Red & Black

from Red & Black by Bad Alaskan

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about

This is a take on contrapuntal & echo verse poetic forms, performed in the style of spoken word poetry with choral techniques remnant of Indigenous ceremonial practices, West African griot, & older hip hop.

Percussion loops with hand claps & shakers are authentic to chant & ceremonial music but with a modern ambient twist. Repetitive & formatted as many Native songs are.

Poetic references include William Blake’s “The Little Black Boy”.

lyrics

you can't tell me
brown eyes aren't

beautiful
they are

a color waxing
fiery amber in the sun

flash shadow reflect
an opalescent

black until UV rays
kiss our faces and

leak through eyelashes
like magma beyond

cracks of volcanic
ash iris glints

a faceted stone
under the jeweler's

bench a vision
you never asked what

the world looked like
through red & black

At live shows, additional lyrics:
You can't tell me
trans boys aren't

heavenly they are
his shoulders rising

inches closer to the sun
magnetic

You can't tell me
big girls aren't

everything they are
her body moving to

the rhythm of the ether
effervescent as a

georgia peach, you
can't pick one you gotta love

each & every one

credits

from Red & Black, released June 19, 2023
Composer, Performer, Writer: Alex Kimball Williams
Recording, Mixing: Ross Williams

Completed as part of Community Housing of Wyandotte County's (CHWC) 2021 residency

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about

Bad Alaskan Lawrence, Kansas

Artivist (Artist + Activist)

Alaska Native
Black
Portuguese

Music is medicine

SoundCloud

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