Ethnic Marketing is fun !!
Monthly Archive for June, 2010
Below is an article as published on the EbonyJet online platform in the US, related to Ebony Magazine, about Dutch-Cape Verdean artist Suzanna Lubrano. This is how “crossover” can look like in the Netherlands.
“Most fans of world music know the music of Cape Verde only through the odd compilation album or the ubiquitous sounds of Cesaria Evora. Those compilations, however, tend toward on style – the somber, hauntingly beautiful strains of accordion and Portugese-flecked guitar mixed with West African rhythms. It is gorgeous background music – memorable mind you – but still best when relegated to a dinner party mix or meditative workout.
Suzanna Lubrano’s approach, however, is very much upfront. Her Cape Verdean zouk is clearly and exuberantly intended for dancing, not dining. And her star is rising with a recent win last week of “Best African Artist of the Disapora” in the prestigious online poll, Museke Online Africa”, not an easy feat when fellow voters from the tiny island of Cape Verde have only so many votes to give.
Collaborations like those with Candy Dulfer, former Prince protégé and popular smooth jazz artist, have gained her attention and some key appearances on the European music television circuit. And though she’s singing in Portugese, the influences here feel less Afro-Brazil than they are reminiscent of Miami-style Latin pop, a dynamic that’s getting Suzanna play from DJ’s at concerts and festivals on this side of the pond. This is not crossover music, at least not her part. To fully enjoy Suzanna’s gifts, you’re gonna have to be the one to crossover to her. We think you should.”
On the occasion of the major gains by the far right nationalist Freedom Party in yesterday’s Dutch general elections, below are excerpts from an article, published in Time Magazine, written by Kishore Mahbubani, dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore. The full article (see link below) makes interesting reading.
“Europe just doesn’t get it. It does not get how irrelevant it is becoming to the rest of the world. And it does not get how relevant the rest of the world is becoming to its future. The world is changing rapidly. Europe continues to drift.”
“I am not exaggerating when I say Europe’s obsession with restructuring its internal arrangements is akin to rearranging the deck chairs of a sinking Titanic. The focus on internal challenges when the real threats are external.”
“Over the long run, geography — when combined with economic shifts of power — determines destiny. America’s interests in Asia are rising while its interests in Europe are declining. A growing Hispanic population will make Latin America more important. This is why the time has come for Europeans to think the unthinkable: the “natural” transatlantic partnership may someday come to an end.”
“The whole world wants to see a strong Europe. It can provide an alternative pole of growth, a model for abolishing wars between neighbors, cultural education and a moral voice for supporting initiatives like the Kyoto Protocol and the International Criminal Court. There are no shortages of opportunities for Europe to provide leadership. But, as Copenhagen demonstrated, it may no longer even be in the room when crucial decisions are being made.”
Click here to read the full article on the website of Time Magazine