EVENT: Leaders of the Old Skool

MANDiNKA and ONiT! PR present Leaders of the Old Skool Beyond 2000, A Return to the UK's Roots Sunday 3rd July 2011 Plan B, Brixton | 6:30pm Every scene has its originators and Spoken Word is no different. New and emerging artists constantly sprout from a genre which some believe to be just a few years old, but look beneath the surface, and you'll find an array of poets, lyricists, spoken word artists and story-tellers who've set the scene and paved the way for generations to come... ...meet the Leaders of the Old Skool 7 of the UK's Pioneering artists who've carved and moulded a sub-culture of entertainment that speaks to generations Compere Kat Francois Guests Best Kept Secret [AmeN NoiR | OneNess | ShaKaRa | TuggS.t.a.r] Beyonder David J the Pugilist Inua Ellams Tshaka Campbell Zena Edwards Prepare yourself for greatness as these trailblazers remind you of where spoken word came from, introduce you to how far it's reached and show you why its possibilities are endless. Leaders of the Old Skool Sunday 3rd July 2011 Doors: 6:30pm Show: 7:30pm Music til 11pm Plan B, 418 Brixton Road, LONDON SW9 7AY Tickets: £7 in advance / £10 on the door MANDiNKA: 07873 813 466 / ONiT! PR: 07971 481 956 Get your ticket sharpish, this show will be a roadblock!

NEWS: MANDiNKA (CLOSE UP) meets ONiT! PR

MANDiNKA (CLOSE UP) and ONiT! PR present their first collaborative project

A night of live entertainment for the discerning Spoken Word lover!

Imagine, if you will, a selection of the finest lyricists, spoken word artists and story-tellers to come out of the UK...

Imagine a stage, filled with such premier talent, that you don’t know what to do with yourself...

Imagine experiencing such excitement that you gasp, watch in awe, clap, click your fingers, stomp your feet or scream at the top of your lungs, as each headline artist graces the stage...

And finally, imagine that collectively, these 8 pioneering artistes are going to blow your mind with words, rhythm, power and sound...

...this ain’t new... we’re taking you back... back to the early days...

...back to when passion was currency and creativity the motive... when poetry was always powerful, stood for a cause and moved you... when art was love and love was art...

Ladies and gentlemen, girls and boys, fellow creatives and lovers of words, we present to you Leaders of the Old Skool.

Date: Sunday 3rd July 2011 | Time: Doors: 6:30pm | Show: 7:30pm | Music: til midnight

Venue: Plan B, 418 Brixton Road, LONDON SW9 7AY

Tickets: £7 in advance / £10 on the door | In Person from ONiT! PR & MANDiNKA

**Full details to be released on Sunday 12 June – stay tuned!**

INTERVIEW: FLOetic Lara

Short.

Sharp.

Facts!

Name: FLOetic Lara

Repping: NLT Collective

Birthplace: South London

Lives: On me Jack Jones in Bricky (Brixton)

Poetry Debut: Brixton Art Gallery, 2001

Awards/Accomplishments:

UK Youth Ambassador at the age of 18. Shipped to America to shadow Colin Powell. Musically, I supported and opened the show for artists Jaguar Wright and Dwele. In 2005, I won Best Poet at Kojo’s Comedy Rooms. Also, having Omar produce one of my tracks for my first CD project - that was lovely, and having Don-E produce a track for me was a blessing too.

Q&A

Here at ONiT! PR, we're excited to know that you're having an album launch concert on Sunday 5th June, and because we're eager [laughs], we thought we'd touch base with you before hand to get a little insight into the lady that is FLOetic Lara, so.....let's go!

Describe FLOectic Lara in 5 words...

• Vibrant

• Passionate

• Revolutionary

• Funky

• Creative

Are you a night owl or a morning person?

I am a moon baby (so yes, Night owl).

What came first, the chicken or the egg?

Oh bloody hell… [laughs] ermm… The chicken, the chicken.

Favourite Colour?

I like purple , green and gold.

If you were a fruit what fruit would you be and why?

I know this one, I am a mango! Because I am juicy, I am exotic, suckable (am I allowed to say that? [laughs]) and I’m large, and large mangoes are nice…

We understand that you recorded your album ‘For Lovers Of...’ at Tuff Gong Studios in Jamaica. Tell us about your experience of recording in a space that Bob (Marley) and so many other influential reggae artists have used?

It was amazing! It was good to have that ancestral energy, seeing all the medals and platinum records was definitely inspirational and I felt homered to be there.

What can we expect to hear on this album?

You can expect to hear my usual soul, eclectic mix of Jazz and hip hop but it’s fused with a reggae undertone and it was recorded with a full, live band.

You’re well known in the industry as a Singer/Songwriter as well as a Poet. Do you have a preference of the two?

Oh boy, boy, boy [laughs] No I don’t have a preference, no. I’m a Poet, who likes to use sound I suppose. I’ve always loved messing about vocally, but yeah, I can’t say I have a preference.

What inspired you to start performing and actually pursue it as a career?

Initially, it was just about sharing some of my creativity and I suppose what inspired me, was seeing some of the other artists on the scene doing their thing and making it their career. I didn’t really know Poets could be so, powerful. It made a big impact on me – especially the spoken word scene. As for singing, I was 11 years old when my favourite artist (Erykah Badu) bought out her first album, Baduizum. I played it non-stop and I just loved it, so I suppose it had quite an impact on me.

