The Showdown is fast approaching on (Friday 18 May 2012) and we are anticipating a great show and are very excited for the night. Six fierce dance acts of Bhangra, Bollywood, Giddha, Hip-hop and Bashment styles will battle it out to claim the title of Best Desi Mover, a prize of £1000, an opportunity to perform at the Sandwell & Birmingham Mela in front of a 50k plus audience and that ultimate prize, the Desi Moves 2012 trophy.

 Signature,  Worlds #1 Micheal Jackson Tribute Act & Britain’s Got Talent finalists, were scheduled to give a performance, but were pulled away to another event of the Cultural  Olympics.  We are thrilled to added  an amazing choreographer, actor, model, teacher, and Bollywood performer……. Karan Pangali. As a leading artist in the field of East & West dance fusion, we are excited to have him apart of Desi Moves

The night will be hosted by the infamous Desi duo Raj and Pablo from BBC Asian Network who will bring their comedic charm  and loveable personalities to keep you entertained all night.

Entertainment and music at its best will also be provided by Capital FM’s Sacha Brooks who’s guaranteed to warm you up with a great DJ set.

And if thats not enough the competition will be judged by the best in the bizz including: Honey of Honey’s Bollywood Dance Academy, Foji Gill and Toffee of Sticky Toffee Dance who has left a little message for everyone below.

This is a great opportunity for you to experience the London 2012 Olympics fever and to really see mass participation.Its definitely going to be an entertaining jam packed show which won’t let you down! So don’t hang around get your tickets now!!

From the Birmingham Town Hall - 0121 345 0600
Ticket prices: £6-£12 (discounts available)
Suitable for all ages

Tickets are also available on Chilli Tickets

SHOW STARTS AND 6PM AND FINSHES AT 9PM

To keep up to date with all info and be in the know about Desi Moves like our Facebook page

For further information contact Punch on 0121 224 7444 or email info@punch-records.co.uk

Punch are excited to announce the brand new Go and See Project, collaboration between Apples and Snakes and Punch Records.

WHAT IS ‘GO AND SEE’ ?

Go and See does what it says on the tin: it allows West Midlands poets to attend
spoken word events (regular nights, one-off shows, slams, etc.) in other parts of the
country by covering the price of travel and tickets to the event.

If you are a performance poet, this could be a wonderful opportunity to hear new
voices and discover new styles; to finally catch your favourite artist live; to chat with
successful event organisers and use their experience to improve your own night; or
to make contacts in a part of the country you haven’t had the chance to visit yet.

We will ask those who take part in the scheme to write a short blog entry about their
trip (or record a video response), to be posted both on the Punch Records website
and the Apples and Snakes blog.

HOW TO TAKE PART

Here’s all you need to do to apply:

1. Find an event you would like to attend
2. Figure out exactly how you think you will benefit from it
3. Email Waqar Azam from Punch (waqar@punch-records.co.uk) with a completed
Application Form and the words “Go and See” in the subject line.
4. Hope for the best!

The deadline is the last day of each month. By the 7th of the following month, we will
pick one or two lucky applicants and send them off to see the event(s) of their choice.
This project will function every month until further notice.

So, no more excuses. Don’t just sit there. Go and see!

Click here  to download the application form

As well as taking part in the major events get involved and show us “What’s your Desi Move?” on our Facebook and Twitter #DesiMoves and also check out our collection of moves we have gathered from some faces you may recognise on our Youtube channel and a taster of what to expect on our Flickr.

So what are waiting for get your Desi Move on and get involved!

This is your one-off chance to experience what The Heatwave have lined up for festival season. Performing on the night are:

General Levy – The original dancehall junglist.
Necessary Mayhem – Legendary producer Curtis Lynch’s heavyweight dancehall sound.
Orange Hill – New crew from Ras Kwame with the hit single Wine De Best.
Stylo G, Lea Anna, Mr Williamz & NY – Leading the way for UK Bashment.

The Heatwave are the UK’s number one bashment sound. Everywhere they go it’s a carnival, from their weekly Rinse FM show to raves all over the world. When The Heatwave touch down it’s a madness: pure hype and energy. Huge tunes and quickfire mixing, girls brucking out and people banging on the ceiling for reloads.

“We love this music. We want to tell everyone about it”

The Heatwave sound ties together Jamaica and the UK. Their powerful compilations and mixes show how dancehall is the root of jungle, garage, grime, dubstep and funky.

Check out The Heatwave crew in action here. For further information contact Ammo Talwar at Punch on:
0121 224 7444/ammo@punch-records.co.uk 

So last Wednesday the Punch team attended the Bass Culture panel discussion at the Roundhouse in Camden, London.

The panel included: (Chair) Mykaell Riley (Steel Pulse/University of Westminster), Mikey Dread (Channel One Soundsystem), Robbo Ranx (BBC 1xtra), Curtis Lynch (producer & label founder Necessary Mayhem) and Lea Anna, (young artist).

