Books by Kalamu ya Salaam

The Magic of JuJu: An Appreciation of the Black Arts Movement  /   360: A Revolution of Black Poets

Everywhere Is Someplace Else: A Literary Anthology  /  From A Bend in the River: 100 New Orleans Poets

Our Music Is No Accident   /  What Is Life: Reclaiming the Black Blues Self

My Story My Song (CD)

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NEO-GRIOT 

Writing with Text, Sound & Light

By Kalamu ya Salaam 

The griot is a West African storyteller/historian/musician. In traditional societies the griot's status covered a spectrum of possibilities depending on the particular ethnic group. The griot ranged from an honored member of the king's court to a marginalized commentator on the society.

The neo-griot concept, starts from the prospective of writers who are grounded in their particular community and who deal with both the history of their community and critical commentary on the contemporary conditions of their community. Additionally, the neo-griot employs the latest technology in their writing.

Indeed, the neo-griot concept is one of writing with text, sound and light. Writing with text includes using the internet and the latest developments in publishing, which include "pdf" formats and publishing on demand. Writing with sound produces audio by using desktop editing and the burning of cds as well as recent developments in radio production. Writing with light focuses on using mini-digital cameras and desktop computer editing for the production of videos for distribution as vhs tapes, on cd rom, and streaming on the internet. I currently teach radio production and digital video to high school students.

I direct a weekly writing workshop, Nommo Literary Society, which has been active since September of 1995. I moderate e-drum, a listserv of over 1500 subscribers worldwide that focuses on the interests of Black writers and diverse supporters of our literature. Additionally, I am a music and radio producer.

I host two weekly radio programs for WWOZ 90.7fm (and streaming on the internet at www.wwoz.org).

I have produced commercial recordings for Rounder Records and All For One Records, featuring artists such as Ellis Marsalis, Germaine Bazzle, Kidd Jordan and others. I am the recipient of numerous awards for music production and writing including two ASCAP Deems Taylor Awards and two Silver Reel Awards from NFCB. The equipment we use for the digital video costs less than $4,000 total (Sony digital cameras and iMac DV computers).

My emphasis is on sharing information and encouraging others to use this technology. Since January of 2001, I have been traveling around the United States presenting the Neo-Griot concept at schools, community centers, conferences, and to writers groups, workshops, and seminars. My presentations include video shorts and audio cds produced by high school students and NOMMO members, plus a presentation of my own poetry.  (A schedule of presentations is included below.)

I am available to do presentations, workshops and residencies focusing on the neo-griot concept. The presentations range from one hour overviews with video examples to a one week residency in which I teach the use of listservs, audio production, digital video, along with intensive small group sessions in poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, scripting for video and writing for radio.

The fees range from $750 for a one hour presentation, $1000 for a combination two-hour workshop and one hour performance, to $5,000 for a week long residency that includes two public presentations in addition to neo-griot classes and availability for classroom appearances. The hosting institution is also responsible for air transportation and housing accommodations.

Video tapes and audio CD examples are available for review.

Kalamu ya Salaam Box 52723 New Orleans, LA 70152-2723 

tel 504/581-2963 fax 504/581-5446 kalamu@aol.com

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Recent Schedule of appearances:

January 2002 >one week residency, Lincoln High School, Dallas, Texas >workshops, South Dallas Cultural Center >WordBand performance, South Dallas Cultural Center >neo-griot video presentation, Sankofa books & video, Washington, DC >presentations & performances, Role Call Conference, Howard University >performance, Spirit House, Washington, DC

February 2002 >performance & poetry curator, Schomburg Center, New York City >Langston Hughes Centennial Conference/Festival, Univ. of Kansas, Lawrence >workshop, "Say It Loud" youth literacy program, Little Rock, Arkansas >presentation & performance, public library, Little Rock, Arkansas >presentation, New Orleans public library >workshop & performance, Emerson College, Boston >presentation, UCLA, Los Angeles

March 2002 >presentation and workshop, Booker T. Washington High School Writer’s Conference, Dallas, Texas >performance with Nommo Literary Society, Shreveport, Louisiana >presentation and workshop, Bates College, Lewiston, Maine

April 2002 >performance with the WordBand, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill >curated program and moderated panel, New Black Writers: The Next Wave, Schomburg Center, New York City