This page now represents the closing of an investigative journey into the identity struggles from a single individual living in Australia. It was with the hope that the interview would cast a slither of a view (though a view, nonetheless), on how it might be for those who are redefining what it is to embrace multiple cultures, experiences and memories and are merging that into a single, spliced identity. Gone, are the days that individuals are segmented and cleanly grouped by heritage, nationality, gender, sexuality, choice, etc. Furthermore, the article continues to break down the barriers of what we may consider as our home, how we understand it and our feelings toward it.

 

The world is not so black and white anymore, more like multiple shades of grey (and we can thank globalisation, diaspora, evolution, and societies adoption to those things). In a way, James spoke on behalf of us all in regard to the fact that we are all stuck in this limbo until the day comes that we truly understand that we are multi-dimensional creatures with many layers.

 

That is the day that we begin to see with clarity and colour. It is the day that we will perceive our experiences and memories with no amount of predetermination and remember with less individuality and more collectively. That will be an intangible sign that we have developed to become more aware that we are one bubbling organism, buzzing in a hub of shared and interlinked events. Additionally, we will no longer anchor ourselves to just a single definition of home, identity or place, but be more open to the concepts in all their vastness.

 

We explore these concepts with James and see how his many worlds and passions collide into one and reflect in the form of his persona. We saw that his self-appreciation was a winding journey and he is now (what seems to be) about 92% of the way toward the end. The remaining 8% represents, in this case, the segmented beliefs which society has engrained into him, the doubts and fears from the challenges he experienced affecting the formation of his identity, and lastly, his unlived experiences.

 

I chose to focus on his music because within those lyrics are the novel to his journey to where he is today. His musical journal reveals those challenges, influences, hopes and memories which have assisted me in coming to these conclusions. He discusses (raps) his story to his audience and one of his older freestyles, labelled 'Mack Laflame' does this in an explosion of lyrics by recounting his connections to his home, culture and life journey. A lyric that represented this recounting of memory perfectly can be found at 40 seconds into the song; "Came up in the South West, no fucks are ever given, one-bedroom house peeps all livin', had to do my homework on the kitchen bench, Dad will come and pull the belt, I would hit the fence." 

 

I believe that his earlier experiences have strongly influenced the way he perceives how he belongs to Australia, his culture, the world of music, and the world as a whole. This was highlighted to me when he states that he is "fortunate to be able to relate, mingle and interact with people of any culture or background. Having ancestry from both sides of the spectrum and growing up in rural NSW, Nigeria and Sydney’s south-west contributed to this."

 

Primarily, it is the confusion of being and mixed messages from our surroundings that place us in limbo. It is belonging and also not belonging, succeeding but not yet making it, having more than one culture dictating a part of your life. It is the grey in between life and death, home and away. However, accepting these factors is what saves us from limbo, which is something James is already on the path to understanding. Just like something Roger Cohen of the New York Times once said, "Yes, being not quite home, acceptance, which may be bountiful, is what is left to us."

 

You can continue this journey by listening to B Wise's (James) freestyle, "Mack Laflame' here: