I wish I had more time to read, write and swim!! I have a strong passion for poetry and politics. One of my own sayings is this: "Get to love poetry and politics - they open your heart and mind". I also like heavy weight boxing, karate and football - Arsenal and Nigeria's Super Eagles are my home and preferred teams. In my humble opinion Muhammed Ali, Bruce Lee, Pele, and Thierry Henry are amongst the masters of their craft.
MUHAMMED ALI AND MIKE TYSON
MySpace meets Thierry Henry
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Like minded people. People who, like me, think outside the box their society dictates that they must stay, think and die in!
TOYIN AGBETU - A BROTHER I HAVE MET AND ADMIRE!!!
RICHARD PRYOR ON THE 'N' WORD
EDDIE NESTOR AND OTHER UK TALENTS IN THE REAL McCOY!!!
GINA YASHERE AND JOCELYNE JEE
MY BROTHER O.B. IN HIS SOUL SISTA MUSIC VIDEO - A HUGE TALENT!!!
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Phemy recites 'An African In 70's England'
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FROM DEVONTE TO PHEMY WILLIAMS - WITH JAH'S WISDOM!
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Until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently dicredited and abandoned;
that until there are no longer first class and second class citizens of any nation;
that until the colour of a man's skin is of no more significance than the colour of his eyes;
that until the basic human rights are equally guaranteed to all, without regard to race;
that until that day, the dream of lasting peace and world citizenship and the rule of international morality will remain but fleeting illusions, to be pursued but never attained.
And until the ignoble and unhappy regimes that hold our brothers in Angola, in Mozambique and in South Africa in sub-human bondage have been toppled and destroyed; until bigotry and prejudice and malicious and inhuman self-interest have been replaced by understanding and tolerance and good-will; until all Africans stand and speak as free beings, equal in the eyes of all men, as they are in the eyes of Heaven; until that day, the African continent will not know peace.
We Africans will fight, if necessary, and we know that we shall win, as we are confident in the victory of good over evil.
The basis of racial discrimination and colonialism has been economic, and it is with economic weapons that these evils have been and can be overcome. In pursuance of resolutions adopted at the Addis Ababa summit conference, African states have undertaken certain measures in the economic field which, if adopted by all member states of the United Nations, would soon reduce intransigeance to reason.
I ask, today, for adherence to these measures by every nation represented here which is truly devoted to the principles enunciated in the charter.
We must act while we can, while the occasion exists to exert those legitimate pressures available to us lest time run out and resort be had to less happy means.
The great nations of the world would do well to remember that in the modern age even their own fates are not wholely in their hands.
Peace demands the united efforts of us all. Who can foresee what spark might ignite the fuse?
The stake of each one of us is identical-life or death.
We all wish to live. We all seek a world in which men are freed of the burdens of ignorance, poverty, hunger and disease. And we shall all be hard-pressed to escape the deadly rain of nuclear fall-out should catastrophe overtake us.
The problems which confront us today are, equally, unprecedented. They have no counterparts in human experience. Men search the pages of history for solutions, for precedents, but there are none.
This then, is the ultimate challenge. Where are we to look for our survival, for the answers to the questions which have never before been posed? We must look, first, to the Almighty God, Who has raised man above the animals and endowed him with intelligence and reason. We must put our faith in Him, that He will not desert us or permit us to destroy humanity which He created in His image.
And we must look into ourselves, into the depth of our souls. We must become something we have never been and for which our education and experience and environment have ill-prepared us.
We must become bigger than we have been : more courageous, greater in spirit, larger in outlook. We must become members of a new race, overcoming petty prejudice, owing our ultimate allegiance not to nations but to our fellow men within the human community."
Haile Selassie I
4 October 1963
United Nations, New York.
JAH NO DEAD!
GIFT OF GOD aka MATTHEW AND PHEMY WILLIAMS HELP BOB MARLEY SING 'REDEMPTION SONG'
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Reggae - especially Lovers and Roots (I am the original Miss Roots!), Soul - especially Motown, Jazz, House, Blues, Old school Hip hop - "Don't push me 'cos I'm close to the edge. I'm trying not to lose my head...." does it for me every time!! In fact I love any genre of music which, like good poetry, moves me mentally and/or physically. Radio stations I listen to for music and debates include Galaxy radio 99.5fm/afiwestation.com (weekends), Station 89.8fm, BBC London 94.9fm, Talksport radio 1089am (weekends) stageradiolive.com (Thursdays 9 - 12pm etc.
'Goodbye Uncle Tom', Alex Haley's 'Roots', 'Coming to America 'and 'The Harder They Come'.
Documentaries or films which promote Africa and her people as well as documentaries on nature.
Autobiographies of people who have inspired me over the years. I am currently reading Nelson Mandela's - its huge!! Ssh! Don't tell anyone but I am also reading Jordan aka Katie Price's!!!
