And then there was Afropop...

Picture this- Winter of 1992 or 1993- I'm home for holiday break, savoring every day away from boarding school and spent with my older, dummer boyfriend Paul. Paul had long hair and drove a Lincoln which fit the other three members of our crew perfectly for the countless drive and smoke nights. Thinking about it now I am getting a flash of the credits for "That 70s Show" except it was the 90s, we were way, way cooler, the guys all older and musicians, and Queensryche, Fishbone, Soundgarden and Janes Addiction replaced Jim Croce and Peter Framton.

But this Sunday night, Paul and I were off solo- parked on a snowy dead-end down the street from my family house, every now and then releasing a free hand from under our warm legs to put something in the air. When the tape popped out of the deck, Paul reached to flip it but before he could, I laid my hand on his to pause and listen. From the radio, sounds I had never heard before came from the speakers. It was rich and had rhythm that made me move in my frosty seat. The smooth percussion was interrupted by a boisterous and singsong voice who referred to himself as "JOSS CULINAY" (Georges Collinet).

My world changed in that moment and thus started the "Afropop Worldwide". From then on though the remainder of my highschool days, Paul and I would be transported, together or apart, to far away lands of funk, soul and movement every Sunday night.

 Fast forward almost 20 (!) years later and many moons of transitional soundtracks, I am walking down (I think) 4th St in Park Slope, Brooklyn (my then neighborhood) and I stop dead in my tracks at a colorful sign reading "Afropop Worldwide". I was jolted back to a time that I had not considered for at least a decade (and shocked when I processed the information that a) Afropop was not headquartered in Africa and b) they were still a radio program). I suddenly pulled together the link that brought me to where I am in my musical exploration today for if if wasn't for "Joss" and Afropop, my exposure and understanding of all the music in my future would possibly never came to be. And there it was- serendipitously staring back at me in BK. (I also came to find out that a dude I was dating at the time had worked for Afropop when he first graduated from college. It was the first time anyone I had met anyone who even knew what it was.)

 So, thank you from the bottom of my Joss and AW. You guys changed my life, my music, my soul. Here's a program from a fews ago about DJing that I think brings it even more full circle. With LOVE!