Mutabaruka
Encyclopedia
Mutabaruka is a dub poet
. His name comes from the Rwandan language and translates as "one who is always victorious". He lives in Potosi District, St. James with his significant other, Yvonne, and their two childern. Mutabaruka continues to perform and write poems on every issue known to man. He's known for his expressions and lively performances more so than just the poems themselves. Some of his themes include sexism
, politics, discrimination, poverty, race, and especially religion. Mutabaruka's stylistic form is in a way pathos
related. He uses stories and experiences to get readers to think about issues in ways that they wouldn't normally think about them.
and converted from Catholicism
while still a teenager. His outspoken statements on theology have generated controversy even among Rastafarians, and he has described Rasta as "part of a universal quest which may also be pursued by other routes, such as Hinduism
or Buddhism
or Christianity
.
or Buddhism
or Christianity. He disapproves, however, of institutionalized religion. Muta was the first well-publicized voice in the new wave of poets since the early 70's. Among one other poet, Louise Bennett, Muta has built a living relationship and poetry with Jamaica. Early work by Muta was first presented in the magazine, Swing, a monthly that gave fullest coverage to the pop music scene. Introducing Outcry (March, 1973) John A. L. Golding Jr. wrote: "In July 1971, Swing Magazine published for the first time a poem by Allan Mutabaruka...Our readers were ecstatic. Since then, and almost in consecutive issues, we have derived much pleasure in further publication of this brother's works... They tell a story common to most black people born in the ghetto... And when Muta writes, it's loud and clear". His 1983 release "Check It" was released on Chicago
blues
label
Alligator Records
. In 2008, Mutabaruka was featured as part of the Jamaica episode of the television program Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations. Mutabaruka gave a lecture at Stanford University on May 18, 2000. The lecture was addressed to the Caribbean Students Association. Muta expressed his views on the difference between education and indoctrination.
at Merritt College
. His time there further showed through in his poems. On February 20, 2010, Muta was honored by the National Centre for Youth Development (NCYD) and the Rotaract Club of Mandeville for over 30 years of outstanding work in the field of the arts. Also later on in 2010, Muta was recongnized by the Senegal
. In all of Mutabaruka's work, he never forgets to give back to the people who influence him. On September 28, 2010, Muta recited a tribute poem in honour of Lucky Dube
who's music "liberated the oppressed". Recently, Muta Spoke at the First Jamaica Poetry Festival on August 17, 2011 in honour of Marcus Garvey
and Louise Bennett. Leaving a mark on people who oppose you is very hard to do. Mutabaruka does this with extraordinary power, poetry. On the final day of the Rastafari Studies Confrence, Muta was examined as a Icon by the professors of the West Indies.
Dub poetry
Dub poetry is a form of performance poetry of West Indian origin, which evolved out of dub music consisting of spoken word over reggae rhythms in Jamaica in the 1970s....
. His name comes from the Rwandan language and translates as "one who is always victorious". He lives in Potosi District, St. James with his significant other, Yvonne, and their two childern. Mutabaruka continues to perform and write poems on every issue known to man. He's known for his expressions and lively performances more so than just the poems themselves. Some of his themes include sexism
Sexism
Sexism, also known as gender discrimination or sex discrimination, is the application of the belief or attitude that there are characteristics implicit to one's gender that indirectly affect one's abilities in unrelated areas...
, politics, discrimination, poverty, race, and especially religion. Mutabaruka's stylistic form is in a way pathos
Pathos
Pathos represents an appeal to the audience's emotions. Pathos is a communication technique used most often in rhetoric , and in literature, film and other narrative art....
related. He uses stories and experiences to get readers to think about issues in ways that they wouldn't normally think about them.
Biography
Mutabaruka became interested in the Rastafari movementRastafari movement
The Rastafari movement or Rasta is a new religious movement that arose in the 1930s in Jamaica, which at the time was a country with a predominantly Christian culture where 98% of the people were the black descendants of slaves. Its adherents worship Haile Selassie I, Emperor of Ethiopia , as God...
and converted from Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
while still a teenager. His outspoken statements on theology have generated controversy even among Rastafarians, and he has described Rasta as "part of a universal quest which may also be pursued by other routes, such as Hinduism
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
or Buddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
or Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
.
