Show Notes
Have you ever wished you could teleport? Or mind-read? Or time travel? All of these are easier than you think. Every time you press play you step into another world and open yourself up to someone else's experience. This might not sound like a groundbreaking discovery in an era of constant verbal and visual bombardment, but the potential of this truth is limitless. In his own wildly unconventional way, George the Poet uses music from his environment to convey this point. All you have to do is press play. Featured songs: Mucky - It's On Me Maleek Berry - Gimme Life Bonnie Beretta - Team Bonnie Guala - Guala Gala 1011 - Next Up? Written by George the Poet Original score by Benbrick Produced by Benbrick and George The Poet
More from Have You Heard George's Podcast?
In Uganda’s capital city, a young cab driver forms an unlikely bond with a sex worker during the crippling lockdown of 2021. They are both forced to make tough decisions. Written by George the Poet Produced by Benbrick & George the Poet Original Music and Sound Design by Benbrick.
George responds to audience questions taken from Common Ground, the platform he co-created in Chapter 3. Listeners discuss everything from art to race using prompts from previous episodes, reaffirming the importance of the artist/audience relationship.
Shaken by the passing of his grandmother, George reflects on the post-colonial struggles of her generation. 1970s Jamaica provides an early case study of the weaponised debt that went on to re-colonise much of the global South. A look back on previous episodes illuminates patterns of exploitation and extraction across African/Western relations. This is the global context that frames the questionable role of the International Monetary Fund in the perpetuation of poverty. George is reminded by his grandmother’s legacy that fighting for justice is always an option.
When keeping it real goes…wrong? For a moment in the seventies, Jamaican democracy produced an ambitious plan to end inequality between countries. But when the island’s socialist leader, Michael Manley, flew too close to the sun, he got burnt. What was the New International Economic Order? Why did it rattle Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan so much? On this fast-paced tour of Jamaican history, George looks back at the rise and fall of the Third World’s biggest political project. Written by George the Poet Produced by Benbrick and George the Poet Original score composed by Benbrick and recorded by the BBC Concert Orchestra
When is a breakup not a breakup? When your ex controls every aspect of your life. After walking through the freedom struggles of Ghana and the Congo in previous episodes, George turns his attention towards the “former” French colonies of West and Central Africa. What happens when freedom is gifted conditionally, not won through revolution? Is all independence created equal? Written by George the Poet Produced by Benbrick and George the Poet Original Score by Benbrick recorded by the BBC Concert Orchestra Sound Design by Benbrick