Back Catalogue Archive

The plan was to find Sushi.. (didnt quite happen!)

So like a proper tourist, had a fresh, loaded my wallet, stashed the camera and found the hotel lift.

Stepped out into the moisty-warm 2am air and saw the bright lights of a noodle place still open.

The street were in a stillness I was glad to see after the hustle and flow of a mad day of taxi’s, presentations, handshakes, smiles and etiquette.

So humbling to be around people that are so much more polite than Im used to back home. It makes a difference.

Not that people are all rude in the bits.. just seems like there is an inherent cultural desire to make others feel at ease in Japan.. (even though alot of peeps seem to kill dem selves with working some ridiculous hours!)

As I draw closer I remember seeing my mate Aki pay for food at a machine with numbers and Kanji figures (Japanese ) all over it. This was the closest I have come to playing the lottery for ages ‘cos I couldnt read a rass of what was on this machine but knew I had to eat sutten!

The Daytime heat is so intense its hard to eat.. all about replacing all that water that seeps out of you like a turkey basting! It was now or never!

In went the 1000 yen and as I asked the universe to guide me to the right choice.. out came a ticket.. and a load of other shrapnel coins with holes in.

I ‘bowled’ in stepping past too dudes tucking into some bowls of what looked seriously eat-able and prayed that the ticket I held was gonna deliver me something equally as bellyfull-able. Its not about gettin a belly ache in Tokyo, dats long..!

‘Konbanwa’ My attempt to greet the dude, busy hustling a cloth to a tray, surrounded by steam and metal.

“Eigo?” theres no English coming out this dudes mouth and Im too hungry to guess..
Ticket is yours what do I win..!

Wasnt too bad.. apart from the egg floating in it, as Im not a fan of raw eggs but I was in Shibuya in a noodle shop in Tokyo and there was no favourite chicken or yum yums jerk to hand so it was what it was..

“Itadakemas” – Munch, slurp, wipe.. (keep it clean!) Left the egg but the noodles, spring onion (and whatever meat that was) got destroyed..

Decided I couldn’t eat all those carbs then jus go sleep so the walk was on again..

Up a hill, past a boxing club.. (maybe where the UFC guys were going.. need to check that!)

To a post office! What is a post office doing open this time of nite!
10 stamps (but no post cards.. even stranger..) keep walking..!

This jet lagg is still messin wiv me..! No lie, I had to do a google search to work out what day it was…

Eff that.. 2moro Im stayin out all night till ah mornin..

Shop, Snacks, juice.. time to head back..

The African Holocaust was a programme of systematic murder, displacement, persecution and exploitation of millions from the worlds second largest continent haled by many as the ‘cradle of humanity’.

It was an incredibly despicable moment in history that lasted several hundred years and many believe still has a negative impact on world society to this day. One such issue being that of diet.

The food given to the enslaved people varied widely depending on several factors. Time period, location, type of food the plantation produced and the owner’s economic situation all came into play.

Frederick Douglass, the escaped slave and abolitionist, wrote in 1845: “The men and women slaves received, as their monthly allowance of food, eight pounds of pork, or its equivalent in fish, and one bushel of corn meal.”

This often included pig feet, pig ears, pig snouts mostly consisting of a high percentage of gelatine and fat. In parts of the Caribbean cows feets (Cow Foot) with butter beans and rice is still a delicacy.

USA Welcome Meal – Big Meets Bigger Episode 1 USA – BBC Three

In Jamaica, salted cod was taken to the Caribbean by the Portuguese often to trade for rum. It was salted to preserve it whilst crossing the ocean. ‘Salt-fish’ has accompanied the national fruit ‘Ackee’ to form a dish synonymous with the island. Both can be incredibly bad for your health depending on how they are prepared.

During the extremely harsh conditions of the average enslaved persons lifetime, any food found was needed simply to stay alive, as food supplies were often meagre.  The high energy ‘menu’ that developed was necessary for them to endure punishing hours of forced labour in a sun baked field.  Hundreds of years after the African Holocaust, the tradition of preparing salted fish, stewed pig extremities, salty ‘collared’ greens seasoned with bacon or fat back (pig fat), the excessive consumption of cassava, yams, plantains, and white flour dumplings has been handed down from generation to generation.  Some people have not taken the history of the origins of such a diet into consideration and continue to eat too much of these foods risking their health.

Due to these dietary choices, some doctors argue that In countries like the USA and Britain (and others), people of African descent have become susceptible to high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol and other obesity related illnesses.

People in the richest parts of the world with access to healthier foods are still suffering from common food related ailments. Some, like celebrity chef Jamie Oliver suggests, are ‘junk food addicts’ and others add to this by eating ‘slave food’.

Irrespective of where you’re from on the planet, studies show that stepping away from a high fat/carbohydrate diet, plus regular exercise with at least 1-2 litres of water daily will do wonders.
Be big and proud but healthy. Veg it up!

First Three people to purchase one of the exclusive Faada Tees from the Urban Species website will also receive a signed copy of the latest FAADA compilation “My Town To Miami”! Man are we nice of wot?

