By: John

John — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 19:19:18 +0000

Yea Kojo’s work was somber, but i feel like his appropriation of these figures is indeed appropriate. I never thought of the afronaut simply as this wildly entertaining/eccentric character, but also as someone who is displaced, alone and misunderstood. Sun Ra in his film “Space Is the Place(1974)” in one scene says that he doesn’t exist and draws the connection of his non-existence with the the existence of blacks in the world. He says, “I do not come to you as a reality. I come to you as a myth because thats what black people are: myths.” I think that Kojo’s “muting” of these characters gives us another perspective to really understand who the afronaut actually is. I believe Kojo doesnt want us to get caught up in the color and glitz but to understand the people underneath and why they take on this character. So when you think of the afronauts of today referenced in the slate article like lil wayne and kanye west, it makes you wonder why in interviews wayne and kanye are these ridiculous characters that dont show any sincerity…great job on kojo’s part!

By: James

James — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 14:44:49 +0000

Great connection. Daniel’s talk also reminded me of that Slate article–he’s definitely participating in this tradition. But maybe his work doesn’t quite so easily align with the sci-fi appropriations of someone like George Clinton, Sun Ra, or even Kojo’s favorite, Lee Scratch Perry. Even as Daniel incorporates images of Perry into his work, he drains them of color, aurally and visually “muting” them. Thus, while space may be the place for boogieing down (at least for Parliament, etc.), Kojo’s vision seems much more somber, lonely even. In terms of the trend “sticking around”–the article’s first “afronaut” recording is from 1927…at some point trend becomes “tradition,” perhaps?

Comments on: Hot Trend: Afronauts

By: John

By: James