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Awesome Tapes From Africa

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Awesome Tapes

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Awesome Tapes From Africa, also known as Awesome Tapes, is a blog and record label that emerged in 2006, originating from the passion of its creator's cassette collection gathered during a Fulbright grant project in Ghana. Having won the grant after two attempts, with the support of his professors from the Ethnomusicology and Communication & Culture departments at Indiana University, he spent a year immersed in the study of hiplife, a Ghanaian interpretation of hip-hop, yet little known within academic circles at the time.

While in Ghana between 2004 and 2005, he found his research lacking in practical benefit for the artists he admired. Instead, they yearned for a platform to share their music internationally. Spurred on by their requests and acknowledging the historical exploitation of African musicians by white-owned companies, he decided to chart a new path for distributing African music. This was particularly poignant for older Ghanaian artists, who expressed feelings of being swindled by outsiders over the years.

After a year in West Africa, he relocated to New York City, with a drive to disseminate the music he discovered in Ghana, which was largely inaccessible outside the regions of origin. This was during the early days of streaming and the infancy of YouTube. He realized most of the tapes he had were not digitally available, hence the focus on tapes, the primary distribution medium in West Africa at the time.

In 2006, he established the blog as a hobby, offering entire cassettes as downloads, accompanied by cover art and any information he could glean or already knew about. He also encouraged comments to supplement missing details. With time, his blog's popularity grew, especially among musicians in Brooklyn. This visibility led to artists like Ata Kak gaining recognition through the platform.

By 2010, he started DJing cassettes at events, a move motivated by the support of mentors in the NYC music community. In 2011, with the help of Secretly Distribution, a company he interned for during college, he began licensing artists' recordings for physical and digital releases to make them available globally.

Over the past decade, Awesome Tapes From Africa has strived to bring more African musicians into the global music market, focusing on establishing fair revenue streams for musicians regardless of nationality, location, language, or banking conditions. The company promotes the regular reporting of royalties, accounting, and revenue sharing, emulating the punk rock/DIY ethos of 50/50 deals and simple, limited-term contracts that allow artists to retain rights and copyrights to their work.

The company's mission is twofold; to enhance the visibility of African music and musicians worldwide, and to push for fair practices and representation in various societal structures, aligning with movements like Black Lives Matter. It endeavors to shed light on less exposed regional genres and languages, even those unknown in neighboring countries.

Acknowledging his privilege as a white person, Awesome Tapes uses his connections in distribution channels, media, and the concert industry, as well as his audience that purchases records, to amplify the reach of the artists he works with. His seven-year tenure at a music/arts PR agency in New York City adds depth to his experience in navigating the music industry.

So far, the label has released over 35 titles, with several being new recordings. Many of these albums have catapulted the artists into international touring musicians. Awesome Tapes From Africa is deeply involved in managing visa applications for artists wishing to perform overseas, navigating the intricate and often biased system of visa-free travel.

DJing, which was not an initial part of the ATFA plan, began after requests to share the music from the blog at events. These gigs serve as a platform to introduce the label’s artists to promoters and have become a significant income source for Awesome Tapes, with part of the earnings channeled back into label expenses, artist tours, and projects.

Aware of his position and background, he is committed to playing shows accessible to Africans globally and ensuring that he chooses venues that welcome Black people without a history of racism. These values guide his gig selection process, shaping his mission to bridge cultural gaps and amplify the voices of African musicians.


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Last Edit by Petter
25th Jul 2023

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