Aesthetic Text Review:

“We are the future in the present” (Music Video) – Patrice Bart-Williams

by Nikki Achilleous

BA Languages and Contemporary European Studies

Patrice is a Sierra Leonean-German singer-songwriter, music producer and filmmaker who has been heavily influenced by Afro-Caribbean music styles from an early age. Through his collection of work, he represents himself as an advocate for the acceptance and celebration of diversity. Although his videos vary in stylistic approach, his underlying principles continue to resonate strategically throughout each album. He coined his own multicultural genre of music Swaggae; an eclectic mix of Afro-Caribbean styles with Hip Hop, Rock and Blues, and incorporates other art forms into his work, such as poetry and philosophy. Although Patrice is popular in Europe, his music is inherently rooted in Afro-Caribbean culture; hence we can assume that his target audience are either Afro-Europeans, perhaps those who are negotiating their mixed ethnic identity, or Europeans with an interest for black music culture. Essentially, he creates a space for fans to foster a sense of collective identity through their own celebration of diversity.

The music video entitled “We are the future in the present” features in his latest Swaggae album Life’s Blood (2016), and contains powerful lyrics on visible black identity, pride and tolerance within society. The lyrics emphasise the black struggle for civil rights and recognise the strength and unity in their race. “Things don’t happen to us, we just happen to things” is a empowering phrase that promotes taking ownership of one’s racial identity and becoming an active agent in a world in which blacks have been racialized through the gaze of the observer (Fanon, 1967). Through his rap, the artist also endorses black feminine beauty: “Dap-dap-dapper when we turn up the melanin” and “curves curves curves…” Both chorus and verse are simple and repetitive, leaving space for the viewer to simultaneously interpret the eloquent visuals.

The music video itself can be loosely classified as an “enhanced performance’’: a hybrid between the art music video and the performance documentary (Railton and Watson, 2013). On a set that resembles the interior of a French chateau or bourgeois vintage-style house, the artist calmly lip-sings amongst a still, composed entourage of primarily black individuals. There are integrated short, yet active clips of real life footage that mirror the political and social message of the lyrics; they feature clips of Africans celebrating culture and dancing in their African prints, yet they mostly compose of moments that expose recent anti-racist and tolerance protests. On several occasions, the camera focuses on the Black Power fist, a well-recognised symbol amongst the black community, which signifies solidarity, self-defence and resistance. By incorporating symbolic visuals into the video, it creates a backdrop on which the viewers can commonly identify.

Dancing is effectively used throughout the video to reflect the diversity that Patrice observes in contemporary society, and he uses each distinctive dance style as a reference to the past, yet also as a modern display of culture. The pale, white ballerina in the apartment is integral to the video and is the first subject to appear alone on screen. She then side-hugs Patrice, the black music artist, signifying unity between them. Throughout, her dancing intersects with a black man who breaks typical Dancehall and Jamaican style moves. The interplay between these two dancers perfectly represents the ‘culture of mixing’ that Patrice wants to celebrate, yet also demonstrates how dis-jointed the cultures are. In this way, the artist validates the place and responsibility of his own audience to proudly incorporate their own culture and style into society, regardless of whether they seem less conventionally ‘European’ than other traditions, such as ballet. Moreover, the video is filled with close-proximity shots of protests, dancers and subjects, allowing the viewer to become intimate and connected with both art form and meaning.

The contrast between struggle and celebration, and between the slow, calm and fast, active dynamic of both the real and staged scenes further capture the viewer’s attention, yet still leaves them adequate time to absorb the video’s aesthetic. This is successful in creating a piece of art that diffuses Patrice’s message in a non-threatening, tangible way to viewers from all ethnic backgrounds. As Patrice has now reached the German charts, his ‘soft’ approach to self-representation may reach the recognition and tolerance that he calls for, without seeming overpowering or threatening to White Germans or Europeans.

References:

Because Music, (2017). We Are The Future In The Present [Official Video]. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdhyUHKBuLs [Accessed 11 Apr. 2017].

DW.com (2017). Reggae star Patrice | All media content | DW | 20.11.2015. [online] Available at: http://www.dw.com/en/reggae-star-patrice/av-18865783 [Accessed 8 Jun. 2017].

En.wikipedia.org. (2017). Patrice Bart-Williams. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrice_Bart-Williams [Accessed 11 Apr. 2017].

Fanon, F. (1967). Black skin, white mask. 1st ed. New York: Grove Press.

Foucault, M. (1988). Technologies of the Self. 1st ed. University of Massachusetts Press.

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Le Huffington Post. (2017). Dans son nouveau clip, Patrice milite pour un monde plus beau. [online] Available at: http://www.huffingtonpost.fr/2016/12/21/patrice-we-are-the-future-in-the-present-de-patrice-clip-video/ [Accessed 11 Apr. 2017].

Railton, D. and Watson, P. (2013). Music Video and the Politics of Representation. 1st ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.