New documentary to highlight the importance of Black-owned British record stores

A new film documenting the history and importance of British independent record stores that specialise in Black music, premiered at the University of Greenwich last week.

Launched as part of Black History Month, The Record Store and Black Music: England’s Tastemakers has been produced by Simon ‘Schooly’ Phillips for the social enterprise group 2Funky Arts and funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

It tracks the role of these spaces from 1950 onwards as both vibrant social hubs for the local community and vital cultural assets that helped shape the trajectory of British music.

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The story is told by the collectors, selectors and music lovers who shopped and worked in record stores around the UK, including Trevor Nelson, Marcia Carr, Claudia Wilson, Ammo Talwar MBE, DJSS, DJ Rap, Jazzie B,DJ Spoony, Wookie, and Simon Dunmore.

It also comes alongside a podcast and book of the same name, which features further interviews with the likes of Mr Scruff, DJ Swerve, David Rodigan, Carol Leeming MBE, and David Nathan.

“From fifties jazz to nineties club culture, the specialist record shop was a place of solace, with an important role in shaping Black music trends,” 2Funky Arts announces via Instagram.

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In the documentary, The Mighty Zaf, who owns the East London-based independent record store Love Vinyl, says: “Without Black music, there are no independent record stores – not any good ones anyway.”

2Funky Arts is an organisation dedicated to celebrating Black art and music. It first announced the documentary last year in a call out for contributions from the general public.

“For the Windrush generation and Black diaspora, the early independent UK record store was a music-fuelled vehicle for resistance against systemic racism," a film synopsis reads. "Such sites became fertile ground for new music and cultural ecosystems that shaped society’s relationship with Black music.”

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The research compiled from this project is being used to create a free key stage three educational resource.

Also as part of Black History Month, The University of Greenwich is running a free exhibition on the influence of independent London record label Brain Records, and its contribution to the development of UK hardcore and jungle.

The Record Store and Black Music: England’s Tastemakers is being screened today (October 31) at Leicester’s Phoenix Cinema, and will later be released online. Watch the trailer below.

You can buy the associated coffee table book, The Record Store & Black Music: England's Tastemakers, here.

Meena Sears is Mixmag's Digital Intern, follow her on Instagram.