Early Life
Known as Allen Hope as a child, Mutabaruka grew up in the slums of Jamaica with his mother, father and two sisters. When Mutabaruka was only 8, his father died from unknown causes. He attended primary school where he received his nickname, "Mutabaruka". Later, he attended the Kingston Technical High School where he trained in electronics for four years. Muta then began finding himself within his early to late teenage years. In the late 60's into early 70's there was an up roaring of Black Awareness in Jamaica. Muta, who was in his late teens at the time, was drawn into that movement. In school he read many "progressive books" including Eldrige Cleaver's “Soul on Ice” and some that were then illegal in Jamaica, such as The Autobiography of Malcom X. Mutabaruka envisioned himself as a young revolutionary. While still employed at the Telephone Company, stopped wearing shoes, he stopped combing his hair, started growing locks, and altered his diet. During his time at the Jamaicana Telephone Company Ltd, Muta began examining and sorrounding himself with the Rasta lifestyle. He found it meaningful and worth living for. Soon after, he converted completely to the movement.Later Life
Life after the Telephone Company was semi difficult for Muta. He and his friend Yvonne left Kingston in 71’ to find a much more satisfying environment. They now live in Potosi District, St. James. They live in a house that Muta built himself, along with their two children. To present day, Muta performs and lectures all around the world. To Muta, Rastafarianism is part of a universal quest which may also be pursued by other routes, such as HinduismHinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
or Buddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
or Christianity. He disapproves, however, of institutionalized religion. Muta was the first well-publicized voice in the new wave of poets since the early 70's. Among one other poet, Louise Bennett, Muta has built a living relationship and poetry with Jamaica. Early work by Muta was first presented in the magazine, Swing, a monthly that gave fullest coverage to the pop music scene. Introducing Outcry (March, 1973) John A. L. Golding Jr. wrote: "In July 1971, Swing Magazine published for the first time a poem by Allan Mutabaruka...Our readers were ecstatic. Since then, and almost in consecutive issues, we have derived much pleasure in further publication of this brother's works... They tell a story common to most black people born in the ghetto... And when Muta writes, it's loud and clear". His 1983 release "Check It" was released on Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
Alligator Records
Alligator Records
Alligator Records is a Chicago-based independent blues record label founded by Bruce Iglauer in 1971.Iglauer started the label with his own savings to record and produce his favorite band Hound Dog Taylor & The HouseRockers, whom his employer, Bob Koester of Delmark Records, declined to record...
. In 2008, Mutabaruka was featured as part of the Jamaica episode of the television program Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations. Mutabaruka gave a lecture at Stanford University on May 18, 2000. The lecture was addressed to the Caribbean Students Association. Muta expressed his views on the difference between education and indoctrination.
Discography
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Live at Reggae Sunsplash | Sunsplash |
| 1983 | Check It! | Alligator |
| 1983 | Dub Poets Dub | Heartbeat |
| 1984 | Outcry | Shanachie |
| 1986 | The Mystery Unfolds | Shanachie |
| 1989 | Any Which Way...Freedom | Shanachie |
| 1990 | Mutabaruka | Rounder |
| 1991 | Blakk Wi Blak...K...K... | Shanachie |
| 1994 | Melanin Man | Shanachie |
| 1998 | Gathering of the Spirits | Shanachie |
| 1998 | Muta in Dub | Blackheart |
| 2002 | Life Squared | Heartbeat |
Accomplishments
Mutabaruka's first book launch was in the 1980s. His book, "The First Poems" took off well. Muta then made a 'sequel' to the book and launched "The Next Poems" on March 10, 2005. The 'double-barrelled' books are well known to the Jamaican community as well as other dub-poets. In the spring of 2007, Mutabaruka had the chance to teach African American studiesAfrican American studies
African American studies is a subset of Black studies or Africana studies. It is an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to the study of the history, culture, and politics of African Americans...
at Merritt College
Merritt College
Merritt College is a two-year community college located in the Oakland Hills in Alameda County, California. The school's enrollment is approximately 6,000 students. The college is named after physician Dr...
. His time there further showed through in his poems. On February 20, 2010, Muta was honored by the National Centre for Youth Development (NCYD) and the Rotaract Club of Mandeville for over 30 years of outstanding work in the field of the arts. Also later on in 2010, Muta was recongnized by the Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
. In all of Mutabaruka's work, he never forgets to give back to the people who influence him. On September 28, 2010, Muta recited a tribute poem in honour of Lucky Dube
Lucky Dube
Lucky Philip Dube was a South African reggae musician. He recorded 22 albums in Zulu, English and Afrikaans in a 25-year period and was South Africa's biggest selling reggae artist...
who's music "liberated the oppressed". Recently, Muta Spoke at the First Jamaica Poetry Festival on August 17, 2011 in honour of Marcus Garvey
Marcus Garvey
Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Jr., ONH was a Jamaican publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, and orator who was a staunch proponent of the Black Nationalism and Pan-Africanism movements, to which end he founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League...
and Louise Bennett. Leaving a mark on people who oppose you is very hard to do. Mutabaruka does this with extraordinary power, poetry. On the final day of the Rastafari Studies Confrence, Muta was examined as a Icon by the professors of the West Indies.