“In Black History, you hear about the struggle, but you don’t hear about the joy,” says Jermaine Dupri, an African-American record producer who is the producer of Remy Martin Voices of Harlem, a project celebrating the Harlem Rennaisance during which Harlem, a neighborhood in New York City, became a black cultural mecca in the early 20th Century.
The project is being produced in association with the Harem Writers Guild. The idea is to pay homage to the written word and voices of those from the Harlem Renaissance era. The series highlights the parallels between music and poetry as powerful means of expression and cultures of excellence.
Through curated content, poems from iconic African American poets of the early 20th century are read by Harlem poets of today. Featured is Gift to Sing, Mother to Son, Harlem Wine and My Little Dreams, each with a unique sound but similar origin story; all with roots in Harlem, New York. The backdrop to the poet’s voices are four different musical melodies created by Grammy-Award winning producer Jermaine Dupri, as tribute to the golden age of African American arts that has deeply inspired his personal journey as a musical artist.