The Power of Art and Music: Benefit Concert for Uganda

CONTINUING TO CELEBRATE THE SPIRIT OF BROTHER RANDY PONZIO JOIN US ON DEC. 3RD @ THE BACKSTAGE LOUNGE TO FURTHER THE MISSION OF HIS LOVE FOR THE YOUTH IN AFRICA - JOIN US WITH LOVE FROM UGANDA TO VANCOUVER SO WE CONTINUE BRIDGING THE GAP THROUGH PEACE, FOUNDATION & FAMILY

Randy Ponzio & Babaluku

The Power of Art and Music:

A Benefit for the Bavubuka Foundation which educates and empowers Ugandan Youth through creative arts and music.
Bavubuka pronounced as “ba voo boo ka” is a Luganda word that means “the youth”.

This non-profit organization believes connecting youth with music and the arts can transform lives and unify diverse communities.

On December 3rd, local Vancouver musicians and artists will gather and perform to celebrate the work of Bavubuka Foundation at The Backstage Lounge 1585 Jonstone Street on Grandville Island

The Bavubuka Foundation, as an indigenous cultural movement operating for more than five years and touching 1000’s of lives in both urban and village Ugandan settings, empowers youth and transforms communities through the positive social presencing technologies of hiphop, arts and media.

"There is a self Liberating truth in celebrating the indigenous in you."

The foundation is committed to awakening and sourcing the individual and collective creative capital of each community that enables more people to co-sense and co-create a future that they care about together.

Each Bavubuka project incorporates reconciliation and peace building activities and provides Ugandan youth with the opportunity to express their own unique perspective and truth while simultaneously developing healthy relationships to their immediate community, the larger Ugandan struggle, and a global peace building movement.

In addition to the success of the hiphop programs and the annual hiphop summits which celebrates the power of the Indigenous youth voices in uganda, many special projects such as the Bavubuka media production Workshops, Bavubuka Allsports and the Bavubuka women's Project now provides leadership training to young men and women.

The Bavubuka Foundation was created by Silas Balabyekkubo (aka Babaluku), an award-winning musician, producer, community youth activist and founding member of Uganda’s legendary hip hop group, Bataka Squad.

Silas responded to a need …a critical need in post-war Uganda, for programs that unite communities and create positive growth for the future. 69% of Uganda’s population is under the age of 25, with 32.2% of youth unemployed and only 15% enrolled in secondary education.

It is with their future in mind that the Bavubuka Foundation is committed to working on empowering and uniting youth through art and music in order to create a stable and peaceful future for Uganda.

We invite you to join Silas and some Vancouver's most gifted and talented amazing artists in this celebration. Become an integral participant in sourcing Bavubuka’s ongoing commitment to nurturing individual and collective creativity, to facilitating entrepreneurial capacity building and ultimately to contributing to the economic self-determination and well-being of each person and each community.

Musicial performers such as Quest Poetics-(The Foundation), David Morin, Tonye Aganaba and many more will perform short sets throughout the evening including a special performance of “Hallelujah” a song about Africa by Quest Poetics.

One hundred percent of the tickets, donations and sponsorship proceeds will go to the Foundation.

For More Information Contact: info@bavubuka.org

Contribution to our efforts will help to create a new vision of hope through creative arts in Uganda.

Luga Flow Meets Zulu Nation

Luga flow meets Zulu Nation

Vancouver Indigenous Media Arts Festival
Sunday Nov 13 | 7pm | W2 Media Cafe | $10
VIMAF 2011 Closing Ceremony


The Vancouver Indigenous Media Arts Festival is a forum for all people to celebrate and enjoy Indigenous culture. Vancouver's only Native Media Arts Festival, VIMAF will screen works in shorts, experimental, documentaries, video art, animation, as well as feature length films. Our goal is to screen film and media arts from across Turtle Island from emerging and established media makers to a broad based audience. The philosophy of the collective is one of cultural autonomy in media production and to stimulate a critical awareness and analysis to socio-political histories. We seek to contribute to the cultural discourse in independent production and to disseminate Indigenous production. Vancouver is situated on traditional Coast Salish Territory and there are 5 Salish communities in the surrounding area. Vancouver is also home to 90,000 First Nations People from across Canada, thus creating a dynamic site for an urban community. We thank the Coast Salish Nation

Hip-Hop and Africa: Ethiopia and Haiti (Negus World)

Ethiopia and Haiti: these two counties hold their heads up proudly when it comes to defeating colonization. Ethiopia was able to avoid the land-grabbing by Europeans during the Scramble for Africa, and Haiti gained independence in 1804 after a revolution by slaves and former slaves.

