The business of one love
Part 2
Following Marley’s death on 11 May 1981, which we marked recently, his estate has been able to capitalize on the awareness of his music and the messages to supply additional music, merchandise and other commodities to a market wanting and willing to purchase products that have been shaped by this Jamaican worldview. Branding them as Marley, therefore, was a natural progression; but, I want to make it clear that the culture is not unique to Marley, and that we, too, share in this cultural inheritance from our ancestors. There is nothing that says the Marley representation or expression (excluding the use of his image and name, of course) is the only way to brand Jamaican or Rastafari expressions of the Jamaican culture and liviti. But, having said this, I will say that it pays to understand and respect the branding canons and conventions, until you are able to change them.
It must be understood, therefore, that when I speak of the “one love” culture, and speak of Jamaican music, and the economy that Jamaicans have forged that is our music entertainment industry, that I see this as the gateway to a larger economic platform. By a larger economic platform I mean the proper integration into the international capitalist structure of manufacture, production, and exchange where we are not simply marginal consumers and producers, but that we take a greater share of the production of goods and services that purport to be expressions of Jamaican culture. So, a case in point is if Clark’s footwear is to be produced and branded as Jamaican, it could have been done under licence from a prominent Jamaican artiste, for argument’s sake, so that licensing revenue in the region of 5-10 per cent could have been coming to a Jamaican who has a stake in the success of the brand. Then a portion of that 5-10 per cent revenue would become available for investment in another business, filmmaking maybe, or a new hemp project.
Lest we think this is only about music, it is my hope that our top athletes, before the end of their career, might begin to conceive of their own athletic line to rival Puma. After all, we also use sporting goods. Of course, these levels of ambition will have implications for the kinds of contracts they can sign, but that is why we expect that they must also have smart management. There is no question in my mind that one such huge opportunity was missed before, but the future is unknown. What flavour could a Jamaican-themed athletic line add to the world of the Nikes, Adidas, and Pumas of this world? And who doubts that a pan-African brand positioning could not make a significant dent in any of their businesses?
You may have seen the story recently of the “Bob Marley inspired” jersey of the Dutch Ajax Football Club. Fans could not wait to purchase their jerseys, and all they had seen was leaked Bob Marley and Rastafari inspired designs. There are more of these stories, and our culture and our politics are at the center of it – but we are not. We need to figure it out. Hopefully, we have noticed that African music is here, and behind that will be the world of sports and entertainment, complete with a significant portion of fans who want anything Jamaican they can lay their hands on. But which Jamaican businesses and industries, traditional or entertainment focused are lining up to serve them?
The forward-thinking leadership at GraceKennedy made the bold leap into Ghana in 2012, distributing “Grace-branded beverages Tropical Rhythms, Mighty Malt, Ginger Beer, along with corned beef, as well as GraceKennedy’s range of spices.” This kind of export, too, in my view falls within my widened scope of what is produced and exported within the realm of a “one love” culture, because of who is doing the branding, our worldview matters because it impacts paths and outcomes, and so, too, does the language, food, aesthetics, and the iconography we employ in deciding what makes the final packaging. GraceKennedy has had to adjust its business model since being in Ghana, downsizing its operations due to operational challenges, but the company knows better than to withdraw. West Africa is a market that is coming, it is not in retreat. We and they are what we call emerging markets. And, in emerging markets like Jamaica and West Africa investors can see far better returns on their investments in relatively short periods, when compared to the often smaller return that investors would be satisfied with in developed markets in the north as a tradeoff for less investment risk.
The “one love” culture of which Jamaica sits at the centre is a phenomenal gift bequeathed to this nation by our ancestors. Owed to their struggles and their triumphs, we have a glorious opportunity to conceive and execute our vision of “one love” that lifts us emotionally, spiritually, and economically among mankind. Our investors, business leaders, and our creatives and sports personalities turned investors are being encouraged to help us to live our culture in the modern dispensation, and it benefits us all if they share in the vision. One love. One perfect love!
Kam-Au Amen has several years of combined industry experience across the areas of business management, brand licensing, media production, and eCommerce. He is a researcher of African and Caribbean entertainment and cultural enterprise management, and is a former Deputy Director of Culture in the Ministry of Culture, Jamaica. He has also served a member of the Entertainment Advisory Board. He is the conceptualizer and first coordinator of the pioneering BA in Entertainment and Cultural Enterprise Management at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona.
