What do you think of when you hear the word Caribbean? Chances are, the first things that pops into your mind include beautiful beaches, marijuana, and beautiful women whining (twerking). While these aspects of Caribbean culture are certainly present, popular Caribbean music videos often overlook critical issues present in the Caribbean. Images presented in are often characterized by luxurious resorts, upscale clubs, and clean streets, while less visual cities are often plagued by deteriorating housing conditions, job insecurity, and inadequate resources. This post aims to examine other ways that Caribbean countries can be portrayed in music. Contrary to most mainstream reggae, soca, and dancehall artists, in most of her music videos, Jamaican singer Koffee presents a message about the Caribbean beyond beaches, drugs, and whining.
Most of Koffee’s videos, shot within Jamaica, give viewers a snapshot into the everyday lives of Jamaicans outside of clubs and parties. They often provide viewers with a picture of what they may see, what I, as a person born in a Caribbean country, have seen, while walking down an ordinary street. Important to note, while her videos take place in areas that are often subject to deteriorating conditions, her songs are often upbeat and focused on enjoying life as it is and persevering despite injustice.
Koffee’s music videos have a similar aesthetic. Rather than hiding the not so visually appealing parts of her city, Koffee embraces the rustic background and vibrant culture that fills her city. In her music video Toast, filmed in 2018, Koffee is seen having her hair styled in front of a collage of rusty zinc sheets, commonly used in the Caribbean as roofs to houses, fences, and other forms of protection. In another scene, a group of young boys playing soccer on a wet and rugged basketball court is shown. Throughout the rest of the music video, clips are shown of the streets of a neighborhood in Jamaica, where residents go about their day-to-day activities.
Perhaps the most interesting is the message portrayed in this video. While to the eyes of the economically privileged the conditions of the city may appear poor, Koffee sings about being blessed because “gratitude is a must” (Koffee, 2020). This may puzzle residents of more developed countries as their first thought may be “those poor people”. Toast, however, presents a mentality that contradicts that of a victim. Koffee presents an image of perseverance and gratitude despite difficulty, in a fun and positive way. Similar to popular feminism, as defined by Sarah Banet-Weiser, this video does not seek to challenge the structures that allow inequalities to persist, but rather advocates for making the most of life within these structures.
Most of Koffee’s videos, shot within Jamaica, give viewers a snapshot into the everyday lives of Jamaicans outside of clubs and parties. They often provide viewers with a picture of what they may see, what I, as a person born in a Caribbean country, have seen, while walking down an ordinary street. Important to note, while her videos take place in areas that are often subject to deteriorating conditions, her songs are often upbeat and focused on enjoying life as it is and persevering despite injustice.
Koffee’s music videos have a similar aesthetic. Rather than hiding the not so visually appealing parts of her city, Koffee embraces the rustic background and vibrant culture that fills her city. In her music video Toast, filmed in 2018, Koffee is seen having her hair styled in front of a collage of rusty zinc sheets, commonly used in the Caribbean as roofs to houses, fences, and other forms of protection. In another scene, a group of young boys playing soccer on a wet and rugged basketball court is shown. Throughout the rest of the music video, clips are shown of the streets of a neighborhood in Jamaica, where residents go about their day-to-day activities.
Perhaps the most interesting is the message portrayed in this video. While to the eyes of the economically privileged the conditions of the city may appear poor, Koffee sings about being blessed because “gratitude is a must” (Koffee, 2020). This may puzzle residents of more developed countries as their first thought may be “those poor people”. Toast, however, presents a mentality that contradicts that of a victim. Koffee presents an image of perseverance and gratitude despite difficulty, in a fun and positive way. Similar to popular feminism, as defined by Sarah Banet-Weiser, this video does not seek to challenge the structures that allow inequalities to persist, but rather advocates for making the most of life within these structures.
For Toast, Teju Cole would likely praise Koffee for her portrayal of the city in her video. Though her music video is now widely popular across the globe, opposed to photos during widespread imperialism, she does not display the “suffering of people ‘out there’ for the viewing of those ‘back home’” (Cole, 2019, p. 4). Rather she presents “life here”, based on her personal experience being Jamaican. This places the portrayal of life in this place in the hands of a member of the group that lives there, which arguably has more representative value than from the lens of an outsider.
