Sun Ra, Kendrick Lamar and the Emergence of ‘oklama’
Jazz maverick and proto-Afrofuturist Sun Ra was born Herman Blount on May 22, 1914, in Birmingham, Alabama. He was nicknamed “Sonny” from his childhood and, during his college years, he had a visionary experience. He claimed that a bright light appeared around him, and, as he later said:
My whole body changed into something else. I could see through myself. And I went up… I wasn’t in human form… I landed on a planet that I identified as Saturn… they teleported me and I was down on [a] stage with them. They wanted to talk with me. They had one little antenna on each ear. A little antenna over each eye. They talked to me. They told me to stop [attending college] because there was going to be great trouble in schools… the world was going into complete chaos… I would speak [through music], and the world would listen. That’s what they told me. — via John Szwed
What is important to note here is how Sonny/Sun Ra pulled together many threads of his life. He prophesied his future and explained his past with a single act of personal mythology. I was reminded of this when I learned that Kendrick Lamar had become oklama.
In 2021, five years after the release of the Pulitzer Prize-winning album DAMN., Kendrick Lamar released a statement ending his artist contract with Top Dog Entertainment or TDE. Soon after it was announced that Kendrick was starting pgLang with partner Dave Free (who also left TDE), with the promise of a new ‘oklama’ album. The following year he released Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, which reflected his new path or direction.
Last week Cole Cuchna posted his apt analysis of “Worldwide Steppers,” a song from the Mr. Morale album. Cuchna’s Dissect music analysis podcast breaks down the lyrics, music, and meaning of one album per season, one song per episode. On the podcast, Cuchna explored possible meanings behind ‘oklama’, which include Choctaw language (see above). This meaning aligns with Kendrick Lamar projects under pgLang: Mr. Morale, the music video “Heart Part 5,” and a few advertisements.
Note: pgLang is an acronym for Program Language.
When I coined the term techno-vernacular creativity I was thinking of projects such as oklama and pgLang. Oklama is a bridge, it’s the hyphen between ‘techno’ and ‘vernacular’. Techno (shortened from technology) refers to formal or outsider language. It’s the language of the dominant culture. Vernacular means informal or insider language. On the podcast, Cole Cuchna/Dissect refers to oklama (Kendrick Lamar) as a conduit between formal and informal languages. He uses a pgLang advertisement for Cash App as an example. In the ad Kendrick is positioned between a young Black hustler from Compton and a white hustler named Ray Dalio, an investor, hedge fund manager. Kendrick translates for the two men who speak languages that neither can understand by themselves.
Through the lens of ‘techno-vernacular creativity’ a pattern for oklama/pgLang emerges. The vision for pgLang (Program Language) becomes clearer and better understood. oklama/pgLang is a conduit for different worlds, realities, or cultures. As such, the company (and rapper) can begin working as a bridge to help the Black community in the present or “now” and create a path to actualization for the same community in the future. This is also how they are addressing ‘legacy loss,’ which refers to the fading or destruction of a person or group’s reputation, impact, or lasting influence, essentially when the memories, values, or achievements people were known for are no longer actively remembered, preserved, or carried forward by others.
In conclusion, the journey of Kendrick Lamar is similar to the journey of Sun Ra, a music maverick from an earlier era who created a new identity to usher in a new world. Both leave guideposts for people to follow and both deserve deeper dives into the works they leave behind. The emergence of oklama/pgLang is a story of reinvention, empowerment, creativity and innovation (TVC). It teaches us lessons about worldbuilding, delayed gratification (vs. instant), self or group-actualization, and risk-taking.
Also, for reference, here’s the Cole Cuchna/Dissect podcast (video):