This is the studio recording of the ‘Mother India – 21st Century Remix’ performance piece.

Written and produced by Alvin Seechurn (DJ Tigerstyle), Matt Constantine and David Shaw.

Available for the first time as a download and on CD in a limited release. Get it now while stocks last!

Download prices: £1 per track or £8.50 for the album.
CD price: £10 + p&p (£1.50 UK/£3.00 international)

Click here to buy it.

A painting by a graffiti artist was among the official gifts to Barack Obama from David Cameron on his first trip to Washington as prime minister.

The work, Twenty First Century City, is by Ben Eine, said to be one of the PM’s wife Samantha’s favourite artists.

The 39-year-old artist recently sprayed the entire alphabet on shop shutters in a London street.

Mr Obama continued the art theme by presenting the Camerons with a signed lithograph by pop artist Ed Ruscha.

The piece, Column with Speed Lines, was chosen for its red, white and blue colours matching the British and American flags.

Writing on his website, Ben Eine said it had been a “weird day” because “David Cameron has given one of my paintings to President Obama in an art swap”.

The artist, who has worked with Banksy, began his career by “tagging” his name on buildings and trains around east London, examples of which are featured on his website under the heading “vandalism”.

In recent years he has been asked to decorate shutters in cities as far afield as Tokyo and New York.

* Article from the BBC website on 21.7.10.

Well done Eine from everyone at Kala Phool and Rising Styles Hip Hop Festival.

Hosted by Sarah Sayeed’s Sister Elements, this will be huge show incorporating live Hip Hop, DJ’s, live street art, live visuals and fashion – with a Bengali twist…

BRIX LANE REMIXED @RICH MIX
35-47 Bethnal Green Road, E1 6LA
31st July 2010 // 8pm – 1am // £5 (adv), £7 (door)

SARAH SAYEED (w/full live band Slo Burn)
MC SHAMELESS (w/full live band)
NAGA MC // AVA B
DJ EXCALIBAH // DJ BADESHI
Hosted by UNIQUE
+ live street art by GRAFFIK LONDON
+ fashion/visuals by AIR IMAGES
+ resident artist SRI McKINNON (Eastpak)
£5 advance tickets click HERE.

“SISTER ELEMENTS uplifts the Bengali roots of Brick Lane, blending live Hip Hop with street art and fashion! With a live soundtrack from some of the finest Hip Hop artists and DJ’s in the UK – this is one night not to be missed!

SARAH SAYEED spearheads SISTER ELEMENTS, an independent record label and production company. SARAH SAYEED will be performing with her full live band Slo Burn, presenting work from her single EP ‘Black IS…’ and new collaborations from 2010. With two of the UK’s finest artists – DJ EXCALIBAH (BBC 1 Xtra, The Blacks) & DJ BADESHI (Other Brother Records, BBC Asian Network, Future Friction) spinning the finest in Hip Hop, Soul, Motown, Funk, Dub, Drum ‘n’ Bass and Indian Electronica”

www.sarahsayeed.com

Supported by Kala Phool and Rising Styles Hip Hop festival.

Join the facebook group HERE.

THE EDINBURGH MELA

DIRECTOR (Re-advertisement)

Salary £36k-£40k (dependent on experience)

The Edinburgh Mela is seeking a dynamic Director.

You will have the commitment, enthusiasm and skills to develop the continued success of The Edinburgh Mela, its festival and other activities.

This is an exceptional opportunity for a proven arts manager with vision, flair, ambition, strong leadership skills and fundraising attributes to promote and strengthen The Edinburgh Mela’s profile within the sector and community. The Edinburgh Mela leads the way in creating an exceptional event based around arts, a vast range of communities and diverse cultures.

We welcome applications from candidates who have a proven track record in strategic leadership, fundraising, artistic/cultural programming, event and people management.

For further information and to receive an application pack please contact: Liam Sinclair. Tel: 0131 332 2888. E-mail: liam@edinburgh-mela.co.uk

The Edinburgh Mela is an Equal Opportunities Employer and welcomes applications from a diverse range of people.

Deadline for Applications: 12pm Monday 16th August 2010.

Interviews to be held: Tuesday 24th August 2010.

www.edinburgh-mela.co.uk

Nelson Mandela today celebrated his 92nd birthday quietly with his family in Johannesburg.

His birthday was marked by Mandela Day, conceived as an international event devoted to public service, and a celebration of the former president’s life.

Mandela’s wife, Graca Machel, said: “Today is an opportunity for millions of people around the world to look inside themselves and say: ‘I am able to make a difference to my neighbour, to someone underprivileged. I can extend my goodness to other people.’”

We are looking for proposals that will explore and create work which is specific to Stoke town, considering  the location and people within it. There is possibility to hold workshops as part of your residency  – and the brief remains flexible for a variety of artists to apply.

There is an opportunity for one of the residencies to take place at both SHOP and the community centre/garden, Boothen on London Road, Stoke on Trent.

The two ideal residency periods are: 6th September – 20th September 2010 & 25th September – 9th October 2010.

Both residences will recieve a fee of £500.

To submit a proposal, send your CV, any images or links to examples of your work and a short proposal outlining the following:

• The area of your practice you will be exploring during the residency
• How you will work with the local context and community
• Why SHOP and Stoke Town for this proposal

The deadline for residency proposals is 23rd August, 2010.

For more information visit www.shop-stoke.co.uk

Contact Gemma Thomas at shop@shop-stoke.co.uk for more information.

Kala Phool is very proud of Sri’s latest collection – enjoy some of her work.

Kala Phool’s Associated Artist’s rosta is going from strength to strength with this latest show from the enigmatic artist and illustrator, Sri McKinnon.

Sri has worked tirelessely over the years to gain a steady following to her beautifully flowing illustrations. You may of been lucky enough to see Sri across many shows doing her live art, or simply come across her work. This show – only Sri’s second solo show – gives you the up close and personal feel that will envelope you into her world.

The private view is only days away and a date for your diary:

Private View of Sri’s Eastpak Gallery show ‘Archipelago’ on Thursday 15 July 2010.

Taking place at:

Eastpak Icon Store

1 Carnaby Street

London

W1F 9QF

Time: 7.00pm – 9.30pm

Music courtesy of DJ Kidkanevil (First World Records).

Drinks courtesy of Tiger Beer.

Nearest tube: Oxford Circus

Please RSVP sheela@dustpr.com if you want to get in.

Michael Gondry and Icelandic musicianBjörk are certainly no strangers having collaborated together on no less than seven music videos since 1993, the last being 2007’s “Declare Independence” off her album, Volta.

Earlier this year, however, it was revealed that the two were set to reunite for a mysterious, secret film project that was described by the director simply as something “very undefined, so it’s hard to give more precision.”

“We have a very ambitious project, a sort of scientific musical,” Gondry explained. “[It's a movie], but maybe more for museums. Like a 40 minute IMAX project in 3D.”

In case you missed it, here’s more from the interview with Gondry including details on his new project, “The We & The I.”