LEEDSEXPLORED

Leeds Explored is a podcast that focuses on the culture of Leeds, including music and literature. The podcast features interviews with local band Lobjectif, who discuss their journey and the Leeds music scene. There is also a segment about the 50 Years of Culture exhibition at Leeds City Museum, which celebrates the history and growth of hip hop in Leeds. The podcast also highlights World Book Day and visits a floating bookshop called Holdfast on Clarence Dock. Leeds, a diverse city, full of culture and ready to be explored. This is Leeds Explored. Hello and welcome to Leeds Explored. I'm Joe Jacklin and I'm Jake Gratidge and this is Leeds Explored. How are you Joe today? I'm really good mate, how are you? Good, full of culture today I am. I'm really excited about it, I think it's a really interesting topic to be fair. Yeah, for those of you who don't know, this podcast is about everything culture in Leeds. So what's your favourite element of culture Joe? I think the biggest thing is definitely Leeds United, I think the football, the passion, everything that comes out of there. I think it's what I think of when I think of culture in Leeds. What about you mate? Definitely not that for me. I think the music scene is probably the best thing and the beer, Kirkstall Brewery. Fair play. Big up them. Anyway, to start our dive into Leeds culture, we are joined by three members of the band, Lobjectif, how are you guys? Good. So for those of you who don't know, would you mind just giving us a background about yourselves, the journey, the band, everything like that? Well, we're Lobjectif, there's four of us usually, there's three of us today. Me and Louis started the band when we were 12, when I was 20, so 8 years of going strong. Ezra and Dan, Ezra's with us here, joined the band when they were 16, probably before that, on and off. We got signed during lockdown and we've been touring so much and releasing so much music, so it's been really, really fun, really great experience. And what is the Leeds music scene like? How would you sum it up? I think the Leeds music scene is absolutely class, definitely the best music scene in the North and I will fight anybody who says otherwise. It's very diverse, there's like hundreds and hundreds of different bands, different genres and yeah, everyone's really friendly, everyone's been really nice, even though, you know, the music we make isn't always the most popular sort of music around the scene, people have still been very supportive and people still come to the gigs, whether they know our music or not, so yeah, Leeds music is the best, I will not take anything else. So what kind of advice would you give to young bands starting out? I'm not too sure really, I mean, just like go to gigs, go and get in, I mean, I'd say be inspired by other people doing the same thing that you want to do and there's loads of venues in Leeds you can go to, like the Brudenel for example, just see there's loads of venues around Leeds, loads of small venues so you can get up close to the artists and yeah, I think attend gigs, practice and yeah, keep going. And what's coming up for you next? What's the next big achievement you see, objective? Well, we are going on tour, so that's guaranteed, guaranteed achievement, whether anyone turns up is a very different matter but yeah, we're going on tour in April across the UK, should be fun and we're releasing a new EP and then after that, global success probably. Thank you very much, everyone give it up for Objective. Right, and now we're going to play a clip of your new song, right? And what's it called? Puppy. Here we go. Love Objective, everybody. And you can't talk about music culture, of course, without talking about the very influential genre of hip hop. I completely agree and I didn't actually know this but this year, Leeds is celebrating its 50th anniversary of its very first block party, the foundation of hip hop in the area. Yeah, I've been to the Leeds City Museum the other day and they've got quite a good exhibition there. Yeah, I'd like to check it out. It's on the very top floor, there's lots of stairs. It's good cardio as well. Good energy, great area. Anyway, we'll pass you on to Daisy Short with more. Brilliant. Delving into the world of hip hop, the 50 Years of Culture exhibition held at Leeds City Museum is showcasing the history and growth of hip hop music in Leeds and around the world. It features a variety of aspects surrounding the culture of hip hop, such as local artists, famous record shops and communities involved in the scene over the years. I spoke to Paul White, who was attending the exhibition at the time of my visit. He talks about hip hop and explained how over time, it has shaped not only other music, but the language we use every day. If you think about how we communicate now, a lot of this is down to hip hop culture, especially the younger generations. They pick up on trends, trends that basically have been formed, originated from African American slang words, etc. over in the United States of America that then infiltrated the