LDN

Screen Notes

This week, Nathan Miller's documentary LDN dropped on his YouTube channel. In the director's own words, LDN "“LDN hasn’t just been shot in studios and shows, I’m spending time with artists, and so foreign viewers will get a close-up look at what it means to be British: tower blocks, Morleys, sitting on the back of buses, and so on. I’m in the field with those taking part.”
http://www.sbtv.co.uk/news/movie-news/see-first-trailer-ldn-documentary-londons-music-scene/
I decided to watch his documentary as it focused on themes relating to my project such as London, grime music and tower blocks, plus it also features photographers such as Vicky Grout and Courtney Francis, who are photographers that I have done research about earlier this term and follow on my personal Instagram account. 
http://www.sbtv.co.uk/news/movie-news/see-first-trailer-ldn-documentary-londons-music-scene/
Here are the notes I made whilst watching the documentary:

- From the estates of Brixton Hill to the main stage, YouTube has propelled rap group 67 into the forefront in the emerging London drill scene.

- Channels such as SBTV. GRM Daily and LinkUp TV, grime is a lot more accessible than in this day and age. Artists no longer have to sell their mixtapes on the street or perform at raves. The internet has provided a platform that has made grime music explode across the world, allowing more artists to be heard and creating a bigger following for the genre.

- Being there at right time at the right place is a saying that grime music can relate to it how it has become such as successful genre that is breaking into the mainstream.

- DJ Semtex believes J Hus is a unique artist amongst members of the grime scene. The way he fuses African dialect and ways of singing with rap, the way he invents his own slang, his image etc.

- Vicky Grout is one of the the scene's most respected photographers, having shot many of the UKs finest artists, from Skepta to Wiley and everyone in between. One of the DSLR cameras she uses for her work is a Canon EOS 5D.
I got my first camera when I was 11, just a little bridge camera, and I would just take photos of friends and random shit as I didn't really know what I was doing. Then, when I was like 13/14 I found my parents family holiday camera, it was a compact film camera that you point and shoot, and I took it with me everywhere and started shooting at shows I was going to, candids of friends or whatever. From there, I started out doing very casual work, just documenting what I was doing and it was really just for myself. I'd put my work on a blog like Flickr or Instagram as something to look back on for myself. 
Grime is what I would shoot as these were the raves I was going to and I think both myself and the genre progressed further in unison. I never set out to document grime, it was more like: Go to this rave, take some photos and getting feedback from people and developing my style.

- There's a lot of negative energy behind grime but it depends on how you channel it. You can feed of people's negative energy and make something positive.

- According to Morgan Keyz, a veteran grime music video director "Giggs made UK rap and grime the cool thing to do, he totally changed the face of grime and the entire sound."

- Although grime is related to gang culture and there is beef between certain MCs, if the music is right, it doesn't matter where you come from and what endz you rep.

- Para-phrasing Youngs Teflon "Grime is a success story. Nothing became something. The scene has become positive through its role models. People of the younger generation are seeing the people around them going through the same struggles as they are and being a success. Kids want to be the next Stormzy, the next Anthony Joshua, the next Raheem Sterling as they are people that are coming from the environment we grew up in and succeeding in what they do, gaining credibility, respect and money. In my day, the role models were the gangsters in our local areas. They were the people who were respected and making money. But now, as you get older you don't have to be a gangsta to be respected and make money."

- The newfound fans of the emerging sounds of London have created an economy, allowing for many artists to thrive and establish a career as musicians. The sounds coming from London are true, honest and show appreciation to the cultural heritage. New artists are creating songs daily, but the beauty in the climate is that it only takes one hit and great execution to change the lives of the artists and the people around them.