WIndrush Festival - a family affair
Yes, people. I have sufficiently recovered from putting on a festival and producing a musical play: Windrush : The Next Generation
Over 220 people came down, including Olympic and World Champion Christina Ohurgu, to Stratford Circus enjoy the festival. It certainly was family affair as we had grandmas, mothers and grandchildren taking part in the short film screenings, spoken word and head-wrapping workshops and enjoying the sounds from a steel pan. The highlight was the musical play based on my album, “The Windrush: Vol 2” with me performing with a live band
I know you guys enjoyed yourself so here’s to more of the same thing!
Shout outs to all the volunteers, actors, band members, Nikki, Sandra, Victor Richards, Sister E, Lyrical Healer, Dean Atta, Matthew Xia, the film-makers and everyone who helped to make it a successful event
Love is Love
Segge Dan
Windrush: The Next Generation - musical drama based on Segge Dan’s album
The Windrush Festival
Yes people - if you can’t get onto festivals organise your own festival!
Segge Dan - Libation (remix) official video featuring Omar & Mattik
Yes people, its been long time coming but my debut video is here!!!
Shoutout to everyone who came down and made this possible: Daddy Ash (love you long time), Matik, Essensual Songs, Sarah, Phink TV and Umar. You can download this track for free by clicking here
Segge Dan performing@ Black Music Records & African Crafts Fair
If you’re about in West/North West London - then come check me out at this gig.
Segge Dan performing Libation (in memory of Maddie Williamson)@Fairtrade Festival
This was a special moment performing Libation as the day before my friend’s mother lost her battle to a terminal illness. Doing Libation made it all the more poignant. Rest in Maddie Williamson - 1942 -2010 reunited with Al Williamson. Love is Love.
Love is Love to Ty, Keith and Su and all friends and family of Maddie, we truly celebrated your life and felt your spirit around us at the wake.
Segge Dan performing Lady (Fela remake) @ Matthew 25, Koforidua, Ghana
Segge Dan taking time out from his charity trip in Ghana to perform to an audience in Ghana
In January/February 2010 I went to Ghana with my charity, ADAP, to teach English and look at some of the issues that the teachers were having. I taught English at Matthew 25 which is a refuge for adults with HIV. Needlessly to say, it was very rewarding and challenged some of my perspective of people with HIV. I’m currently devising workshops to some of the issues that the secondary school teachers highlighed and I have teachers in England that will be going out to Ghana in July to deliver these workshops.
So if you’re a teacher, doctor or nurse - please holla if you’re interested in volunteering abroad
Whatever you’re thinking just do it; whatever you’re feeling just be it
Love is Love
Black History Tour
Yes people I got some radio interviews and shows lined up for Black History month. Check it out and let me know if you can reach
21/10/09 Colourfulradio with Rosemary Laryea 11am (http://www.iamcolourful.com/radio/)
24/10/09 PA for Mothers Nation fashion launch@Stratford Circus, London E15 1BX
25/10/09 Bang 103.6 FM with DJ Eliyah 7pm (http://www.bangradio.fm)
25/10/09 PA @Poetry N Motion, Apt Bar, Bank, London EC4N 1TX
26/10/09 Colourfulradio with DJ Elayne Smith 6 -9pm (http://www.iamcolourful.com/radio/)
27/10/09 PA @Up Close and Personal, The Wall, Liverpool Street, EC2N 1HU
28/10/09 PA @ East Thames Housing, Stratford, London, E15
31/10/09 Sensei Radio with DJ Fabia 2-4pm (http://www.sensei.fm/yindex.php)
Give back - Segge Dan supports The Anthony Nolan Trust
Hey all! I’m proud to say that Anthony Nolan Trust will be one of my beneficiary charities.
For those that don’t know The Anthony Nolan Trust takes back lives from leukaemia by managing, and recruiting new donors to, the UK’s most successful bone marrow register. I will be supporting them through public awareness and financially as I will be donating some of my proceeds from my album “The Windrush Vol 2”
The first time I got involved with Anthony Nolan was in 2004 at an event called Urban Music Seminar, where they had a recruitment drive for the Anthony Nolan Trust. At that time, there was a lot of publicity about the late Daniel De Gale, and the need for people, particularly, from ethnic minorities’ background to become donors as there were not enough
After some dithering, a rapper by the name of MCD persuaded me to be “a big man and not be afraid of a little needle”. Well, that was a crushing blow to my ego, so needlessly to say, I had to move through my fear and face the needle (to take a very small blood sample) or face ridicule.
I was blessed to be given a tour by Richard Holman, the Lab Manager, and I took my young cousin with me to see the amazing work that goes down at the lab. It’s waaay too technical for me to describe some of the processes but you can check it out here
So, shoutouts to Robert, Dan, Richard and everyone at the labs for receiving me it was a real honour!
Whatever your passions, whatever moves you - DO something and GET involved!
Love is Love
Segge Dan
Segge Dan performs Libation (featuring Omar)
The final track I performed at Rebel Music was a soulful Hip Hop track called Libation.
It features UK soul legend Omar and is a spiritual, emotional and historical piece. Check it out here and let me know your thoughts
Shoutouts to Matik, Ess_ay_am and Chris who worked me hard during rehearsals
And a big thanks to Mohammed Yahya and all at Rebel Muzic for having me on
It was definitely a big night - braapp!
Love is Love
Segge Dan
If you sign to the mailing list you can get one of the tunes I perfomed on the night
Live at Rebel Music @ Inn on the Green
Yes people - I put in a great performance at Rebel Music!
