host has been in the comedy business for 15 years and says that you have a silent agreement with the audience. You have to be funny. They have to laugh.

2. Throw in some acting and keep your material fresh and

Kojo

Words: Sophia A Jackson

topical Even with so many years of experience behind him, Richard Blackwood still gets afraid about moving on to new material. He admitted it’s hard but you have to keep your material up-to-date and have the confidence to keep changing it. He’s right.

I’ve attended a number of comedy shows in the past year. It gets to the stage when you get to know a comedian’s whole routine, which can be no fun.

3. Talk to yourself It might feel strange at first but practising your jokes in front of the mirror or whilst you’re in the bath works for lots of comedians, including Slim [real name, Danny Gray]. He said it’s important to grab the audience by the throat the minute you step on stage, literally,

Are we friends? Like us and get free tickets to the best shows across the captial. www.facebook.com/limemagazine

with your killer jokes. But to practice this technique he said: “Where you lot sing in the bathroom I’ll be in the bath going through my acts. The kids are used to it now but at first they thought I was going mad.”

4. Be Unique and keep it real Kojo advised new comedians to be themselves. He said: “We have newcomers who try to be Chris Tucker or Martin Lawrence. Be yourself. Be as real as you can and talk about real sh*t because people can see right through you.”

5. Get an agent An agent can be the difference between a couple of five minute, open spots here and there to being a headliner at Jongleurs or The Comedy Store.

6. Crack the mainstream An agent can help you if you want to become a household name and even a television star. There’s more money in mainstream stand-up. Although some of the mainstream comics such as Richard Blackwood would advise

COMEDY

04

Angie Le Mar

that you should never turn your back on the smaller, comedy jams.

7. Be creative The UK’s first lady of black comedy, Angie Le Mar ‘fainted’ on stage to escape the wrath of an angry, heckling audience.

This is a comedian’s worst nightmare. She relives what she called a ‘horrible’ experience, saying: “I was a paid guest and got booed.

Some girls at the front singled me out and said ‘Oh you think you’re too nice. So I said what am I thinking now? “That pissed them off so they started booing me. Then the rest of the audience started booing me so I was like f**k off I’m going home. “I took my money and went to my car and just cried. People were calling me saying, ‘Angie I heard you got booed’.

That’s why you have to be thick skinned.”

8. Note to self; there is only one Richard Pryor The undisputed, universal godfather of comedy, Richard Pryor has been the bible and blueprint for many stand-up comedians across the globe but he can never be replicated.

LIME MAGAZINE 2011

43

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44 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

PUZZLE AND JOKE PAGES THAT ARE FUN FOR ALL

FUNNIES

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BREAKTIME

LAUGH OUT LOUDER! SOME VALENTINE’S DAY HUMOUR!

A Thoughtful Valentine’s Day Gift Jim asked his friend, Tony, whether he had bought his wife anything for Valentine’s Day. ‘Yes,’ came the answer from Tony who was a bit of a chauvinist, ‘I’ve bought her a belt and a bag.’

‘That was very kind of you,’ Jim added, ‘I hope she appreciated the thought.’

Tony smiled as he replied, ‘So do I, and hopefully the vacuum cleaner will work better now.’

My One And Only

g an years old, was buyin Roger, who was 19 lfriend gir his se pri sur to expensive bracelet, eller’s at a very smart jew on Valentine’s Day, n. n, Londo shop in Hatton Garde r , ‘Would you like you The jeweller inquired ’ it? on graved girlfriend’s name en n answered, moment, grinned, the Roger thought for a love”.’ ly “To my one and on very ‘No, instead engrave w ho ; sir s, ‘Ye d, sai and The jeweller smiled romantic of you.’ t a glint in his eye, ‘No Roger retorted with is Th . cal cti pra y ver t exactly romantic, bu , I can use it way, if we break up again.’

Love is Blind?

500 Valentine Cards Sent

by Desperate Man Mike walked into a post office just before Valentine’s day, he couldn’t help noticing a middle-aged, balding man standing in a corner sticking “Love” stamps on bright pink envelopes with hearts all over them. Then the man got out a bottle of Channel perfume from his pocket and started spraying scent over the envelopes.

By now Mike’s curiosity had got the better of him, and so I asked the man why he was sending all those cards. The man replied, “I’m sending out 500 Valentine cards signed, ‘Guess who?’”

“But why?” asked Mike.

“I’m a divorce lawyer,” the man replied.

46 LIME MAGAZINE 2011

Phil, a smart and handsome young man, dressed in the latest fashion, walked into this local pub. He noticed a woman gazing at him without blinking her big eyes. Phil felt flattered so he walked up to the woman and said in his deepest voice, ‘I’ll do anything you wish, beautiful lady, for just £10 but on one condition.’

The woman appeared to be trapped in the moment and asked as if in a trance, ‘What’s your condition?’

Phil answered, ‘Tell me your wish in just three words.’

There was a long pause, the woman opened her purse, counted out the money and handed it to the man along with her address. She then looked deeply into his eyes and whispered, ‘Clean my house.

Destination:

exotic shine

Morocco

with Argan Oil from

www.cremeofnature.co.uk

Creme of Nature with Argan Oil for radiant shine, nourishment and protection. Š 2011 Colomer UK ALL RIGHTS RESERVED