The talk kicked off with trying to define the concept of Bass Culture which as you can see in the footage wasn’t agreed by all the panelists and attendees thus creating a healthy debate with varying views for and against the concept. Whilst some felt that Bass Culture had been created as a means to market Dub music to the masses and felt that this was stripping the roots of the music from its authenticity and integrity.

Conversely others felt that Bass Culture was a perfect term to describe how reggae music has evolved over time and influenced genres such as Grime, Drum & Bass and Dubstep.  Furthermore they felt that unifying all these evolved genres would have a great impact on society by promoting multiculturalism and introducing what was originally listened to a black minority to a wider and varied fan base.

It was great to see the attendees comprising of music enthusiasts and industry experts, voicing their opinions so passionately although things began to get pretty heated at times.

Overall the discussion provided a very good chance for people to express their views about the concept and how they feel it has influenced the UK music scene check out the video for some highlights and join the debate at Website: http://britishunderground.net/bassculture/  Twitter: #UKBASSCULTURE

http://www.flickr.com//photos/punchrecords/sets/72157629417151521/show/

As part of the Roundhouse Rising programme on Wednesday 15 February Mykaell Riley hosts ‘Bass Culture – The Influence of Reggae on British Music’, a panel exploring the journey of reggae from Jamaica to the UK and how it has contributed to the development of such styles as Jungle/Drum & Bass, Dubstep, Grime, UK Hip Hop and mainstream pop. This panel discussion will be taking place at the Roundhouse, Chalk Farm Road, London, NW1 8EH on Wednesday 15th February from 7-9pm. Confirmed panellists include Robbo Ranx (BBC 1xtra, Mikey Dread (Channel One Sound System), Curtis Lynch (Producer and label founder Necessary Mayhem) and Leanna (artist).

For further information, go onto the BASS culture  website here, or contact Ammo Talwar at Punch on:

0121 224 7444/ammo@punch-records.co.uk

Jamaica Live was an Open Weekend event to celebrate one year to the go to the London 2012 Games and Birmingham’s selection as host for the Jamaican Olympic team, including the fastest man on earth, Usain Bolt. The event took place in Victoria Square in Birmingham on Saturday July 23^rd 2011.

The event was a day-long party which celebrated  Jamaican culture, food and arts.

Jamaica Live! Activites Included:

• Our main star of the day was Reggae Reggae sauce icon Levi Roots who performed and did a live jerk chicken cooking demonstration on the main stage.
• performances included Steel Pulse tribute Pulse Beat, The Reaggae Philomonic Orchestra, gospel singer Monique and included a surprise performance from the legendary Dawn Penn!

• Family-friendly comedy from TV’s Annette Fagon, Toju and Tony Hendricks, as well as spoken word artists in our story tent.
• Drumming workshops; Jamaican style. Visitors joined in with our collective drumming groups.
• Freshly-cooked Islands-style food available from local Caribbean chefs and vendors on site.

Jamaica LIVE – Numbers

32,000 people attended Jamaica Live over 8 hours

3,000 people in the square at any moment

Over 20 Black businesses were present

30 separate in-depth media reports from BBC West Midlands, ITV and

3 day feature on Midlands Today

Jamaica Live! was a fun, jam-packed day that brought all the different local communities together. It kicked off the countdown to the 2012 Olympics in style!

The Drum, Aston, Birmingham (for Warwick University)

Punch are proud to announce that we have recently partnered with Warwick University and Robert Beckford to introduce a Hip Hop Studies module into BA Social and Health Studies degree course. This course will not only be open to students but to anyone wanting to learn more about Hop Hop culture in an academic setting.

There is a taster day for the module on Saturday 10th September, 1pm at the Centre for Lifelong Learning, Westwood Campus, The University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7AL for more info please click here

The full course starts on 22th October 2011 and runs for a full academic year at The Drum, Birmingham. Please contact Warwick University (024) 7657 3739/  www.warwick.ac.uk/cl for further information on the module.

HipHopStidies BA Module Open to ALL

1-4th September

Fort Punta Christo, Croatia

Punch are very happy to announce that we will be at Outlook Festival in Croatia in September. We will be taking with us two up and coming MC’s as part of our Punch Busary scheme for new artists.

Held in an abandoned fort in Pula in the stunning region of Istria, Croatia, Outlook is at the forefront of bass driven music, featuring some of the biggest names from the most vibrant and cutting edge dance scenes around. This year’s line-up includes some of the biggest names in Soundsystem Culture from the worlds of Dub, Dubstep, Dancehall, Drum & Bass, Hiphop, Grime, Garage, Electronica and Bass Music.

Now going into its fourth year, Outlook in 2010 saw us in what can only be described as the most amazing festival location ever imagined and we are glad to be returning there in 2011. Fort Punta Christo is an abandoned fort built in the eighteen hundreds that looks like something from a lost world.

