Broadcaster Richie Brave and guests explore five decades of punk, rebellion and Black music, and Camden’s place within this cultural history

What happens when we look at the history of punk through Black music and Black British culture?

As punk marks 50 years, broadcaster Richie Brave brings together an extraordinary panel of musicians, writers and cultural thinkers to uncover a side of its story that too often goes unheard.

Punk didn’t happen in isolation.

It emerged from a Britain shaped by migration, Caribbean culture, working-class communities, racial tensions and youth rebellion - and Camden was one of the places where those sounds, people and ideas collided.

From reggae, ska and dub to soul, funk and Caribbean sound-system culture, Black music was far more than a soundtrack playing alongside punk. Its sounds, politics, style and spirit of resistance helped shape the cultural landscape from which punk emerged.

So what happens when we put those influences at the centre of the story?

Chaired by broadcaster Richie Brave, this special conversation brings together:

Vivien Goldman: journalist, writer and musician who documented the relationship between punk and reggae as it unfolded in the 1970s, including her influential Jah Punk article.

Stephanie Phillips: guitarist and vocalist with acclaimed Black feminist punk band Big Joanie, writer and commentator on race, gender and alternative music.

Mykaell S. Riley: founding member of Steel Pulse, producer, researcher and Director of the Black Music Research Unit, who curated the British Library’s landmark Beyond the Bassline: 500 Years of Black British Music exhibition.

Together, they’ll explore punk and reggae, Black British youth culture, sound systems, race and resistance - and the influence of Black culture not only on music, but on the fashion, art, attitude and visual language of rebellion.

Expect stories, music, history and a conversation that might change the way you think about punk.

Whether you lived through the era, love the music or simply want to discover another side of British cultural history, you don’t need to be a punk expert to join the conversation.

Come and hear the history turned up — and the voices too often left in the background brought to the front.

All proceeds will be donated to the African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust (ACLT), a multi-award-winning charity supporting patients living with blood cancer and other illnesses where a matched stem cell, blood or organ donor may be needed to save a life.

Part of Camden Council's Black History Season 2026 programme

Description supplied by the event organiser.