Rosa Odette

I'd like to meet:

YOU

Music:

What would life be without music? Rhythm is inherent in everything that is in motion, and we have to dance! Working with artists and musicians in Tanzania taught me about rhythm, singing from the soul, and the powerful expression of the music that sustains people in the most difficult times.

CHECK OUT THE MUSIC WE PRODUCE AT:

I LOVE MUSIC...FROM THE BLUES TO HIPHOP TO REGGAE...AND ALL AFRICAN MUSIC!

Some of my Favorite Artists include:

America = ARETHA FRANKLIN, ODETTA, STEVIE WONDER, EARTH WIND & FIRE, SANTANA, DONNA SUMMERS, STEVE MILLER, BOB DYLAN, SLY & THE FAMILY STONE, DE LA SOUL, THE ROOTS, NAS, BUSTA RHYMES, MARY J. BLIGE, MISSY ELLIOT, GWEN STEFANI, NELLY FURTADO, JILL SCOTT, ALICIA KEYS, JAMES BROWN (R.I.P.) and the list goes on...

Africa = NDALA KASHEBA, GARIKAYI TIRIKOTI, YEKETE BEAT BAND, FRANCO & ROCHEREAU, SALIF KEITA, YOUSSOU N'DOUR, OUMOU SANGARE, CHEIKH LO, BAABA MAAL, REMI ONGALA, AYUB OGADA, MANU DIBANGO, KOFI OLOMIDE, HUGH MASEKELA, LUCKY DUBE, OLIVER MTUKUDZI, GIGI, ETHIOPIQUES COLLECTIONS, ASTER AWEKE, HAMZA EL DIN, and so many more...

Other Artists = BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS, PETER TOSH, JIMMY CLIFF, ALTON ELLIS, WINSTON JARRET, TOOTS & THE MAYTALS, THE MIGHTY SPARROW, LKJ...

Movies:

SO MANY I LOVE, SO MANY MORE TO SEE...

Recent Views: SYMPATHY FOR LADY VENGEANCE (Korea), BLOOD DIAMONDS, THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND, THE HOUSE OF SAND (Brazil), THE PRESTIGE, THE CONSTANT GARDENER, BABEL, 300, TRAVELLERS AND MAGICIANS (Bhutan), MIRRORMASK, HERO, THE THREE BURIALS, ROYAL TENENBAUMS, RUSHMORE, CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON, CRANK, RUNNING WITH SCISSORS, AMANDLA! (South Africa), AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH, BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB, LATCHO DROM...

From my childhood: FELIX THE CAT, THE JUNGLE BOOK, THE DARK CRYSTAL, LABYRINTH, DUNE, THE NEVERENDING STORY, FLIGHT OF DRAGONS, FANTASIA, THE LAST UNICORN, TIME BANDITS, PEE WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE, THUNDERCATS, VOLTRON, etc...

For always: MONTY PHYTHON (ALL), BLACK ADDER, SNL

Television:

OK, SO AMERICAN IDOL IS PRETTY F***ING FUNNY! I ALSO LIKED ROME (HBO Series)...

Books:

I LOVE TO LEARN NEW LANGUAGES...MUST READ MY SWAHILI-ENGLISH DICTIONARY TO KEEP IT FRESH, LEARNING ITALIAN & SPANISH, ALSO BERHASA MALAYSIA FOR WHEN I TRAVEL TO KUALA LUMPUR AND CHILL OUT IN SARAWAK...BORNEO IS THE BEST!

I ALSO LIKE AUTOBIOGRAPHIES...NELSON MANDELA'S "LONG WALK TO FREEDOM" IS A MUST READ...
ALL WRITINGS AND TEACHINGS OF THE DALAI LAMA...

Heroes:

PEOPLE WHO CHOOSE TO DO THE RIGHT THING IN TOUGH SITUATIONS

SEE BELOW...CHECK OUT THE ARTICLES I WROTE AS PART OF A TEAM OF EDITORIALISTS FOR "NEXT" - A SECTION OF THE SEATTLE TIMES SUNDAY PAPER...VIEWS.VOICES.VISION.

