BAJAN SUN MAGAZINE
H
oney Jam is an all female
developmental
multigenre
multicultural showcase. It is a platform
for young women to gain exposure,
education, mentoring and networking
opportunities in the music industry and
arts community. Along with the artist
workshop and showcase, they also
promote women's charities and offer
opportunities to female entrepreneurs. It
is based on the Honey Jam movement in
Canada (see www.honeyjam.com) which
boasts Nelly Furtado as their most famous
alumna.
Honey Jam came into existence after
founder Ebonnie Rowe produced a 3 hour
radio special on Canada’s largest Hip Hop
radio show in 1994 to discuss how women
DEC 2014
were portrayed in Hip Hop lyrics and
videos. The discussion was preciptated by
complaints from her female mentees in
her Each One Teach One profession-based
mentoring programme for black youth in
Toronto. As a result, she was asked to edit
an all-female edition of a Canadian
national entertainment magazine called
Mic Check. The celebration party for that
issue in 1995, intended to be a one-off
show, was called “Honey Jam.” The
success of the show pointed to a void in
the artistic community. Ebonnie was
inspired, at the insistence of the audience
and the artists, to keep it going and Honey
Jam has grown to become a much
anticipated showcase on the Canadian
music calendar, running now for over 17
years.
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