Fast forward to 2020, in her song Pressure, featuring Buju Banton, Koffee maintains a very rustic environment in her music video. She is seen for most of the video sitting on an unkept stairway on the outside of a house, as people are shown embracing these living conditions as a part of everyday life, a naturalized state. While this video embraces similar aesthetic features as Toast, it goes further than just showing deteriorating conditions in Jamaica, but actually addresses the issues at hand, rooted in corruption, politics, and inequality. Interestingly enough, despite all of the social injustice highlighted in this video, the message of the video still remains to persevere in the face of inequality. This encourages endurance but can also serve to reinforce cooperation within the system that ensures these poor conditions continue to exist because it “haffi be better” (it will get better) (Koffee, 2020).
To this video, Teju Cole would likely praise Koffee and Banton for addressing the injustice represented in their society that keeps it from developing, while also criticizing them for not asking the question “why have I allowed this to happen?” (Cole, 4). Whereas Koffee and Banton assign the blame of the deteriorating conditions present in Jamaica to the government and corruption, saying “How money fi deh 'ya when dem sen' it offshore?” (How would we have money when it is sent to offshore accounts?) (Koffee, 2020), Cole encourages onlookers of certain phenomena to look at their own responsibility within an issue and consider ways in which they can bring about a change.
Koffee’s music videos, being situated within the context of poverty and Caribbean music that focus solely on the enjoyment of life, brings us back to the regime of representation as discussed by Stuart Hall in The Spectacle of the Other. Hall defines this concept as “the whole repertoire of imagery and visual effects through which 'difference' is represented at any one historical moment” (Hall, 2001, p.232). In both Toast and Pressure, Koffee addresses the conditions present in Jamaica during tough economic times. It matters for representation because it provides a contrast, or difference, to what is often represented in most music videos within this genre.
In a moment where Caribbean music is saturated with content that focuses on pleasure and excitement, Toast and Pressure by Koffee present images of the Caribbean that are less glamorous, but more common. It informs viewers that being Caribbean is about more than just having danceable music and beautiful natural scenery, it can also come with many economic challenges and structurally unequal hardships. These music videos also highlight, however, that these hardships can also be addressed with a positive outlook.
Sources:
Cole, T. (2019). When the camera was a weapon of imperialism.(And when it still is.). The New York Times Magazine.
Hall, S. (2001). The spectacle of the other. Discourse theory and practice: A reader, 225-249.
Banet-Weiser, S. (2015, January 21). Popular misogyny: a zeitgeist. Culture Digitally. https://culturedigitally.org/2015/01/popular-misogyny-a-zeitgeist/.
Pressure [Remix] Lyrics. (n.d.). Lyrics.com. https://www.lyrics.com/lyric-lf/2314970/Koffee.
Original Koffee. (2018, November 16). Toast. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8HoEvDh70Y
Original Koffee. (2020, October 20). Pressure. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLcdjysXPgs
Fast forward to 2020, in her song Pressure, featuring Buju Banton, Koffee maintains a very rustic environment in her music video. She is seen for most of the video sitting on an unkept stairway on the outside of a house, as people are shown embracing these living conditions as a part of everyday life, a naturalized state. While this video embraces similar aesthetic features as Toast, it goes further than just showing deteriorating conditions in Jamaica, but actually addresses the issues at hand, rooted in corruption, politics, and inequality. Interestingly enough, despite all of the social injustice highlighted in this video, the message of the video still remains to persevere in the face of inequality. This encourages endurance but can also serve to reinforce cooperation within the system that ensures these poor conditions continue to exist because it “haffi be better” (it will get better) (Koffee, 2020).
To this video, Teju Cole would likely praise Koffee and Banton for addressing the injustice represented in their society that keeps it from developing, while also criticizing them for not asking the question “why have I allowed this to happen?” (Cole, 4). Whereas Koffee and Banton assign the blame of the deteriorating conditions present in Jamaica to the government and corruption, saying “How money fi deh 'ya when dem sen' it offshore?” (How would we have money when it is sent to offshore accounts?) (Koffee, 2020), Cole encourages onlookers of certain phenomena to look at their own responsibility within an issue and consider ways in which they can bring about a change.
