Duane aka Mr Amazing put this song together in isolation using his guitar, a keyboard and the sounds of his washing machine and microwave. Video is a supercut of his dance moves from his own instagram profile - https://www.instagram.com/officialmramazing1988 Co-ordinated on Whatsapp. Everything mashed together using Ableton
Lyrics -
"Smooth it all over
I swear this life is like the sweetest thing I've ever known
It's just what comes with the fame
And I'm ready for that, I'm just saying
You need to get your shit straight
The step in my groove
I would give my world to lift you up
You got the kind of lovin' that can be so smooth, yeah"
DONATE TO THE GATE'S COVID 19 FUND AND MORE HERE -linktr.ee/54thegate
For this episode Quarantine Radio Hour becomes Quarantine Video Hour as Richie discusses some of the TV programmes that have been preventing boredom setting in too much, enjoy:
In order to access cash and continue working with Gate artists while the gate is closed and they are locked down we have set up a gofundme to purchase materials - please click following link if you would like to contribute - https://www.gofundme.com/f/54-the-gate-covid19-lockdown-fund
This time round the focus is on Labake. Labake has been coming to the Gate for around ten years, she is a key person in the group and likely the first person you'd come across on a visit as she loves meeting new people and making them feel welcome, often with a song if you happen to have visited in a group big enough to constitute an audience.
Living room.
One thing Labake really loves to do is sing and she can often be heard wandering round Shepherds Bush singing her songs at the top of her voice. Usually her songs are autobiographical and reflect some aspect of her life or often they have a social theme like the anti knife crime song in the video below (filmed by ace photographer Harley Weir on a recent photoshoot we attended for The Face Magazine) which on a recent trip to Scotland Yard Labake sang to the police commissioner Cressida Dick.
Dining room.
Generally though they're more directly autobiographical, songs about her experiences as both a physically and learning disabled mother of two or her or her Nigerian heritage, and often these themes also inform her visual art too. Under normal circumstances she can usually be found during gate art sessions constructing large sculptures out of cardboard boxes, or found objects (often toys like the dolls that she painted black and gave braided hair too), but since the isolation period began she has been busy drawing pictures of the home she shares with her family, examples of which can be seen here.
Kitchen.
Bedroom.
Front room.
In order to access cash and continue working with Gate artists while the gate is closed and they are locked down we have set up a gofundme to purchase materials - please click following link if you would like to contribute - https://www.gofundme.com/f/54-the-gate-covid19-lockdown-fund
John is one of the newer members of the Gate and has only been coming to the centre for the last couple of years or so. He's a thoughtful, contemplative guy who can often be found in the "chill out" room at The Gate quietly observing the decidedly unchilled chaos around him. The artwork John creates reflects this close observation and often take the form of depictions of objects around him such as the pictures shown here drawn whilst isolating of his bed and his beloved IPad.
John's IPad.
It was John's Ipad which facilitated his Art book Food, a collection of the food photography which we produced with him in 2018. The book is a collection of some of the thousands of images John has taking over the last few years documenting his eating habits. John literally photographs everything he eats, meticulously and painstakingly arranging every meal or snack and then photographing but only after very careful consideration and often with much rearranging when the shot doesn't suit. The book was produced in an edition of 200 with an introduction by art critic Kari Rittenbach for the ICA's independent book fair which John attended and was a great success; we returned with only a handful of copies and it's probably overdue a reprint.
John's Book at the ICA Small Publishers Fair 2018
In order to access cash and continue working with Gate artists while the gate is closed and they are locked down we have set up a gofundme to purchase materials - please click following link if you would like to contribute - https://www.gofundme.com/f/54-the-gate-covid19-lockdown-fund
Following on from yesterday's profile here is Darren's Quarantine Radio Hour Episode where he talks about his thoughts about the current situation and presents some of his favourite tunes including bangers from DJ Shadow and Public Enemy and also of course sneaks in a couple of his own -
In order to access cash and continue working with Gate artists while the gate is closed and they are locked down we have set up a gofundme to purchase materials - please click following link if you would like to contribute - https://www.gofundme.com/f/54-the-gate-covid19-lockdown-fund
Darren is a key contributor to the Gate and is largely focused on the music side of things though has important input elsewhere too. Going under the name 2Decks Darren has been an active part of the learning disabled music scene in the UK for over a Decade, playing primarily in London and the South East but also appearing last year at the Sonic Protest festival in Paris (where he was also due to appear this year on the same night's billing as Lee Scratch Perry but this was unfortunately cancelled as a result of the current ongoing situation) and anyone who has seen him perform can attest to his power on a stage, as natural a performer as there has ever been with a commanding stage presence and an innate ability to work a crowd. Darren's main love is Hip-Hop music, particularly the UK originators such as Overlord X and much of his music takes that form with the odd bit of James Brown soul and showmanship thrown in for good measure.
Currently Darren's music takes 2 main forms; the solo output which Darren produces at home laying down the instrumental tracks on his laptop and most often then laying over vocals (though sometimes not). An example of this is the "soundtrack" below recorded recently whilst locked down.
The other form Darren's music takes currently is his band set up, joining up with other Gate members, Josh (guitar), Roberto (Drums/Backing Vocals) and Leon (Bass) to form a Rock/rap hybrid that brings the house down wherever it plays. See below for a prime example of this:
Darren says he is doing ok during the lockdown, he's playing on his Playstation 3 and has plenty of data on his mobile so can watch video's on youtube and browse the internet when he's bored or phone his sister when he needs anything.
In order to access cash and continue working with Gate artists while the gate is closed and they are locked down we have set up a gofundme to purchase materials - please click following link if you would like to contribute - https://www.gofundme.com/f/54-the-gate-covid19-lockdown-fund
We've created this Learning Disability Art module for Gate Members and support workers to use with their service users and also for anyone else who wishes join in (if you're home-schooling your kids why not introduce them to something a little different).
Please find download to PDF version of the below GIF HERE.
In order to access cash and continue working with Gate artists while the gate is closed and they are locked down we have set up a gofundme to purchase materials - please click following link if you would like to contribute - https://www.gofundme.com/f/54-the-gate-covid19-lockdown-fund
