By Our Reporter
Spoken word artist, George The Poet has introduced a new, innovative platform to interact with his global community of listeners.
Dubbed The COMMON GROUND, the platform presents a few questions about each episode in the podcast and facilitates written, audio, image and video-based discussions between George and his listeners.
COMMON GROUND also showcases original artworks by black artists around the world and creates opportunities for listeners to reflect more deeply on each episode, give George their feedback, and share ideas with fellow listeners in a community space called ‘The Commons’.
“I have walked you through historic injustices that sparked Black music movements, which created fresh opportunities – over and over again. This process has always seemed random. Jazz in America. Reggae in Jamaica. Grime in Britain. But it’s clearly not random.” notes George The Poet.
“What if the world anticipated this genius? What if 150 years of musical innovations in the harshest circumstances have proven Black music to be a safe bet? What if the listeners supporting this music were able to tackle the problems behind it? Could this be the future of art?
“To test this idea out, I have created an interactive platform – called COMMON GROUND. This online discussion space allows listeners to dive into the world behind the words alongside original artworks by global artists.”
With more than a thousand sign ups already from nearly 50 countries around the world, the platform brings together diverse points of view and relays listeners’ answers back to fellow users, illustrating that there is a COMMON GROUND where people’s ideas can meet. The driving force of the discussion is George’s exploration of Black music, as users join him on his train of thought.