INDIVIDUAL - SCAD ID - #488
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Hassan Jackson has been drumming in and around South Carolina for 35+ years. His primary choice of drums is the congas, which was passed on to him by his father. Since he was a kid, Hassan has appeared in numerous festivals, sacred events and educational institutions along with the Moja Dancers of Charleston, Egbe Kilimanjaro and the Oyotunji Village drummers. He has performed with former local cover bands, Kilimanjaro International and Jazz Etc. Hassan has also spent 15+ years being a Teaching Artist apprentice to his father, Leon Jackson. Hassan has had the privilege of drumming and learning from many local and world-renowned drummers. He has studied different West African drumming styles under the direction of Baba Olatunji, Mor Thiam, National Ballet of Senegal and the Freetong Players of Sierra Leonne. He has also studied Orisha drumming styles under the direction of Gene Golden, Alfredito Kimbisa, and the Anya Drummers of Atlanta, Ga. Hassan is currently a member of Wicked Fire, a Santana tribute band based in Myrtle Beach, SC. He also does freelance gigs with other drummers and local bands in the Lowcountry. He also offers drum classes and collaborates with key figures in the Gullah Geechee diaspora in an effort to continue the tradition of drumming in the SC Lowcountry. When he is not drumming, he handcrafts gourds and beads into beautiful instruments, known as shekeres.
Hassan has been entertaining people with his unique gift of drumming since the age of two. As a child, he would always notice how captivated people of all ages would be by the polyrhythmic sounds of the congas. Where the ego could have easily sprouted into an evil monster, Hassan allowed spirit to show him that the drums would be his way of influencing people to love themselves and one another. Humanity has become so conflicted because we allow things like religion, politics, ethnicity and so many other factors to create invisible lines between us. But the drums have a mystical way of dissipating all those lines and creating a harmonious unification that creates peace and love within ourselves and the community.
Hassan also enjoys teaching people about the drums just as much as he loves playing them. It gives him great pleasure to entertain, but he finds it more fulfilling when a child or adult experiences the art of drumming for themselves. Hassan uses the drum to encourage children to tap into their imagination by allowing them to freely express themselves, orally and rhythmically. This unlocks creative thoughts and ideas that may have otherwise remained dormant, influencing them to make their own artistic contributions to humanity. The same effect works for adults, as well. An opportunity to play drums allows adults a safe, nonjudgmental space to escape from the burdens and traumas of everyday life. Drum circles are essentially group therapy sessions where no one actually shares their problems aloud. However, everyone in attendance walks away in a state of tranquility that is often smothered by stress, depression and oppression. Hassan believes that the drums erase those heavy energies and reminds us that peace and happiness are easily attainable.
Finally, Hassan is a firm believer in keeping the indigenous culture of the Gullah people in the Lowcountry alive. People are familiar with the folklore, sweetgrass baskets and rice plantation stories. However, Hassan provides an element that is often left out of the narrative, the strong presence of African drums and instruments. These art forms traveled with the ancestors to this foreign land, where they also creolized with the indigenous people of the Lowcountry. Along with educating people about the drums and its importance to the Gullah culture, Hassan also turns gourds into beautiful instruments of West African origin, known as shekeres. These instruments are popular among the sacred and secular styles of music found in the Gullah/African/Caribbean diaspora. They are also timeless pieces of art that reminds people of the ingenuity of the African ancestors that survived the mental oppression that slavery produced.