So, it has been a very long time since I last blogged and to be honest it is about time I got my finger out.
I have gone through transition with a new job (which I enjoy) with people I love. I've also had an academic supervisor switch-up, this changed the focus of my research on Grime. I work with people who have connections to the music industry and have a theoretical standpoint about 'black'/'urban' music or bass culture, which is also shaping the way I think about what I am trying to do (in addition to the reading and theoretical frameworks I've been toying with).
I must say I think this supervisor switch-up was for the best as I have Robert who has been with me since my research was a budding unformed idea. Deborah is my new supervisor and is really interested in my idea and believes that some of my work so far is (with a little tweaking) publishable. That is definitely something I want to do. She is good at bringing me back to the target; what it is I am trying to do and what I need to achieve. Her direct approach has given me smaller specific mini-tasks that help me focus. They are both brilliant!
Anyway I have made much progress since the supervision changeover which took place in late October 2012. The start was shaky as I lost my granddad mid October (RIP), but this month alone I have been to three conferences and I am starting to network (note to self - need to continue work on overcoming shyness; being a wallflower is not the way forward!)
As I have mentioned in older posts, my research straddle's Grime, Sociology and Theology. Random I know! It is an organic process how my interests developed and although my most recent work is not available online, some of my older works and can be found
here. Some of my newer works will be added in due course.
On 03 November I was at the
Canterbury Christ University's Black Messiah: Images if Jesus in Black Urban Culture conference. This was useful as my work and academic background looks at 'Race' (class & gender) and I thought how I could apply Christ and 'Black Urban' culture into my research. My work will have a Judeo-Christiological focus, but it may not be as overt as I initially thought. Especially as a sociological discipline (my department) does not allow for this much. Also listening to (and speaking with) other speakers made me realise that I needed to focus my work a lot more. My project need to be much more narrow than I initially thought.
On 15-18 November, I was in Rotterdam at the
Buma Cultuur's Rotterdam Beats Conference this was an amazing experience with a focus on the significance of influence of Jamaican culture and Reggae on music. I got the opportunity to network a bit more and made great
contacts. It took a little while for me to prize myself off the wall (wall flower), but I got there in the end. This conference, in addition to my own 'literature review' reading, helpped me place Grime's genealogy more concretely. I previously read that Grime was BIG in Canada, but I had NO IDEA that it is BIG in the Netherlands too! I met some NL Grime Artists that I will keep in touch with.
Today, I went to the
The Ultimate Seminar hosted by the University of Westminster. Another brilliant event with
big names. They event focused mainly on the business/industry side of the music industry. Although this is not directly linked to my research (it was more targeted to those who want to be practitioners/artists/producers/lawyers etc.), it is still a crucial element that I need to have a basic understanding of. It is also important because entrepreneurship is crucial to the subject of my research - Grime. Wretch32 and his manager XYZee (Zeon), gave personal accounts of their experience which helped me to put my what they said in a cultural and social context. I was truly inspired by the humility and positivity that they shared, not that I expected anything less. The drive, determination and adaptability they posses motivated me even further! I loved the concept of paying it forward. I hope my work does the same in an intellectual sense where they take the reigns for the practical. These are the representations that should be more commonplace in wider British society!
Hearing industry experts sharing knowledge and experience also helped me to contextualise their role and got me thinking how I could incorporate it into my research. I didn't get much chance to network today, but I definitely was a valuable experience.
So it has been a very busy month and there has been a lot to be inspired by and a lot to digest. Next month should be quieter conference-wise, but there is plenty of work ahead.
@Neake81