Editorials & Opinion: Saturday, November 08, 2003

Stand up for what you believe: Online resources can help would-be activists find a voice

Many in my generation constantly feel that our voices aren't heard. The "powers that be" often seem too elite, too wealthy and too far removed from our own daily concerns.
But even though this feeling generates and sustains the apathy that can cause us to remove ourselves from political action , there are easy ways to join your voice to millions of other like-minded people across the nation. It is possible to take action.
I am more involved in politics than ever, mostly due to the many grass-roots initiatives that have cropped up in the past few years. Many of these organizations, which are mainly visible online, have helped make significant changes both locally and nationally.
By signing petitions sent via e-mail from various groups, I know I'm helping, with my limited time, by taking some action. I may spend just 15 minutes twice a week sending out e-mail letters to my local politicians, but it helps me stay aware and feel active, even as I struggle to keep up on my work to make ends meet.
For the first time, I am contacting my senators and representatives by e-mail, mail and sometimes by telephone. I have been encouraged to voice my opinion for the first time because I am using these various online resources to keep me up-to-date on current issues.
Getting involved...

Some left-leaning organizations:
• Not In Our Name Seattle www.notinourname-seattle.net/
• Move On www.moveon.org/
• America's Future www.ourfuture.org/
• Act For Change www.workingforchange.com/activism/index.cfm
• Win Without War www.winwithoutwar.org/
• Join The Debate jointhedebate.org/
• NARAL Pro-Choice America prochoiceamerica.org/
• Defenders of Wildlife defenders.org/
• Against the Wall www.againstthewall.net/
These organizations operate at all levels, from grass-roots neighborhood meetings promoted by word of mouth to nationwide affiliations of millions of members.
Many of the groups and individuals working to change the course of our country are informed, committed and sensitive to the fact that not everybody agrees with the direction the Bush administration is taking us.
While the goals of each organization may differ, the destination is the same: to build a better world for all people, not just the elite who are currently running the country.
Since 2001, it has been increasingly important to me to get involved to bring about positive change. The first group I heard about that was speaking out against the military plan to bomb Afghanistan post-9-11 was Not In Our Name (NION).
This group has been most active here in Seattle, and not just in demonstrations and marches. NION organizes events for many local groups, most recently helping with a day of protest to stop police brutality Oct. 22.
NION's concerns include the direction this government has taken our civil liberties and the intensified domestic repression since 9-11.
The national organization I find most helpful is Move On. Their grass-roots style has the clout to change American politics. They have helped encourage us little people to band together to counteract the influence of big money. Their positive outlook is progress enough.
Using some of these methods and resources online, you can easily and quickly get involved in a variety of issues. So what are you waiting for?
Rosa Tyabji co-owns a record label and production company that promotes African composers.
Copyright © 2003 The Seattle Times Company

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Editorials & Opinion: Saturday, September 20, 2003