With the history of these two countries,  it's no wonder that there is an organization based on music, dance and self empowerment that bring them even closer together. It is called Negus World and founded by two Haitian brothers. In some Ethiopian languages, "negus" means king, and the goal behind the Negus World project is to educate a hip-hop-listening youth on specific words and derisions commonly used among popular music communities. The founders, two artists named Johwell and Bennchouny, chose the name specifically because of Ethiopia's strong and powerful heritage. The two have been recording together for years along with Negus Okai. All three men put the word "negus" in front of their names so as to have a "kingly" prefix.

One goal that the Negus World team aims to achieve is to educate communities about the use of the word "nigger" in hip-hop and other forms of urban art. The world is so heavily used in the hip-hop and Black communities that the founders wanted to rename themselves and uplift their own spirits. They say they are not trying to replace "nigger" as a movement: instead, by using "negus" as a prefix, they hope to show their fans that according a sense of royalty to their personas might improve esteem overall.

The latest video from Negus World, "Nou Sou Wout" was just featured on Afropunk.com, and they have a new video entitled "Waddup King" that will be released today on 11/11/11 at 11:11pm.

Here is the current trailer to their new video.

J.E.M.B.A Uganda at Bavubuka Foundtion

Noire Chic Benefit Fashion Show

Bavubuka foundation is proud to have one of its  influential creative fashion  designer Charles  Kasozi participate and show case in the  Noire Chic Night of elegance Mama Africa benefit  fashion show  on Dec. 3rd from the 7:00 to 9pm at the NEW YORK FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS. 20 Jay Street 7th floor Brooklyn New York.

Mama Africa benefit  fashion show

The MaMa Africa program was developed to assist non-profit organizations; clinics, schools, and community organizations support mothers in need in communities that lack the resources for expecting mothers or healthcare options for mothers in need.  Our program is unique because we will be helping mothers in Africa as well as helping mothers here in the US.  One of  the goals of the MaMa Africa program is to inform people of the critical need worldwide to provide better health options and care for mothers, especially those in need.  Each mother we work with will receive a "mommy care" package that will help them through their pregnancy or even afterwards.  The MaMa Africa main sponsor is HealthRight International and we work with various other organizations to formulate educational programs  for mothers in Africa and in the US.  The MaMa Africa Program will be present in 10 African countries and three US cities. 

Check out mama Africa Program website http://www.maafricaprogram.org

Hip Hop & Postive change at BANYEN BOOKS - Babaluku

FOR THE LOVE OF THE TRUTH WITHIN AND THE INSPIRATION TO SHARE STORIES OF TRANSFORMATION THROUGH THE Luga Flow INDIGENOUS HIP HOP PRACTICE YOU ARE WELCOME TO JOIN OUR GATHERING @ OUR - IN STORE PRESENTATION TOMORROW SUNDAY NOV. 26TH 11:30 -1:00PM @ BANYEN BOOKS 3608 WEST 4TH AVE ENTRANCE IS FREE...INDEED THE SPIRIT OF PASSIONATE MINDS WILL BE CELEBRATED HIP HOP & POSITIVE CHANGE
• In-store Presentation • Sunday, November 6 11:30-1:00 pm Banyen Books 3608 West 4th Ave. FREE		Silas Re-source and re-energize your capacity to connect and translate what you love into positive actions that serve others. Come experience what it means to “live hiphop” through the truth and consciousness of Silas, an indigenous practioner from Uganda.   “...hiphop is an awareness.. .a voice that originates in the realm of the divine…it transforms subjects and objects to transform the desires of our inner being. it is a ourcollective creativity emanatingthrough God within self...To say i am hiphop..means that what we say and do is also who we are…i am my own strategy for self improvement..” -- KRS, 2008 BET (Black Entertainment Television) lifetime achievement award recipient for his work with the Stop the Violence Movement  Silas Balabyekkubo, also known as Babaluka, is an award-winning musician, producer, community youth activist and social entrepreneur. A founding member of Uganda’s legendary hip hop group, Bataka Squad, Silas is known for introducing Luga Flow to Uganda’s creative scene. This unique and powerful style of positive Hip Hop music has inspired youth in Uganda to embrace and celebrate their native languages, culture and tradition. Silas is dedicated to changing lives and giving hope to young people from the ghetto slums of Kampala to war torn Northern Uganda. Through the Bavubuka Foundation Silas supports projects that are calling forth the spirit of Ugandan people in creative arts, youth empowerment, education, community development, sports, fashion, journalism, and community-building events. Posted by Bwette Daniel Gilbert  Related Links: Banyen Books