In this episode, I’m talking with Malaki Patterson, who is Gloucestershire-based music producer, community musician, music manager, and creative director. Malaki has helped to achieve much change in the county, to support young people facing barriers in access to music and progression routes into the industry.

 You can listen now below, or on Spotify (search for the name) and iTunes or your favourite podcast app.

We talk about:

• how Malaki wasn’t identified in school as being ‘musical’ because his musical influences weren’t valued.
• how he mixed songs using the radio and a tape recorder, influenced by his Mum, a DJ (in Jamaica, a term for rap); and his Dad, who was part of a soundsystem
• the effect that music technology, and the growth of the garage and grime scene had on his creativity and confidence
• his progression from dropping out of a college course to do factory work, to creating a micro music industry in Gloucester with other garage, hip hop and grime artists
• his first job in a studio and progressing to managing artists
• realising that his ‘practice’ in working with young musicians was in fact ‘community music’
• the barriers facing young people he works with today and the need for decolonisation of music education
• the lack of representation of BAME people in senior positions in music education and music industry
• and we finish with three pieces of advice to help music organisations on their journey to including a more representative range of young people

Links for this episode

The Music Works

DJ Kool Herc (Wikipedia entry)

Mark Bick

Dread MC (Mikel Medley)

[VIDEO] Decolonising the music curriculum webinar hosted by Jimmy Rotheram

King’s Jam Festival

Upsurge artist development programme

Scope Music Management

[VIDEO] More about Malaki’s story in this video about routes into creative industries, for Create Gloucestershire

About the music for education & wellbeing podcast

Listen in each month to get ideas, inspiration and practical advice from people involved in music education, community music, music therapy and more. Learn how you can break down barriers to music, through communications, advocacy and inclusive practice.

The music for the podcast was created by Otis Hynds, a young person working with Noise Solution.

• Contact me if you’d like to be on the podcast.
• Subscribe to my enews to hear about future episodes (and get free downloads – see below).
• Visit Music Education Works to read and search for research evidence of the impact of music education.
• Listen to another great music education-related podcast – the Youth Music podcastfrom UK music charity Youth Music.

Transcript

Music for Education & Wellbeing podcast [20] TRANSCRIPT: Malaki Patterson

  SIGN UP FOR MY ENEWS AND GET FREE RESOURCES.

Need some help with a particular aspect of your communications, or your communications strategy? Contact me.