Homosexual backlash: We can't let intolerance destroy vibrant lives

We here in America need to defend the rights of the individual to love and live with whomever they choose. We need to do this because we can. America is built by people who have broken down boundaries and secured freedoms previously unknown to society.
This acts as a beacon of hope for those in other parts of the world who face extreme penalties as they seek these same rights and freedoms. In some other countries, homosexuality carries harsh social punishments and even the death penalty.
In Tanzania, a young man, Kiiza Kahama, recently martyred himself to advance these same issues. He was a media personality, a Tanzanian celebrity and openly gay. He was courageous and bold, and one of my dearest friends when I lived in Tanzania.
He was an extreme talent, busy in many fields. He worked as an artist and director of film, radio and TV programs. I worked with him on a film he wrote, called "Surrender," which exposed common homosexual relationships in Zanzibar, an island off the mainland of Tanzania. The film was produced in 2000 for the South African TV network M-NET.
He was also a top fashion designer and choreographer of fashion shows in his country. His life was full of good work, which brought him great admiration and equal hatred. He dared to put these issues into the media when no one else in his country would.
The hatred and anger against him, his time imprisoned unjustly by the police who sought to gain money from his wealthy family, and his public humiliations in the tabloids and newspapers wrecked his nerves and his life until he died from a combination of alcohol abuse and diabetes.
A vibrant life drowned by intolerance. A sensitive man was crushed by the weight of hatred.
We need to uphold hope and advance freedom here in the United States, for our society and for those others who cannot hope to see such tolerance in their own countries.
We have seen advancements in the rights of sexual minorities. The Supreme Court has overturned a Texas anti-sodomy law. The prestigious Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life recently announced that its polls found "less opposition to gay marriage." But still, the forum finds that 53 percent say they oppose allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally.
Freedoms and liberties secured for people who constantly face discrimination from society are part of what makes the United States a great place.
Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, the author of the Supreme Court majority opinion overturning Bowers v. Hardwick, which upheld state anti-sodomy laws, was quoted in the New York Times in June: "Bowers was not correct when it was decided, and it is not correct today. Its continuance as precedent demeans the lives of homosexual persons."
Gays have perhaps seen more recognition and respect lately, but they still cannot get the same rights to live as a married couple in "civil union" in most of the United States, even while our northern neighbors in Canada condone same-sex marriage.
It is unfortunate that many in high public office, such as Senate majority leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., spread intolerance. Frist stated to ABC's "This Week" that marriage should only be defined as a union between a man and a woman. Republicans had drafted an amendment to make this definition a part of the Constitution even before the anti-sodomy law was struck down.
So, while advancements are being made in one sector of our society, this same progress is fueling a natural backlash and fear of these same freedoms among those in the public who have always opposed gay rights and marriage.
The right for two consenting adults to love each other in the privacy of their own lives should be seen as healthy and correct, no matter what their sexual orientation.
We must remember that tolerance and respect for diversity is a major foundation of our United States of America, whose Declaration of Independence states: "All Men are Created Equal." We need to hold these truths to be self evident, for those who need it worldwide as well as here at home.
Rosa Tyabji is co-owns a record label and production company that promotes African composers.

Copyright © 2003 The Seattle Times Company

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Editorials & Opinion: Saturday, July 26, 2003

Rosa Tyabji / NEXT team

The voices of fear say that we must continually make war. First, against one nation, then another, then back to the other. For many, this seems like a natural progression, the order of things, a development process that will lead to rightful domination of natural resources, human lives and work force. The ultimate power over our world economy for the benefit of America.
Many believe that military might gives us this power by default. Others believe it is a part of economic progress, growth and sustainability. What is stated time and again is that we must "protect against tyrants and dictators" and "destroy terrorist networks." The rhetoric would lead us to believe that this is a necessary conflict of good vs. evil.
During the first Gulf War, I remember very clearly hearing the voices of opposition. I also voiced opposition; though I was only 12 years old, I understood that our world didn't need war.
My junior-high school made banners denouncing the war and strung them across the main roads in our town. We abandoned our classes to exercise our inalienable right of free speech. We were not dissuaded by our teachers or school administrators or rounded up by security guards or police. We expressed anti-government sentiments and said colorful things about George H.W. Bush and his team.
Times have changed.
One Bush has been transplanted with another, newer version. The progeny carries the legacy. The support staff is unchanged. The reasons to have invaded Iraq were unchanged, albeit with an additional now-defunct reason to do so from George W. Bush.
American administration communication paradigms are unchanged: Be vague. Say nothing substantial. Imply big troubles. No details. No transparency.Remedial language = WAR
The overwhelming majority of questions to encourage discussion with the president and his administration are met with nullifying repetition of catch phrases, unmasked intimidation or a unilateralist pseudo-patriotic agenda.
It seems the media are also afflicted by fear, rhetoric and corporate agendas these days. So what reporting may surface from this type of environment? How may the media redeem itself to the American public?
I am 24 years old. I feel my life is ahead of me, yet it seems to be worth very little to my government, which uses the fruits of my labor, in taxes, to inflict war upon others for a narrow, short-term economic agenda based on an unsustainable commodity — petroleum. And it is a commodity that is very lucrative in that short term for a select few.
The frightening part of all this is the amount of our tax dollars that is spent on weapons — more than half of the government budget. It squeezes education, environmental and social programs. It crushes health care. It contributes to the violence in our own society as well.
After all, to weapons manufacturers, the U.S. is a big market. Violence is seen as the way to deal with problems.
I challenge each American to wake up and be brave enough to forget about yourself, your troubles and your debts, and to care for others. Let people know you care — give your time and energy to peace.
Peace is not far away. It is not contingent on the "War on Terrorism." It must be created here in American first. Wake up the power you have.
Rosa Tyabji co-owns a record label and production company that promotes African composers.

Copyright © 2003 The Seattle Times Company