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    Asking A Birdman not to soarShamira Ibrahim
    9/11/18 4:07pm

    Yeaaaa.... that argument re: their pricing is pure unadulterated BS. It’s $60 this year, it’ll be $80 next year, and $120 the next. Every festival that starts off free then later starts charging eventually becomes like every other identical festival out there.

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      SheeshTheseNamesAsking A Birdman not to soar
      9/11/18 4:12pm

      And it’s definitely more than $60. $60 is the early-bird price they charged people before any acts were announced. It’s more like $70 per day. 

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      Nihongo Hanashimasen.Asking A Birdman not to soar
      9/11/18 4:37pm

      I don’t understand why it’s bad for people to get paid. Compared to other festivals it’s the most affordable. We’re talking $300+ to get one day passes!

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    BlakkNicholsonShamira Ibrahim
    9/11/18 7:07pm

    At the end of the day, the two times I went was pretty litty, and I left both times feeling like the price was worth it. 

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      smoke&waterBlakkNicholson
      9/11/18 8:25pm

      What kind of music was playing?  Do they only do punk or do they have lots of different kinds of music?

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      SheeshTheseNamessmoke&water
      9/12/18 12:17am

      It is mostly mainstream music, some of which is still “different” enough to embody that Afropunk flavor, but much that is just music that young people like. Most of the punk has been relegated to a small, out-of-the-way stage. This year was Miguel, Erykah Badu, Janelle Monae, Pusha T (ugh). Last year was Solange, Ice Cube (he doesn’t belong, in my opinion), and classics like Soul II Soul and Macy Gray. I’ve seen Living Color and Skunk Anansie there, as well as Sza, Chuck D, and Jada Pinkett’s band. Grace Jones headlined one year, but they seem to be getting away from older/classic performers like that. There are three main stages and then the small punk stage, with acts and DJs playing on all of them simultaneously, all day. You can avoid what you don’t like.

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    EvenBaggierTrousers7Shamira Ibrahim
    9/11/18 9:23pm

    I’m just gonna assume there’s gonna be an alternative “Afropunk” festival pretty soon utilizing neighborhood bars and vacant lots rather than some city-approved public area. And if there isn’t there should be. No offense to this one, but... that’s the way of punk, Afro or otherwise.

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      SheeshTheseNamesEvenBaggierTrousers7
      9/12/18 12:05am

      You just literally described Afropunk’s first years. That’s exactly how it was.

      ETA: It got bigger, more popular, and more mainstream over the years. 

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      SessoMatto (Yes, I'm really fun at parties.)SheeshTheseNames
      9/12/18 1:27am

      “It got bigger, more popular, and more mainstream...”

      Yes, and therefor less punk. Punk has never been mainstream or particularly popular. That’s part of the point.

      Out here, Gilman Street is still a collectively run underground music space. (30 years and counting!) You’ll see multi generation moshpits. There’s a sign that says “No parents in the sound booth.” We get (and welcome) all types - queer, het, trans, young, old, every race. Everyone except nazis, because that shit all got settled back in the ‘80s, so they don’t even try. Which is awesome.

      Being for profit is a choice. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, necessarily, but it is a choice that affects how things are run, and how they evolve.

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    Rewind4ThatBehindShamira Ibrahim
    9/12/18 10:48am

    I respect the humble beginnings of Morgan & Cooper. I respect them for creating Afropunk and filling in a void most people did not pay attention to. I respect them for upping the ante with acts, going global, and creating a community of unapologetic, beautiful, radiant Blackness.

    However, let’s be clear. Like many Black businesses after they blow up, all I’m reading is PR talk for any actions they have taken, from the increased ticket prices to the issue with White attendees. We’ve always known these issues would arise because nothing stays silent forever if more and more eyes become aware of it. Also to a degree, they don’t necessarily owe explanations for how the business is run. It’s theirs. But....they asked us to participate. They asked us to support. They asked us to be there. We were. So now when we are asking them WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON and all they have is PR talk, it should not be questioned why there is a growing frustration against them. The communication that made this personal has now turned business related.

    For a festival, sure it works, and the tickets are on par with many other festivals. But it’s not the festival itself that’s the problem. It’s the purpose behind it.

    Also the last time I was there, some short woman tried to climb my back because she couldn’t see and that’s when I knew I was fucking done.

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    borgohurisShamira Ibrahim
    9/11/18 11:50pm

    “The reality is that we have more agents and we have bigger bands and if anyone can tell me how we tell the bands with their white agents and their white friends and their white bandmates and their white girlfriends and parents that they can’t come to the festival ... tell me how to do that without coming across like a bigot,” Morgan says.

    Welp, you all quoted enough for me. It’s not bigoted to be resolute and firm in Blackness which is the real issue at hand. This is deflective to act like people are just saying “No white people”. If the festival wasn’t changing and yes, being less firm in Blackness, these white folks wouldn’t want to be there like in years prior but mkay, stay deflecting and talking in your Queen’s English.

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      no1onthecornerborgohuris
      9/13/18 7:48am

      This answer infuriated me. Instead of considering critical mass and addressing what it means for the space as the attendees change from Afro to not-so-many-AfrosPunk, they make some weird remark about important whites and bigotry. What the hell?

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    cakes_and-piesShamira Ibrahim
    9/11/18 4:34pm

    I’m completely confused at how Afropunk.com co-exists with the festival. The two seem to have competing interests.

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    Sigma_Since93Shamira Ibrahim
    9/12/18 7:42am

    Afropunk is in a funky place right now. As a part of attempting to “do better”, how does it continue to improve the quality of the event, stay true to its roots, obtain the funding to put on a quality event and not price out its core consumer?

    There will be those who will not like how the leaders address / solve this problem.

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    Mister MaximoShamira Ibrahim
    9/12/18 9:37am

    All their statements sound like corporate communication and marketing jargon. What they seem to be missing is brand alignment. They should consider changing their name to something else that reflects their “for-profit” (dare I say, “corporate”) strategies, or they will continue to draw criticism from their original support base.

    Personally I’ve never really been a fan since punk died for me in the late 80's/early 90's. Now that I’m living through my fifth decade, I’ve found a fully inclusive space where I can be as black as I wanna be, wear whatever I want, and listen to any music I feel like.

    It’s called home.

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    Brooklyn_BruinShamira Ibrahim
    9/12/18 1:46pm

    Does anyone remember Tunde and theboys performing in 01-02? Or the Afropunk message boards?

    Afropunk did not sellout to the “Wish I Could Afford Burning Man” white Brooklyn transplants - it started courting the “Wish I Could Have Gone To Black Lily When it Was Hot” people.

    So the black kids who wanted to be punk on their own terms got displaced by never discovered Angie Stone’s.

    The problem is with these Floetry types wanting their own Summer Jam, but with less gunshots and twerking and more face paint and shea butter tacos.

    And these “Do it for the ‘Gram” Pratt kids made Indiana Arie hopefuls of you all.

    The Black Borg ruins everything.  

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    j4x_Shamira Ibrahim
    9/12/18 7:55am

    I’ll never understand what’s wrong with ageism.

    Young people don’t know shit and old people are so bitter set in their ways and unwilling to process new information that they become interchangeable with the young.

    Yes, I do understand the nuances of the term and that I’m grossly grossly distorting the entire conversation.

    I’m just sick of teenage drivers and senior citizen drivers on the highway this morning.

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