From reggae to grime: how black music became synonymous with a British sound

As a major exhibition retracing how music from Africa, the Caribbean and North America merged to make a distinctly British sound opens in London, Spotlight on Africa looks at a century of black music in the diaspora.

V&A East, the latest offshoot of the world-renowned Victoria & Albert Museum, opened in Stratford – the area regenerated by London's 2012 Olympic Games – on 18 April. 

Its inaugural exhibition, entitled "The Music is Black: A British Story", charts the rise of black music in the UK, from early drumbeats brought over from Africa to the present day, in which African and Afro-Caribbean music reflect British multiculturalism.

Black British music takes centre stage as London's V&A East opens doors

From Africa via the Caribbean and North America, the contribution of musicians of African descent still resonates in the United Kingdom – from reggae to rap and grime, a contemporary black British musical genre born in East London, which has allowed young people to create a sense of belonging, while connecting to a global audience.

V&A East director Gus Casely-Hayford talks to RFI about how he imagined a space that would attract visitors from all over the world, as well as from across London.

We also hear from curator of the exhibition Jacqueline Springer, a former music journalist, about how her team planned a display that spans centuries of history.

Cathartic rhythms for West African band born in 'black London'

Looking outside London, Bristol rapper and producer Tricky – whose family has roots in Jamaica, Africa and England – talks about how his city invented its own distinctive sound in the 1990s: trip hop. 

And we hear how producer Tim Norfolk, of the duo The Insects, is releasing a record produced in Bristol in 1994 by the late Zimbabwean singer-songwriter Biggie Tembo, leader of the Bhundu Boys.

Spotlight on Africa is produced by RFI's English language service. Episode mixed by Erwan Rome.