Pete Brown (b. 1921, Trondheim - d. 2009, Røros, Norway) was a talented jazz drummer and one of the leading figures of the swing jazz era in Norway during the 1950s and 60s. Brown led several ensembles during his career and also played with the likes of Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie, and the Swedish saxophonist, Arne Domnérus.

Pete was raised by his grandparents Emilia and Sam Brown who were travelling circus artists from Liberia. After touring through Germany, Denmark and Sweden with their son Thomas (also part of the family business), they finally settled in Norway. Pete’s parents are said to have perished in an earthquake while touring in South America, leaving the young boy in the care of his paternal grandparents.

Despite being relatively unknown today, Pete’s legacy lives on. This exhibition is a way of honouring this pioneer and reminding us of the importance of looking back on our history, filling the gaps and safeguarding our heritage.

Photo credit: Photograph from AFRIN Archives, published in the book Afrikanere i Norge gjennom 400 år.

Lefifi Tladi (b. 1949, Pretoria, South Africa) is a painter, poet and jazz musician who was part of the jazz band, Malombo Jazz Messengers, later known as Dashiki, from 1969 to the mid 1970’s. Dashiki’s compositions were influenced by the trance-inducing music of the Bapedi people. Music merged with poetry. As a member of the Black Consciousness Movement, Tladi and his band used poetry to advocate for socio-political change in South Africa.

He was forced into exile, ending up in Sweden. Here he studied art at the Gerlesborg School of Fine Art and has lived and worked in Sweden since then. He has participated in several exhibitions both in Sweden and abroad.

In 2021, Tladi was awarded the “Lifetime Achievement Award” by the South African Literary Awards. Currently, the Javett Art Centre in Pretoria is honouring his career with an exposé lasting five years, from 2023-2027.

Photo credit: Tristan Lindquist

The story of Pete Brown’s life presented in the exhibition is based on the extensive research carried out by Yacouba Cisse, (b. 1970, Abidjan). Cisse is a writer, poet and collector, based in Oslo. In 1996, Yacouba Cisse began documenting the African past and present in Norway. He travelled to Røros in 1998 to interview Pete Brown.

In 2008, he registered an organisation Afrikanere i Norway (AFRIN) with the mission to document the African presence from 1600-2000. The AFRIN Archives are held in Riksarkivet in Oslo. In the past two years, Cisse has worked as a teacher at the Hersleb Videregående Skole. In 2005, he presented a paper at the Black Studies conference outside Frankfurt. Consequently, he went on to contribute to a conference at the University Toulouse le Mirail in France in 2006. He is a former contributor to the weekly NyTid and also worked at the Norwegian Historical Institute and the Royal Archives in 2008-2009.

Cisse is currently working on two new books. A new edition of the book published in 2011 is due in December 2023 at http://www.mantipress.com and a second book due in 2024 at the Norwegian publishing House Aschehoug.