INTRODUCING OUR PAN-AFRICAN ART MUSIC BLOG
by Jide Durowoju & Joshua Kerobo
Welcome to Àkójọpọ̀’s Pan-African Art Music Blog! This blog is a free and globally accessible hub where diverse perspectives on Pan-African art music and culture come to life.
ABOUT THIS BLOG
Our vision is to create a dynamic space that unites creatives who are passionate about Pan-African art music. This blog will cover some interesting topics about Pan-African Art Music, its history and its contemporary narrative. As we grow, we hope to cover the following array of topics:
- Pan-African Music Traditions – culturally-rooted thoughts and experiences on music shaped by African and Afro-Diasporic communities.
- Contemporary Pan-African Musicology and Scholarship – exploring the academic world of Pan-African art music and its larger impact on contemporary art music studies.
- Community Perspectives on Pan-African Art Music, Industries and Current Issues – We hope to showcase how local communities engage with the global Pan-African art music scene, illuminating current thoughts and issues in the art music world.
- Career Development and Entrepreneurship Stories – We will share resources on career development and opportunities, as well as personal stories and lessons learned in the course of professional life.
- Pan-African Art Music News – Highlight what current events and issues are happening around the world in the Pan-African art music scene
- Featured Artists – Showcasing the work of artists pushing boundaries in the world of Pan-African art music, offering insight on how their music connects with Pan-African music cultures.
BE PART OF OUR COMMUNITY
We encourage our community to be an active part of our blog. We invite leading and emerging scholars, as well as community members outside of academia, to contribute to this blog and help us grow. We believe that knowledge-sharing is key to building a thriving community, so we invite you to share your expertise and experiences.
OUR FIRST EDITIONS: CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
In our initial blog series we want to explore what Pan-African Art Music is, the history of this music, and why this artform is a vital part of the global music landscape. In the coming weeks we look forward to turning this blog into a community for Pan-African art music professionals, students, scholars and enthusiasts. Moreover, we are inviting interested writers to submit articles that relate to the following topic areas:
- Pan-African Art Music and History
- Afro/Afro-Diasporic Language
- Afro/Afro-Diasporic Instrumentation or Organology
- Afro/Afro-Diasporic Cultural or Religious Events
- New Trajectories of Afro and Afro-Diasporic Life
- Emerging Trends in Pan-African Culture
Submissions can be made through our Blog Article Submission Form.
Please note that these stated topics serve as guidelines shaped by our vision to showcase Pan-African art music to the world. We welcome proposals that highlight other related themes. In an effort to create a publicly accessible space for writers to publish their work and for readers to access information, our platform is free and voluntary.
THE REVIEW PROCESS
In an effort to ensure that our blog is a trustworthy source of verified information, blog submissions are sent to our editorial team for review. We will prioritize matching article submissions with editors who have expertise on the topic(s) of the submission. From there, editors will contact potential contributors with a notice of acceptance or rejection along with relevant feedback. Accepted works will be given a timeline for edits and updated drafts. The expectation is that at least two drafts are exchanged between editors and potential contributors to ensure both parties are in agreement for the blog.
READERS REQUESTING BLOG TOPICS
We greatly value input from our community. Readers can request blog topics by filling out the Blog Topic Request Form on our site.