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Adebayo Ogunlesi,  is the chairman and managing partner of Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), an independent investment fund based in New York City with worldwide stakes in infrastructure assets.

They own the smaller City Airport and have added London Gatwick Airport from October last year.

The Gatwick deal is a £1.455 billion agreement with BAA Airports Limited. GIP will be investing through Ivy Bidco Limited, a limited liability company registered in England, established for the purpose of making the acquisition.  Bidco will pay cash consideration of £1,455 million for the entire share capital of Gatwick Airport Limited on a cash-free, debt-free basis.

Ogunlesi says the acquisition of Gatwick is a landmark deal for GIP and adds another quality asset to his firm’s rapidly expanding portfolio.

Other sources:

Wall Street Journal

Sky News

Growing up in the 80′s ‘Different Strokes’ was one of the kiddies programmes on regular rotation in my house along side He-Man and a load of other stuff I shouldn’t mention to protect my age.

At the time, ‘cos there weren’t many kids on TV that looked like me (or other people of African Descent) Arnold and Willis were a big deal! The message of the show aiming to break down the walls of the overt racism that still existed at the time, plus other sensitive and socially relevant issues.

Some may have seen their performance as “minstrel like buffoonery” but for many of varying ages the cute charms and cheeky one-liners from the Duo were irresistible. This made Different Strokes not just one of the most successful sitcoms in TV history, but one of the very few which succeeded with a multi-racial cast that included Conrad Bain as Philip/Mr Drummond, and Dana Plato as Kimberley.

The impact of Different Strokes was only overshadowed in my pre-pubescent world by Will Smith as the Fresh Prince of Bell Air, where the ‘black folks’ had the cash, lifestyle, education and integrity to match.

The fallout from the show left some strain on the main characters of the show. Todd Bridges and his tangles with the Law, a drug habit that Co-star Dana Plato shared, one that eventually led to her suicide on May 8, 1999 by overdosing on prescription medication.

Gary Coleman was not without his share of adversity. He fell out with his parents over money and at one point was working as a security guard to make ends meet.

Apparently the 42 Year old star went into a coma after banging his head at home. Seems like such a strange way to go.

All the same, we send best wishes to him and family and send a head nod recognising his achievements in the entertainment industry, the inspiration to others and contribution to a show that helped tackle serious social concerns.

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Quite recently we started to promo a new Riddim Pak E.P. from Spoonface

We were surfing the net and checked out Nihal’s Show on Radio 1 for a pleasant surprise.
He discovered our Chiny Flute Riddim and was bamboozled into playing it and sharing it with Gilles Peterson.

We were in stitches at the inability to define what type of track it was and equally appreciative that Nihal gave us some support and recognises the banger for what it is.

Click play to listen back to the play and comments:

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Chiny Flute Riddim by faada

Grab a 192 kbps version now and higher resolution versions on Junodownload for a limited time!

Volcanic ash had us all going crazy at the airport..

I missed a super video-tastic throw down in Turin that my Italian friends are more than happy to remind me of!

Apparently the local priests came out to complain and the crew narrowly avoided the strong arm of the law.

Not complaining too much as I was able to make it there in the end and catch up with the multi-platinum selling DJ/Producer Gabry Ponte and the Dance & Love family.

It was a good friend of mine Paolo Caputo that introduced me to the man that sold over 50 million as part of Eiffel 65 with the song Blue (Da Ba Dee). Turns out we’ve collaborated on a fabulous new dance gem about to start doing the rounds real soon!

Links:

www.danceandlove.com

What a fabulous link up!

Musician Leano presenting his new album along side Britain’s biggest arms Tiny Iron, half man half amazing!

With a string of live dates and fresh material in place Leano is set for alot fun, check out his live bit in the studio with us!!

Was great to discover there’s a mind behind the muscle of Tiny Iron famous for his massive arms, parts in action films and security exploits for the stars.

“When the camera’s go off, 50 cent and all of them are just like you and me” he told us as he shared his experiences with celeb’s, as a Mentor inspiring young people to find their dreams and as an actor pursuing his own.

The Self managed Mr T. Fan hired the A team Van and got the Guinness book of records to register his physical attributes officially.

Watch the Journey show Highlights:

U wunna come on the show?

Email us with your details and lets make it happen!
info@faada.co.uk

Links:

http://www.myspace.com/leanoland

http://www.tinyiron.co.uk/

Listen to the entire show by clicking the steampad player at the bottom of the page

Great news at FAADA as Virgin Music playlisted “So Good” Spoonface & WAH Syndicate Feat. Janet Kay.

With 3 Million Plus subscribers definitely a ‘good look’ for the FAADA team whom are thankful for the continued support from fans, interns and Pr team at Darling Department.

Right next to Whiley, Tinnie Tempah, Ga Ga and a whole host of other top dance music.
Take a peak now and leave a comment below.

Thanks to Leo Greenslade, GreenMoney, Kieron Stewart, Genair Otoo, Interactive-Mix, Christian Darkin, Janet Kay Music and all the FAADA family.