Describe your style…

I’d say its thought provoking, passionate, youthful, cheeky but with an underlying message from an old soul.

Do you have any pre-performance rituals that you like to do before a show?

Before I get on stage, I like to prep myself up by visualizing what I’m going to do, I like to give thanks that I’m about to go up there and do my thing, and tell myself to breathe and not to worry [laughs] because sometimes, I can get quite nervous.

Who are your greatest influences?

Erykah Badu, I like Busta Rhymes because of his energy, I’ve always loved Busta. I’d also claim AmeN NoiR as one of my influences; he’s a spoken word artist from the London scene. I just think he’s amazingly powerful and has a great stage presence, so yeah. Also, sorry I can’t forget my jazz influences, Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday - love them.

If you could collaborate on a track with any other singer, dead or alive, who would you choose?

Dead or alive? Erm.. Fundamentally I would like to do something with Erykah Badu but for someone that’s passed I’d like to do something with Billie Holiday because her pain was immense, and really came through in her sound and her tone, so yeah, I’d work with her.

Is there an artist or performance that you’ve recently seen that blew you away?

I saw Damian Marley not too long ago and he was tight, really good.

We know you’ve performed internationally, from New York to the Far East (Jealous!) What’s been your greatest performance experience that you’ve had outside of the UK?

Once, I was in New York and, because I do a lot of youth work as well, I mix music with youth work, I performed for a school of supposedly 'naughty' under privileged youths, and they went off their heads saying “oh woooow you should be on American Idol” and so on, so that was nice, definitely. Mostly, because they’re children.

Musically I’d say Bangkok - I performed with Thailand’s top Saxophonist (sorry, I can’t remember his name). He was amazing and the vibe that we had was just incredible because we both shared a deep appreciation for Jazz, which was nice.

What do you do in your spare time to relax when you’re not hard at work?

I like to hold a juice, kick back, light candles and enjoy a hot bath, using some of my Naturally Divine Oils from my own product range [laughs], and just chilling with my bredrins. We like to talk over good food, discuss a good book and so on.

What can we expect from your Album Launch at Plan B on the 5th of June?

Ooooh some exciting surprises! Expect me to utilise my creativity in various styles of art, put it that way… (hint, hint, hint – I’m not giving anything away [laughs])

Where can fans buy your album?

Firstly it will be available at the launch, following that, on FLOeticlara.com, also, it will soon be available on iTunes.

Outside of the stage, where can we find you?

Facebook: www.facebook.com/FLOeticlara

Twitter: @FLOeticlara

MySpace: www.myspace.com/FLOeticlara

Web: www.FLOeticlara.com and www.NLTproductions.co.uk

You can see and hear the enigmatic and vivacious FLOetic Lara perform tracks from her latest album, 'For Lovers Of...' at her launch concert at Plan B, 418 Brixton Road, LONDON SW9 7AY on Sunday 5th June.

FLO will be supported by guest artists AmeN Noir (Best Kept Secret), Comfort - Art without Apology, LeeN, Mandisa and Mikel Ameen. This live extravaganza will be compered by the hilarious Kat Francois (Kat's Got Your Tongue, Word4Word, INTIMATES)

Tickets: £10 in advance from TicketWeb or in person, from the following outlets:

North - Every Bodies Music

261 High Road, N15 4RR | 020 8802 0146

East - Direct Impact Music
158 Hoe Street, E17 4QH | 07939 315 928

South – Blacker Dread Music
406 Coldharbour Lane, SW9 8LF | 020 7274 5095

More on the door, on the night.

This is one not to be missed!

Words by: Shorntay Allen

EVENT: CLOSE UP with Comfort

MANDiNKA

presents

CLOSE UP with COMFORT

Alongside Nu Vibez

Join Comfort – Art without Apology

for the last CLOSE UP of 2010

on

Wednesday 10 November

Brought to you by MANDiNKA, CLOSE UP with Comfort will give you an insight into the mind and times of the woman who brings you Art without Apology. A thought provoking, entertaining lyricist, Comfort offers a no-nonsense take on modern life and relationships, with a hint of eroticism.

With Special Guest Performances from Saran Green (Partnas in Rhyme), Menace and dynamic duo, Soulcyde, live music from Nu Vibez, music from DJ Rhodium of Phat Kontrollaz and hosted by the super talented and funny Songstress that is Dionne Reid, you'd be a fool to miss out!

**

FREE GIFT*

*For the first 50 people, on the ONiT! PR guest list only, to arrive

Email FULL names to: onitpr@yahoo.co.uk

(ONiT! Guest list closes at 11:59pm on Tuesday 09 November)

**

Entry

Doors 7:30pm

Show 8:00pm sharp

After party with DJ Rhodium 11pm - midnight

**

Entry Fee

Guest List: £6 | Door: £8 (all evening)

(ONiT! Guest list closes at 11:59pm on Tuesday 09 November)

**

Venue

The Old Queens Head | 44 Essex Road | Angel | Islington | London | N1 8LN

Nearest Tubes: Angel (Northern Line) /Farringdon (Hammersmith & City or Circle Line)

For further information, please contact:

MANDiNKA | +44 (0)7944 090 805