Mother Nature, Barack Obama, Haile Selassie I, Marcus Garvey, Martin Luther King, Angela Davis, Alex Haley, Tony Benn who I met at the BBC television greenroom, George Galloway of 'Talk Sport' radio, Louis Farrakahn, Prof. Tony Martin, Mayor Ken Livingston, Malcolm X, AC of www.ghettosoul.com, Rosa Parks, Toyin Agbetu of www.ligali.org.uk, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Bob 'Redemption Song' Marley, Dennis 'Words of wisdom' Brown who I met at a Finsbury Park record shop.
The following are musicians who I wouldn't necessarily describe as my 'heros' but whom I'll include here as there is no more room in the 'music' section: Gregory 'Border' Issacs, Buju Banton, Sizzler Kulangi, Vivian 'Extra classic' Jones, Tinga 'Cover me' Stewart, The Wailers, Burning 'Slavery days' Spear, Jimmy 'Many rivers to cross/ The harder they come' Cliff, Johny 'I can see clearly now' Nash, Desmond 'The Israelites' Dekka, John 'Help me make it through the night' Holt, Garnet Silk, Simply 'Stars' Red, UB 'Red, red wine' 40, Hugh 'Africa must be free' Mundell, Augustus Pablo, Barry 'Side show' Biggs, Sugar 'Good thing going' Minott, Doctor 'Conscious man' Alimantado, Sanchez, Yellowman, Mutaburuka, Levi Roots, Luciano -'Who could it be?', Macka B, Leroy 'Four seasons Lover' Gibbons, Leroy 'Princess Black' Smart, Garnett 'Lord watch over us' Silk, Morgans Herritage, Capleton, Marcia 'I'm still woman' Griffiths, Steel 'The Klu, Klux Klan' Pulse, Berres 'How do you say thank you' Hammond, Winston 'Dim the lights' Reedy, Mighty Diamonds, I Roy, U Roy, Big 'Hit the road Jack' Youth, Dillinger, Trinity, Clint Eastwood, Tapper 'She want a phensic' Zukie, Third 'Now that we found love' World, Janet 'Silly Games' Kaye, Louisa '6th Street' Marks, Carroll 'I'm so sorry' Thompson, The Twinkle 'If Africa no free' Brothers, Israel 'Road Block' Viberation, Junior Delgado, Rod 'Ethiopian Kings' Taylor, Ken 'Everything I own' Boothe, Fred 'So Jah say' Locks, Jacob 'Tired fe lick weed in a bush' Miller, Fela and Femi Kuti, Freddie 'Big Ship' Mcgregor, Maxi 'Some guys have all the luck' Priest, Grand Master Flash, Public Enemy, Shalama, Soul to 'Back to Life' Soul, Billie 'Good morning heartache/Strange fruit' Holiday, Curtis 'Move on up' Mayfield, Bill 'Lovely day' Withers, Jim 'Distant drums' Reeves, Roy Aires, Otis 'Try a little tenderness' Redding James 'Say it loud/Sex machine' Brown, Sam Cooke, Smokey 'Tears of a clown' Robinson, Billy 'Carribean Queen' Ocean, Eddie 'Electric Avenue' Grant, Dionne 'Walk on by' Warwick, Gladys 'My life's story' Knight, Stevie 'Happy birthday' Wonder, Ray 'Take these chains' Charles, Marvin 'Whats going on' Gaye, Lionel 'Three times a lady' Richie, The Jackson 'ABC' Five, Michael 'Bad' Jackson, Freddie 'Rock me tonight' Jackson, Teddy 'TKO' Pendergrass, Luther 'Give me the reason' Vandross, John 'Live it up' Legend, Michael 'On my own'/'Ya mo be there' Macdonald - duets with Pattie Labell/James Ingram, Amy 'Rehap' Winehouse, Karen 'I say goodbye to love' Carpenter, Kenny 'Thinking about your love' Thomas, Jazzy 'Back to life' B, Lemar, Alicia Keys and sooooo many others!!!
A big shout out at this point to Djs around the world! They go out of their way to provide us with our musical doses!! What is it that God is called these days?!:)
Other people who have inspired me include Maya Angelou, Richard Pryor, Steve Biko, Desmond Tutu who my son Daniel and I met during a Dylans book signing session, Claudia Jones, Paul Robeson, Harriet Tubman, Nanny of the Moroons, Oprah Winfrey, the late Princess Diana who I met back stage at the Sadler's Wells Theatre after my performance in Puccini's La Boheme, Spike Lee, Galaxy radio, many others and of course myself. My 5 children - Daniel, Jermaine, Kizzy, Joseph and Joshua also deserve a mention as they give me the most important reason to exist.