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TOP STORY: CULTURE
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JAZZY B’S DYNAMITE PERFORMANCE INSPIRED PUNJABI PRIDE, BUT IT ALSO SPARKED OFF A DEBATE |
By Indira Prahst, Instructor of Race and Ethnic Relations, Department of Sociology, Langara College, Vancouver
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The federal government awarded the city of Surrey with the prestigious title of “Cultural Capital for 2008.” To live up to this title, the city hosted a three-day Fusion Festival over the weekend at Holland Park. It was the largest ever three-day multicultural celebration here showcasing some 40 international pavilions of music, food and culture.
International superstar Jazzy B hosted a huge Bhangra party on Friday with KS Makhan, A-slam, African Guitar Summit and many others. Some 16,000 people, mostly South Asians, came out to watch, including dignitaries such as Surrey Councillor Tom Gill, who said to me: “I am bringing out my young daughter and wife on a nice evening here in Surrey and everyone is having a good time. I am proud to see the great and diverse culture that is in our community.”
Surrey City Councillor Mary Martin added: “I am incredibly proud to see the embracing of all the cultures that are living in this city and to recognize the involvement and ownership of this city.”
That evening Jazzy B gave a dynamite performance for an hour and a half in front of a raving crowd of all generations. Loud cheers filled the air when he performed tunes from his new release “Rambo,” but the cheers peaked when he sang his old songs evoking feelings of nostalgia and Punjabi pride. At one point Jazzy held a young toddler which symbolized the family spirit present at the event.
I was also overwhelmed to see such a huge well behaved crowd and so happy. What a contrast from the tears I see at other “tragic” events. Jazzy B himself was thrilled which was clear after the show when I briefly spoke to him in the Hummer that escorted him to the event. He was grateful to perform for the crowd and humbled in the way he touched the hearts of the community.
THE DEBATE
There is no doubt that that evening Jazzy B did have a positive effect on the South Asian community. However, some people have expressed concern about some of the lyrics and images in his music videos which were also addressed in “Rattan’s Rumble” in last week’s VOICE. A group of college aged youth in Vancouver had similar views on this and Kal Dosanjh said: “Jazzy B is not the kind of role model I would want my kids looking up to.”
As a sociologist who has focused on deconstructing the glorification of gang culture in collaboration with the Vancouver Police Department the Integrated Gang Task Force, some of Jazzy B’s lyrics were of concern to me as well. This prompted me to ask Mary Rukavina, one of the organizers of the festival, how the musicians were selected. Her response was: “The committee decided collectively what singers would perform and Jazzy B had been recommended. He is very well known in the community and was born and raised in Surrey.”
That night I spoke to several youth and this is what they said about Jazzy B’s influence. Firstly, Jazzy B is a role model for other South Asian musicians in giving them a sense of hope. This view was expressed by Punjabi Singer Gary from the A-Slam who said: “Jazzy B is the biggest name in Bhangra, I look up to him as an inspiration and I think to myself, if I put hard enough work in my music, maybe I can do it too.”
Sixteen-year-old Harman Sidhu added: “I think Jazzy B represents the community in a positive way and people know him all around the world as an Indian artist and I think everyone should be proud of how much he has accomplished. Young men like myself look up to him because he is Indian and that shows that we can be become who we want to be. If Jazzy did it, so can we.”
Secondly, Jazzy B instilled pride in being Punjabi, which is important for a visible minority group – the feeling that they have the freedom to preserve and showcase their culture without being marginalized. This view was manifest in the words of a 27-year-old Bhangra dancer who said: “I grew up listening to Jazzy B and he has made us proud of our Punjabi culture. With the United Bhangra team I am with, every season we have a song from him and are proud of his music.”
There was a lot of Punjabi pride felt at the event, but what does that mean?
For some, it may be positive. But for others, it is questionable because it is a step away from achieving inclusiveness in a Canadian society and can have global implications of exclusivity as well. An academic from Punjab, Prabhsharan Singh, echoed these sentiments: “The idea of “Punjabi Pride” is problematic for people in South Asia because when a community starts to take pride in its common roots it becomes a threat.
He added: “The notion of pride, being Punjabi, involves an assumption that we are superior, so we should be cautious about it. The difference between Punjabi and Sikh is that you cannot be Punjabi, you need to be born there, but you can be a Sikh any day.” Prabhsharan Singh’s main point was that when there is a desire for justice then one would have to ponder this ethnic or religious identifier very seriously.
He said: “If people are drifting away from Sikhi and taking pride in Punjabiness then it should be considered as a threat because it increases boundaries between Punjabi and Gori-Punjabi, Hindi-Punjabi and others. Only a government free of racial bonds can deliver justice to its people.”
IDENTITY ISSUE
Thirdly, some of Jazzy B’s lyrics point to identity and the oppression of Sikhs in history. Prabhsharan Singh said: “Pop culture instills pride among the youth of Punjab, ranging from Sikh militancy to modern lifestyle. Although pop culture is supposed to drift Sikh youth away from Sikhi, sometimes, its effects can prove to be contrary. Such an example is Jazzy B’s song from the album ‘Sikhi Khandiyon Tikhi” with the lyrics “Agg de Angaar,” where he talks about false encounters (in which Indian police kill Sikhs).” We see how his music has fostered political awareness and has shaped an activist ethnic identity for some, which “appears” to be relatively innocuous.
There is no dancing around the fact that Jazzy influenced some youth in their own unique way. Concerns about the proper role modeling should be an issue, and not only for the musician, but for parents as well. After all parenting is a social responsibility that involves teaching kids basic values so they can make the right choices. Not all youth will internalize the lyrics and act them out. For example, the latest release “Rambo” is a hit with Harman Sidhu who says: “I love Rambo and Jazzy B calling himself an Indian.” When I asked Sidhu about the image of toughness, he said: “First of all you can make it not look bad, but at the same time you make it bad. If you have a cigar in your mouth and a drink in your hand, then that is bad, which is different if you just stand there looking good.”
Some of my best students have said to me in the past: “I love Jazzy B” and “He is Awesome,” but they have been selective in what they internalize and for them Jazzy B has kept them connected to their cultural roots and moved them forward into the modern world.
In closing, the fusion festival epitomized a truly multicultural society and the city of Surrey should be proud of that success. Also the city has carved out space for the South Asian community to express pride in who they are in a mainstream venue, which was clear by the large number of South Asians who attended. Generally such a crowd is seen at the Vaisakhi parade that draws over 150 thousand people to Surrey.
“We showcased Surrey’s identity which is made up of diverse cultures and we finally brought it together rather than showcase each culture separately. We don’t have a lack of identity here in Surrey,” said Barinder Rasode, who’s with the Parks and Recreation Commission for Surrey. Indeed, the event on Friday felt genuinely multicultural and not a “pretend pluralism” and Bhangra was a means to achieve this fusion through Jazzy B.
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