Koffee’s music videos, being situated within the context of poverty and Caribbean music that focus solely on the enjoyment of life, brings us back to the regime of representation as discussed by Stuart Hall in The Spectacle of the Other. Hall defines this concept as “the whole repertoire of imagery and visual effects through which 'difference' is represented at any one historical moment” (Hall, 2001, p.232). In both Toast and Pressure, Koffee addresses the conditions present in Jamaica during tough economic times. It matters for representation because it provides a contrast, or difference, to what is often represented in most music videos within this genre.
In a moment where Caribbean music is saturated with content that focuses on pleasure and excitement, Toast and Pressure by Koffee present images of the Caribbean that are less glamorous, but more common. It informs viewers that being Caribbean is about more than just having danceable music and beautiful natural scenery, it can also come with many economic challenges and structurally unequal hardships. These music videos also highlight, however, that these hardships can also be addressed with a positive outlook.
Sources:
Cole, T. (2019). When the camera was a weapon of imperialism.(And when it still is.). The New York Times Magazine.
Hall, S. (2001). The spectacle of the other. Discourse theory and practice: A reader, 225-249.
Banet-Weiser, S. (2015, January 21). Popular misogyny: a zeitgeist. Culture Digitally. https://culturedigitally.org/2015/01/popular-misogyny-a-zeitgeist/.
Pressure [Remix] Lyrics. (n.d.). Lyrics.com. https://www.lyrics.com/lyric-lf/2314970/Koffee.
Original Koffee. (2018, November 16). Toast. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8HoEvDh70Y
Original Koffee. (2020, October 20). Pressure. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLcdjysXPgs
Thank you for your commentary on how Koffee's music and music videos specifically paint a different and more accurate picture of Caribbean life! One of the first things that I thought while reading your blog post was the extensive amount of connections you were able to make to the content we have covered in the class material. I have never listened to Koffee before, but because of your post I took the opportunity to watch both the "Toast" and "Pressure" music videos (I always love discovering new music!). One of the topics that I thought of almost immediately when reading your commentary was on Stuart Hall's work on stereotypes and essentialism. As you mentioned, past representations of Caribbean life have construed what many people think of when they hear the word 'Caribbean'. For example, many people think of luxury, clubs, resorts, parties, twerking etc. Hall suggests that one of the three ways stereotypes form is through media and representation and this misconstrued common outlook is largely due to both as past Caribbean music videos and images often mobilize the spread of these stereotypes. These stereotypes then lead to an essentialist view of Caribbean life, a view that is quite contrary for the majority of people living in the Caribbean. The real problem is how this act of essentialism leads to ignorance and disregards many aspects about Caribbean life that need to be addressed. With a particular 'good' view of how 'fun' life is in the Caribbean, it becomes easy to completely ignore and to not challenge or confront social and structural issues. Contrastingly, Koffee has been able to combat these stereotypes through the more accurate representation of Caribbean life within her music videos.
ReplyDeleteDestiny, I really enjoyed reading your blog post about Caribbean music and how these two videos showed a different side of it. Similarly, I immediately thought about Hall’s discussion on stereotypes and how what is portrayed in the media gives into these ideas. I also thought about his discussion of Difference and how it’s necessary for the constitution of meaning, formation of language and culture, and social identities but also a mechanism to oppress and perpetuate inequality. Even when explaining what the culture industry is and what it's composed of, Adorno and Horkheimer go into how the media plays into stereotypes. Mass media often repetitively perpetuates stereotypes that include misrepresentation of groups. This can be applied to the misrepresentation of the Caribbean community as party animals rather than focus on the ordinary Caribbean. It takes a lot from an artist to go against the norms and portray reality. It’s very important for people to see and learn about these communities in a truthful and raw way. I think it is even more empowering for the footage to be accompanied by an empowering message that comes from the song being played. I also can’t help to think about how important the inclusion of normal life in the Caribbean is to the branding of the artist themself. Psarras explains self-branding which refers to the curation of a particular public image for commercial and cultural gain. It’s pretty clear here that Koffee manages to distinguish herself as an artist by not giving into the mainstream image of Caribbeans. This was a very interesting topic to navigate and I really enjoyed reading about it in this perspective that I had never thought about.
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