RoxXxane

Birmingham rapper RoxXxane is fast becoming one of the top artists in grime and dubstep. Her debut single “Heavyweight” was the highlight of the official soundtrack to British film “Shank” which also features Tinchy Stryder and Roll Deep. She’s also done a remix of Professor Green’s track, “I Need You Tonight”. Originality, looks and ability to set fire on the mic is undoubtedly what makes RoxXxane stand out from the crowd. She’s not one to copy other artists and thrives on making her sound unique. RoxXxane’s music is influenced by her life, through keeping her emotions bottled up. Taking inspiration from artists like Missy Elliot and Ms Dynamite her main source of letting it all out through her music where as before you would catch her in the boxing ring. RoxXxane has recently signed a major record deal at Polydor records so expect big things from this artist in 2011!

RT

RT is a Birmingham based artist also known as RTillery, RTizzy, RTiculate. He is a musician but equally a music lover, all about energy, creativity, identity and eclecticism. He is able to perform and express himself artistically through a range of mediums; from recorded music, live shows, hosting raves, right through to spoken word/theatre performance. He has recently released two EP’s, two completely different vibes, as well  as touring with Skinny and The Mud Fam. He is the founder of Decypher Collective and toured in 2010 with one of the first grime theatre show’s, 8sixteen32.

In conversation with Pauline Black

Friday 10th June, 8pm

The Edge, Friction Arts, Cheapside, Birmingham

Pauline Black was a key figure as lead singer with Two- Tone outfit The Selecter who revolutionised music
through the Two Tone movement 30 years ago. Over the years she has been variously jazz singer, part of the acclaimed Soul Britannica and actor. As a woman of dual heritage she has endured the twin evils of racism and sexism as she navigated her career through some of the most turbulent times, making her a highly influential
figure in UK Black music. 2011 sees a punishing schedule for Pauline with both a new solo album as well
as a new book ‘Black by Design’. BASS Festival marks this vital figure for women in music by a special event in
the intimate surroundings of The Edge, where she will talk about her career, new book and play tracks from
her new album – and hopefully a few old classics to boot. To mark this busy year she will be in presenting a
special pre-release event featuring words and music from both her new book and album, in the intimacy of
The Edge in the heart of East side as well as pursuing a career as an actor and more recently as part of the Soul Britannica show at London’s Barbican.
In partnership with Ian Sargeant / Friction Arts
www.frictionarts.com

£3 on the door

A key part of BASS has always been its unique commissions. Here artists, organisations and promoters are individually commissioned to produce an event or new piece of work specifically for the festival, receiving grants of £500 – £3000.

For the 2011 festival the theme is Revolution. Be it musicians who have changed the face of dance music, songs of protest, words or theatre that changes the way we see things, looking at the next generation or revolution as a dance move we are interested in hearing what musicians, dancers, spoken word or any other artists

Commissions for BASS 2011 are now being accepted. In 2011 there two exciting new ways to get involved in BASS thanks to partnerships with Aspire 4U and Access to Music. Details of these are on the Punch BASS Festival page as well!

The group have been working together to discuss  and share intelligence as well as highlighting the importance of the ‘independent’. Other members festival’s include Birmingham Book, Rhubarb, Fierce, Birmingham International Jazz & Blues, Supersonic & Flatpack.

IFG says “In Birmingham we boast an unparalleled selection of independent cultural festivals.  From literature to live art, from film to photography and all types of music, these festivals produce work that is at the cutting edge of their respective art forms. They are a rich and indispensable part of our city’s cultural ecology – they are infused with the spirit of innovation and collaboration that that has been a part of Birmingham’s identity since the days of the Lunar Society”.

The IFG  publication will be launching in November 2010 at Hotel Du Vin–watch this space!

Click on the bold text to download the IFG brochure, IFG Brochure.

In a wider role she contributes to a range of advisory panels, boards and steering groups including being a recent member of the Arts Council’s Regional Council and currently part of an RFO Advisory Group.

She is one of two people leading a Crafts Leadership Network as part of the national Cultural Leadership Programme.

Deirdre is currently the Director of Craftspace which works in partnership with makers and artists, audiences, venues and a diverse range of organisations to push boundaries and perceptions around contemporary crafts practice, touring exhibitions and audience development.

In the 2010 New Year’s Honours list Deirdre was awarded an MBE for her services to the arts and young people.

Board Member

Having qualified with an Honours Degree in Psychology, Rob began working in the social care sector as a front line worker and then in a range of executive management positions before setting up his own Interim Management Consultancy in 2003.

He continues to work as an advisor to boards of directors and executive teams across the creative, social and charitable sectors, specialising in the areas of governance and business recovery.

In addition Rob has had an involvement of almost 25 years in the creative industries including tour and stage management, concert promotion, and artist management, with acts signed to A&M, Polydor, Peppermint Jam, PRA (USA) and various independent labels.

His music and film work has taken him to Africa, India and the Middle East.

Rob is a fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts.

Chair