Entheogenic Roots
Golden Embryo Productions: Entheogenic Roots: Indigenous Roots of Psychedelics Docuseries
Synopsis: In the midst of the “psychedelic renaissance”, black, indigenous, and other people of color search to heal traumas from the impacts of colonialism. Entheogenic Roots chronicles the stories of the medicines themselves told through the cultures that cultivated these traditions and follows the healing journeys of communities at the crossroads of traditional healing and modern lifestyle.
Scope of Work: Creative Direction, script writing / development, location services, production assistance, talent management, video production, sound design
Ancient Tongue
Modern Beat: Language and Culture Revival
Language is at the root of culture and a healthy culture is at the center of a thriving community.
Today the song of social media, pop culture, and indeed government socialization and policies often boom louder in the ears of indigenous youth than the simple and profound chants of the rapidly aging elders who keep the language and customs. Luckily though, youth today are unified in a culture that is globally pervasive and influential: Hip-Hop. From the jungles of Brazil and the Congo, to the small fisherman towns of Punta Checua, someone always has a freestyle about their life. Hip-hop cyphers are the modern day campfire, ceremonializing life for youth worldwide. They allow full poetic expression, sharing from the mundane and trivial to the profound processing of trauma and loss. This medium has the power to make the words and language of their parents and grandparents relevant and appealing to the younger generations and those to come.
Elders and Native Indigenous language teachers share with youth who create modern stories and songs.
Ancient Tongue
Modern Song: Language and Culture Revival
Overview
Multimedia storytelling and music production to preserve indigenous language and tradition through the global culture of hip-hop.
Music
We record, manage, and produce youth, elders, language and song carriers from global indigenous traditions over hip-hop beats from world class producers. This creates a pathway to connect indigenous voices, stories, and issues to a global music community and market.
- Blending traditional chants and instruments with modern beats, poetics, and lyricism
- Collaborating with Indigenous hip-hop artist to lend their lyricism to the medicines of their culture
- Collaborating with world class artist to bring their notoriety
- Example: pairing Chances R Good with a Maracame artist/singer of a track about peyote
Documentary
We interview and document the youth, elders, language and song carriers from indigenous cultures amplifying and educating the masses about current realities and ancient traditions.
Context
The effects of colonization on nations, tribes, and indigenous people worldwide reverberate through the generations: “The impacts of colonialism were similar, regardless of the specific colonizer: disease; destruction of indigenous social, political, and economic structures; repression; exploitation; land displacement; and land degradation” (p. 37).(Campbell, MacKinnon, & Stevens, 2010, p. 36). Today we can directly hear the strength of a culture by how well they preserve and use their language:
“Endangered languages matter because if they become extinct, it can result in a permanent loss of unique cultural knowledge, as no two languages interpret the world in the same way. Despite many believing that loss of languages are inevitable on a planet that is rapidly evolving, experts say that preserving languages is no different than saving species or biodiversity from extinction” (https://interecho.com/endangered-languages/)
The well being of a culture can directly relate to how connected they are with their language, songs, and stories. To most indigenous cultures everything in existence has a song: the water, the land, and even the spirits that assist in protecting and harmonizing the community. This capacity to communicate and be harmonious with “everything in existence” is the medicine, the wholeness, that the modern world is feverishly and unconsciously searching for. As the globalization machine extracts and exploits people and land in our inherently interconnected world, it gradually degrades and poisons all people and all land, including that of the so-called “colonizers”.
Language is at the root of culture and a healthy culture is at the center of a thriving community.
Today the song of social media, pop culture, and indeed government socialization and policies often boom louder in the ears of indigenous youth than the simple and profound chants of the rapidly aging elders who keep the language and customs. Luckily though, youth today are unified in a culture that is globally pervasive and influential: Hip-Hop. From the jungles of Brazil and the Congo, to the small fisherman towns of Punta Checua, someone always has a freestyle about their life. Hip-hop cyphers are the modern day campfire, ceremonialize life for youth worldwide. They allow full poetic expression, sharing from the mundane and trivial to the profound processing of trauma and loss. This medium has the power to make the words of their parents and grandparents relevant and appealing to the younger generations.