Today we’d like to introduce you to Kenton Rambsy.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
Traditionally, English professors have taught major author courses on figures like William Shakespeare, William Faulkner, Zora Neale Hurston, and Toni Morrison. I wondered what might happen if I used the major author approach, but inserted a significant rap artist in place of a novelist or poet. My thoughts led me to focus on Jay-Z as not only a rapper but as a major black author. Since 2015, I have taught “The Life and Times of S. Carter” or #TheJayZClass at the University of Texas at Arlington. In the class, my students and I use text mining software to pinpoint recurring words/phrases, geographic markers, and social references in Jay Z’s solo studio albums. We analyze large datasets and transform the information into interactive visualizations.
Even though I’m an English Professor, I take a very different approach. Nearly a century ago, black literary artists work was not considered sophisticated enough to be read alongside white reading audiences. In our current day and time, I see the same thing happening with popular culture forms such as rap music and other forms of experimental poetry and narratives. I want my students to expand their conceptions of Art and literature. It’s important to be all encompassing so that we might start breaking down certain prejudices we might have been instilled with at an early age about what constitutes high art.
Please tell us about your art.
I’m an English professor who teaches and conducts research at the intersections of Black studies and data analytics. Black studies is a systematic way of studying the art, culture, history, music, religion, and social life of black people in the world. And, data analytics is the science of drawing insights from raw information sources. As a public scholar, I draw on large quantitative datasets to make various assessments about Black art in general, and Jay-Z in particular.
By using quantitative datasets in conversation with lyrics from Jay-Z’s albums, I try to provide a visual narrative that highlights trends, word usages, and cultural tropes that musical artist draw frequently invoke.
In my projects, I center black music as a way to bridge the gap between the humanities and social scientific inquiry to reach wider audiences across academic and public spaces.
What’s the message or inspiration, what do you hope people take away from it?
My message is that Black art–whether, music, poetry, or a sermon, can be studied or discussed in tandem with each other because of the similarities of language and rhetorical strategies. By employing computational methods, we are more readily able to make those seemingly divergent connections across time and space. Thus, my hope is that people, especially those who might be interested in studying Black literature and Black music begin to include visual methodologies in conversations about black life.
What should we know about your artwork?
I see visual essays as the future of cultural studies. As a result, my work is heavily inspired by The Pudding (https://pudding.cool) and other visual stories that appear weekly in the NYTimes. In regards to my project on Jay-Z, the various charts featured throughout the publication facilitate our ability to make broad assessments about the rapper’s 12 solo albums while also making precise observations about individual songs. Ultimately, when we visualize data, we are stimulated by what we see and as a result, ask different questions and identify different trends.
What do you think about conditions for artists today? Has life become easier or harder for artists in recent years? What can cities like ours do to encourage and help art and artists thrive?
When I think about the conditions of artists today, I immediately think about money. One thing that really impedes upon an artist’s ability to create (freely) is money. It takes capital to create. Whether you are paying for living expenses while you write a novel, buying art supplies while you work on a painting or sculpture, or paying for studio time while making an album, nothing is free. On top of that, many Fellowships and financial assistance programs for creative workers are shrinking. As a result, there are becoming less-and-less programs that nurture and support creative enterprises.
I fear that we are getting more-and-more entrenched in an era where everything costs. And, I really think it’s hard to put a dollar amount on new creative artistic approaches. Literally, how can you put a dollar amount a price tag or dollar amount on art that influences and moves the culture? It’s just very hard to quantify that aspect of art and how it impacts people. In the age of social media (and paid promotions), it seems to be increasingly harder for artists to get their work and message out with little-to-no start-up funds. Because of this, I think it’s becoming harder and harder for artists to take risks and push the culture in new directions because first and foremost we have to think about producing something that will fair well in current markets. In a sense, worrying so much about markets kills creativity.
I think there needs to be at least one central location for artists of different races, different walks of life, and with different creative talents to meet and literally interact with one another. It’s important to either create or encourage a community where creatives can get together and meet and share ideas. A region like the DFW is so vast that often times it can be easy for people to stay in their own silos (so to speak). I have found that one of the biggest catalysts that spur creativity is interacting with different types of people. I think when we talk to one another, learn from one another, and experience different ways of life we grow from it and it shows up in our art.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
In January 2018, I published #TheJayZMixtape. The mixtape draws on a rich dataset, including the lyrics from 189 songs comprising 12 solo albums. I use computational approaches to explore Jay-Z’s musical influences and allusions to other black artists and historical figures. Visually engaging, and full of interactive ways to explore Jay-Z’s work, #TheJayZMixtape not only delivers an analysis of Jay-Z’s music but also makes a compelling case for Jay-Z’s place in the greater African American literary tradition. You can read the digital book here at Thejayzmixtape.com
Contact Info:
- Website: kentonrambsy.com
- Email: krambsy@kentonrambsy.com
- Instagram: @krambsy
- Twitter: @krambsy
Image Credit:
#1 – Michael Ibidapo
#2 – Desmond Handon
#3 – Desmond Handon
#4 – Sonja Watson
#5 – Dallas Institute for Humanities and Culture
#6 – James Edwards
#7 – Desmond Handon
Getting in touch: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
