Interview with Jamaicansrus

How do you compare the current Caribbean writing to that of previousgenerations?

I love the new expansiveness, especially with writers like Colin Channer who has opened up Caribbean writing and has made us aware of the places that Caribbean writing can go. Colin really reminds me a lot of Bob Marley and the phenomena of reggae. After reggae was introduced, a musician had two choices. She/he could either go back to the past with ska, and mento --no disrespect to either form -- or she/he could go forward with reggae. The choice was clear. With Colin, a similar a choice is clear to writers from the Caribbean. Either you can continue to write books that are in praise of Babylon or you can go forward by writing about your people, your time, and your landscape. Write about us or write about the metropolis. James Baldwin once said, “Black people need witnesses in this world that thinks everything is white.” Caribbean people desperately need witnesses in this world that thinks everything is Babylon. Yes, Babylon is great. But it has fallen!

To read more of this interview, click here: http://www.jamaicansrus.com/a2z.asp?test=articles&name=gphilps&sidemenu=yes

Other Interviews

Podcast of Parts One & Two Xango Music interview

http://archive-a01m01.libsyn.com/aXdteJ12bHqcfWt7ZHluqWqqk3eX/podcasts/geoffreyphilp/first_part_of_interview.mp3


Remix of Interview with Ariel Gonzalez
http://ia300140.us.archive.org/2/items/GeoffreyPhilpInterviewwithArielMP32/interview_with_ariel_mp3.mp3


Tags: Authors, Bob Marley, books, Caribbean, Caribbean writers, diaspora, fiction, Jamaica, Jamaican writers, Literature, Miami, Podcasts, Poetry, Rastafari, Reggae, Short Stories, South Florida Writers, Writing.