The Black Junglist Alliance has set up a community portal to unite Black artists in the world of jungle and drum & bass.
Chris Walton, aka Chris Inperspective, has launched Black Junglist Alliance following his criticism of London drum & bass label, Hospital Records. In a 27 minute video posted on Facebook, he claims that he was laid off by the company after he had pushed for more diversity in the label. He found that Hospital Records made little effort to work with more Black artists when they had the opportunity to do so, and that individuals working for the label made racist remarks.
Prompted by the label’s response to the Black Lives Matter movement on social media, Walton set up Black Junglist Alliance. “When I saw them do the black square thing, I was like fucking hell,” he says in the video, “I’m just sick of the hypocrisy of white run labels bastardising our culture and then claiming to be allies when they don’t stand by us.”
On August 1st, the Black Junglist Alliance launched BJA TV, a “community portal”, aimed to unite Black artists, creatives and professionals in the jungle and drum & bass industry. It aims to showcase Black talent, offer guidance to artists and provide a space for collaboration.
“Many other genres of music have an online platform that solely reflects their community through culture, experience and knowledge e.g. SBTV or UKG,” says BJA founding member Caldey Muffett.
“I’m looking forward to curating a platform that seeks to confirm the contribution of Black people to this music and the scene we all love,” founding member Neil Stevens explains. “We’re here to highlight the legacy, the heroes and heroines, and the future contributors to this music from an unashamedly Afrocentric perspective.”
Apply for the Black Junglist Alliance.