Assignment 2: What I Hear

     So today on March 22, 2014 I traveled around my favorite area in NYC to do my “Soundwalk,” my neighborhood. But just to do a bit of exploring, I traveled a couple blocks higher around Avenue D just for a change of scenery. The sounds were pretty much the same though, which I liked.

          

      During the warmer weather, local businesses will play reggae and soca, both musics from the Caribbean culture, outside of their stores. I heard one my favorite songs playing, called “Who Jah Bless” by Isasha, in front of an essential oils and fragrances store. On that same block I went into a vegan Caribbean eatery called “Scoops.” I heard rastas talking amongst one another. One said his wife was sick while the other mentioned he had to get his dreads re-twisted soon. Then the one with the sick wife asked me what kind of ice cream I wanted. I told him rum raisin, I asked for the small, but he gave me three scoops instead, which is the equivalent to a large. We both said our good-byes, peace and love, and I went on my way.

     

     Aside from actual conversations I had with people and listening to the musical content of my neighborhood I started paying attention and focusing on sounds I never really considered important before. I actually listened to the wind blow. It felt weird at first because I felt like the only way I could listen to the wind was if it touched my ears. So every time I actually focused on hearing the wind gusts, I felt like it was kicking in the inside of my ears. Aside from that, there’s always the sound of the lovely car engines, the honking of car horns from those graceful drivers with road rage, and on course the multiple voices of the people up have to bob and weave through just to walk along the sidewalk. I think my favorite sounds definitely had to be my conversations with the rastas, and the wind trying to tell me to get my butt back inside my house. 

jamilla project 1

Jamilla Final QT from jamilla schuster on Vimeo.

Jamilla P. Media 160 Artist Statement

     I'm not sure if I would consider myself an artist per-say. I prefer to consider myself someone that is trying to learn about the world as much as possible and use it for the betterment of the common people, the common urban people to be exact. Growing up as an urban youth, I've seen and heard a lot, and the disassociations people have with my culture. It brings most people down, but I believe it should only make people stronger.

    

       As an aspiring film major, I would like to do just that, build and develop urban culture. I would like to take that which is considered a subculture and transform it or extract a mainstream lifestyle out of it. As the saying goes, "Rome was not built in a day." So I'm pretty sure it will be a long, drawn out and tedious task. However, it is a task I feel I must complete nonetheless. And no to be honest, it wouldn't be for the satisfaction of others. It would mostly be so those within my culture, those of urban life can have confidence within themselves. So they can see that they deserve the same rewards as others and it can be given to them, so long as they work hard, push on and continue to build. Continue to build amongst them and portray them in a much better image as opposed to how they do now.

My goal is to help them see themselves in a better light. My goal is to help them form and build a centralized culture amongst themselves in which they can feel they are part of a community, a much more positive community.

      

     Time never stops, and neither can we. We can't afford to slip in between the cracks and forget that there is still more growing that we need to do. I would like to portray that image and make it public for those within the urban circle to understand that things can get better and they will so long as we work and continue to do so.