Also, on the night was a funny comedian called Nabl and American rapper Hasan Salam
Let me know what you thought by leaving a comment
Love is Love
Segge Dan
Charity gig at YAC (Youth against Crime)
My sister turned manager for me by getting me a gig last week. It was at a voluntary organisation called YAC - Youth against Crime, which trains young people to empower and inspire other young people to move in a more positive direction.
It was a honour for me to do as I’m all about helping people to reach their potential. I wasn’t sure if the young people were ready for my brand of soulful Hip Hop but I guess they recognised good music from the soul. After I performed two soulful raps, Illegal Aliens and Dem Mans Illin, I decided to have some fun. As YAC is having a sponsored Stay Awake in August, I challenged the audience that I would match the highest offer pledged to that event. All in all we raised £83 on the day and a further £86 in pledges. Now thats £169 in total!
I spoke to one of the founders, Janet, and was moved by their reasons to start it. It all started with the tragic death of Adam Regis in East London. These women, some of them mothers, decided to do something about the prevalent youth crime in their area, and hence the birth of YAC. Now that is Love is Love!
So thanks to my sister Niki, Jenifer, Janet and all at YAC keep being gloriously you!
Love is Love
Rebel music for the soul
I just had to blog about the event I went to last week. If you, like me, are tired of the monotony and consumerism of mainstream then you gotta check out an event called Rebel Music.
It is every month at Inn on the Green, Ladbroke Grove in west London and is hosted by a talented rapper called Mohammed Yahya and a spoken word group - Poetic Pilgrimage.
I got there a bit a late so I missed some of the open-mic performances but the ones I did catch offered thought-provoking deep lyrics on society. There were some rappers who dropped some spiritual street lyrics from an Islamic perspective. From what I hear of rappers on mainstream, these guys would offer our youths something more substantial. But will mainstream radio play it ???
My highlights were a six-piece band, who were playing African instruments and percussion, called Asheber and the African Revolution (pictured) and a charismatic rapper/vocalist Wanlov. Wanlov is from Ghana and spoke in English, Pidgin-English and, I think, Twi (one of the languages of Ghana). He came to stage in a vest top and a kente wrap with an instrument that could be best described as African shakers. His songs included one about an African superhero called Superchompia and his current single called “Green Card”. It was amusing and deep at the same time - big up Wanlov
Oh yeah, food was good and cheap, I had coconut chicken curry for £2.50 which was cooked by one of the ladies at the back (sorry didn’t get your name). I also had a pleasant surprise as one of the young people I work with, Saffia, got up and stage and dropped a song she wrote - natural talent right there
So thanks Rebel Music for giving me some quality music and big up to my man KMT on the wheels of steel spinning some incredible music. So all that is left for me do is to unashamedly promote myself to perform at the next event, ya heard!!!
You can check me out on Facebook as well as Rebel Music -so holla or leave a comment!!!
Love is Love
Segge Dan
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Live show at University East Anglia (UEA) 27/03/2009
Yes people my first gig of the year at UEA and my first written blog ever!!!. I had prepared hard
because normally I use to do shows with my man Daddy Ash and this was like my first main solo show. I had nerves all the way on the train to Norwich but a meal in a Japanese restaurant soon quelled all that. Can you believe we had to cook our own meat & vegetables in the restaurant! My man Ty introduce me to hot Saki..mmmm…nice
UEA was a hard crowd and I had to adapt my material in case I got booed. Did a freestyle over Beyonce “Single Ladies” and some other beat that DJ Volatile threw on and rapped on topics that the crowd suggested such as climate change. Glad to see UEA students aint just about partying hard!
Did a couple of track of f my album which included the Illegal Aliens remix with 50s “P.I.MP” and the ragga -infused Dem man illin (Murder she wrote riddim) and both of these went down a storm
Shoutouts to Linda and her crew who were bubbly, bubbly…trust. Also David and his friend from France. Big up Sam for booking me, Claire with some really nice photos and my man Big T for sorting out the mailing list. And DJ Volatile, we will be even hotter when we get our practice on!
Catch you soon
Love is Love
Segge Dan
Live session with DJ Excalibah
This is Segge Dan and Black Britanyaa in a live session on Pyro Radio with Dj Excalibah throwing down on some beats - nice!
Visit to Kassa Kunda School in the Gambia
In his role as ADAP (African Development Association for Progress) Chairman, Segge Dan visited Kassa Kunda School in the Gambia.
Here is a video clip of Segge Dan singing with children at the school. Visit the ADAP website for more information about the school and the charity’s other projects in the Gambia and Ghana.
Welcome to SeggeDan.com
Hey wassup people and welcome to my world of music, lyrics and life.
I am a music artist, educator and active charity worker. I use music as a way to engage young people in areas such as Literacy and Life skills and I chair a charity that is working on development projects in Africa. I can tell you I’ve been on a field trip and it certainly keeps you grounded.
I don’t do mainstream Hip Hop, I like to push the musical boundaries like The Roots or a Kanye West. Add the social commentary of Talib Kweli and the soul of a Common then you get an idea of Segge Dan.
My whole ethos is LOVE is LOVE like don’t worry about the stresses of life or sweat the small stuff because more often than not they will work themselves out.
I want my music to inspire people to FEEL something, DO something and BE something. Feel - whether laugh, cry, think or dance. Do - instead of talking just actually do something. Be - be love and be your potential.
Hope you enjoy the music and the site and don’t forget to spread the word!
Black Britanyaa - Windrush Vol.2
