BK HIP HOP MEMORIES, NONA'S 80TH BIRTHDAY

A weekend walk through Brooklyn and bold female singer/songwriter

I’ve been researching a book on the rich artistic history of Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, Brooklyn and spend much of the weekend walking around my old neighborhoods, visiting places from he not too distant past, seeing what remains. One location was 226 Saint James Place, the building young Christopher Wallace was raised before he became legendary MC the Notorious B.I.G.

Another was the intersection of Quincy and Downing Street in Clinton Hill, which was the site of the Dave Chapelle block party in 2004 and the film released in 2005, which captured a moment when neo-soul (Eyrkah Badu, Jill Scott) and back pack hip hop (Common, Talib Kweli, Mos Def) were at peaks of commercial importance and artistic power.

Both those trips back in the past are documented in these two Follow the Sound pieces up on my YouTube channel.

This past week saw singer/songwriter and OG diva Nona Hendryx enjoy her 80th birthday. The former member of Labelle has had a varied and rich career, moving from R&B to rock, and collaborating with a wide range of artists in many disciplines. I interviewed her for my Finding the Funk doc back in 2012 and decided to post the entire unedited conversation where Nona digs into the visual and sonic transitions that occurred with black music in general, and Labelle in particular in the ‘70s. The look and sound of the high powered female vocal trio are direct link to Janelle Monae, FKA Twigs and other women who resist labels and convention.