The banjo, invented by folks forced to emigrate, was created to serve and succor communities surviving in an environment set up to deny and crush their humanity.
All that–blessed and the brazen, beautiful and the brutal—is in the banjo’s DNA, in its music, and in the soul of the United States of America and beyond. To ignore, or sugar-coat, that legacy implies shame, and ignores the power of success against horrible odds, generation upon generation.
To become whole, pain and triumph must be admitted, accepted, and incorporated. Toxins internalized and suppressed bring disease. Purging this poison sets us all free. To not appreciate our successes is foolish vanity before the Creator. To admit to and cherish the healing this instrument gave to its inventors and successors is a great beginning, we think. So, if a song’s authentic lyrics talk about a Nigger, we’re not changing it to “Johnny” or “Boy”, or “Soldier”. We’re keeping it real here. It’s the only way to remember where we’ve come from, cherish what we’ve come through, to have honest conversation, and to grow.