Rap Down Under
Here at Millican, we love Stories. Especially ones told under a starlit sky, round a fire with your mates and a few beers.
Storytelling is a real art, an ancient practice found in nearly every culture around the world, passing down the history, wisdom and guidance from the generations before us to the generations of the future.
The great man himself, Millican Dalton, was a reknowned Storyteller, captivating his walking and climbing groups with tales of wild adventures and "hairbreath escapes" as he liked to describe them. They'd all huddle round his campfire, home made bread cooking in the embers, the eternal pot of coffee brewing over the open flames and the smoke from Millican's woodbines mingling with that of the campfire.
So Nicky's ears pricked up when she caught a piece on Radio 4 about Storytelling "Down Under" - with a twist.
Way back in the early 90s, Nicky and I spent a year working and travelling overland in Oz. For us it's a country of adventure, ancient history and natural beauty. Not to mention the fact that "Songlines" by Bruce Chatwin is in our top ten reads. Dotted around our house, you'll find memories of our trip, from the didgeridoo leaning in the corner of our lounge (I must start learning how to play it), to the aboriginal art in the hallway. So you'll understand why the red land is so close to our hearts.
For years the Australian Aboriginal community has struggled to be heard. Storytelling for Aborigines is a spoken art, and it has been this way for 1,000s of years. An art that remains within their own communities, one which the younger members often find difficult to identify with, even though the stories remain crucial to their lives today.
Now, young Australian Aborigines are reconnecting with their history, and the real keystones of the Aboriginal Culture, by rapping their Dreamtime Stories.
Speaking to the rappers who now use their own Aboriginal language as well as English, Radio 4 interviewer Mark Rickards found that the traditions of Dreamtime Storytelling have been reinvigorated by rap music. Although the style originates from the USA, Aboriginal youth have adapted it to suit their own needs.
The same Dreamtime Stories told for millenia, now expressed through a different art form to represent the often unheard voices of the Aboriginal people.
Storytelling is a real art, an ancient practice found in nearly every culture around the world, passing down the history, wisdom and guidance from the generations before us to the generations of the future.
The great man himself, Millican Dalton, was a reknowned Storyteller, captivating his walking and climbing groups with tales of wild adventures and "hairbreath escapes" as he liked to describe them. They'd all huddle round his campfire, home made bread cooking in the embers, the eternal pot of coffee brewing over the open flames and the smoke from Millican's woodbines mingling with that of the campfire.
So Nicky's ears pricked up when she caught a piece on Radio 4 about Storytelling "Down Under" - with a twist.
Way back in the early 90s, Nicky and I spent a year working and travelling overland in Oz. For us it's a country of adventure, ancient history and natural beauty. Not to mention the fact that "Songlines" by Bruce Chatwin is in our top ten reads. Dotted around our house, you'll find memories of our trip, from the didgeridoo leaning in the corner of our lounge (I must start learning how to play it), to the aboriginal art in the hallway. So you'll understand why the red land is so close to our hearts.
For years the Australian Aboriginal community has struggled to be heard. Storytelling for Aborigines is a spoken art, and it has been this way for 1,000s of years. An art that remains within their own communities, one which the younger members often find difficult to identify with, even though the stories remain crucial to their lives today.
Now, young Australian Aborigines are reconnecting with their history, and the real keystones of the Aboriginal Culture, by rapping their Dreamtime Stories.
Speaking to the rappers who now use their own Aboriginal language as well as English, Radio 4 interviewer Mark Rickards found that the traditions of Dreamtime Storytelling have been reinvigorated by rap music. Although the style originates from the USA, Aboriginal youth have adapted it to suit their own needs.
The same Dreamtime Stories told for millenia, now expressed through a different art form to represent the often unheard voices of the Aboriginal people.
Mark visited an Aboriginal radio station which is helping to bring indigenous rap to a wider audience. One short song taped during a school visit with the help of some well known rappers way back in 2002, took Australia and beyond by storm. "The Wilcannia Mob" are a group of boys who were aged 8-12 at the time, recorded "Down River" - a story of their time as a bunch of kids, swimming and fishing.
Since then, the scene has grown in strength, with artists including Tjimba & the Yung Warriors, Indigenous Intrudaz, Konect-a-Dot, Pott Street, and Tha Deadly Boys, singing in English or local dialects.
From where I'm standing, this is what real Storytelling is all about - keeping the stories alive, whether that's round a campfire, at a festival or in a club.
The story itself is what truly matters - how it is told is up to us.
Labels: Aborigines, Australia, Bruce Chatwin, campfire, Didgeridoo, Dreamtime, millican, Radio 4, Rap, Songlines, Stories, Storytelling, Tjimba and Amp, Wilcanna Mob
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