United Kingdom. Paul continues on the change of the genre and its increase in popularity over the last 50 years. Hip hop has changed massively over the last 50 years. It's predominantly came over from African American culture in the 1970s, sort of from Manhattan, New York. I would say it's probably the most lucrative and most popularly funded sort of music in the last 50 years. With plenty of knowledge to gain about the genre, the 50 Years of Culture exhibition is a great place to visit this month in Leeds. The exhibition is open until the 24th of March, so make sure to head down to Leeds City Museum for some more hip hop culture. Thank you very much Stacey Shaw, and for those of you who don't know, hip hop legend MF Doom actually lived in Leeds for quite a few years. Yeah, he actually passed away here, which is quite sad. Anyway, moving on to a different aspect of culture, today is World Boop Day, so happy World Boop Day Joe. Happy birthday, happy birthday, happy birthday, yay! Happy birthday if it is your birthday. What's your favourite book mate? What built your passion for reading? Oh, that's a very tough question. I really love anything Irvine Welsh. Irvine Welsh is quite good isn't it? Trainspotting? Oh yeah, of course. Yeah, good film. Good film, brilliant film. What about you Joe, what's your favourite book? Favourite book, I think anything by Ian McEwan. He's quite a sinister writer, he's got a lot of dark thoughts which is a bit strange, but really great storyteller, really great writer, really good language. I think anyone trying to get into literature, I think he's a good starting point. Definitely, and whether you are getting all dressed up as your favourite character today, or you're a tired mum who's just finding out their child has went to dress up this morning, today is all about celebrating literature, and we sent Laura Goan to Leeds Central Library to find out how they are celebrating. I'm stood in Leeds' infamous Central Library to get in the midst of all the World Book Day fun. The Leeds Central Library are hosting a World Book Day reading to children under five today. This will be followed by Leeds Lit Fest on Saturday 8th March. I spoke to Alex, who told me about why she loves to read on World Book Day. I love World Book Day, I love getting kids interested in reading. They have such amazing imaginations and I think it's really important that we foster that and encourage them to read as much as they can as they grow up, because it's a beautiful thing. The children all came as their favourite book characters. There were some Peter Rabbits, some Peter Pans and some Cinderellas. They were all enjoying playing with the numbers, singing the songs and reading the books. And how many's left? How many is that? One! I couldn't resist getting stuck in as well. If you're happy and you know it, stomp your feet. If you're happy and you know it, stomp your feet. If you're happy and you know it and you really want to show it, if you're happy and you know it, stomp your feet. Don't forget to head down to Leeds Lit Fest on Saturday, a family day at the Central Library, where you have the chance to meet authors and illustrators and hear all of their amazing stories throughout the day, including Speedwell Dance's playful telling of Thumbelina with live cello and accordion. Yay, that was so good! That was good, wasn't it Joe? It was brilliant. I really enjoyed that. It's always nice to change up stories, what we hear, get different perspectives, get a younger story. I really enjoyed that, to be fair. And speaking of World Book Day, it's really triggering some memories. Yeah. What did you dress up as? I always liked the Where's Wally? Stripe jumper. Yeah, stripe jumper, stripe hat, glasses, scarf. It's quite easy to do, but I think you always get a smile on people's faces. What about you, mate? I think a cop out was always Diary of a Wimpy Kid, because he just wore normal clothes anyway. Yeah, fair play. Anyway, speaking of books, World Book Day, I have visited a floating bookshop. Now, half of it was underwater, and that's not just because the council burst a pipe, the ice caps haven't melted yet. No, this is an initiative set up by a local businessman, and we're going to hear about it now. How exciting. Constructed in 1843, Leedstock was vital for the city's thriving industry. The docks were primarily used to transport coal for heavy industries in and around West Yorkshire. But now, Leedstock is supplying the city with something new, a steady and fresh supply of books. Holdfast's bookshop on Clarence Dock promises customers a friendly atmosphere, a cosy fireplace seat, and all the best new and classic literature. But there's a catch. I met with Chris, the owner of the Holdfast bookshop, but to get to the shop, I had to walk the plank. What is it that makes the Holdfast bookshop so special? What makes the bookshop so special? Well, it's on a boat. Chris, explain the history of the boat. And this boat is, it's an award, it's one of, you know, not to blow our own trumpets, but it won National Historic Flagship of the Year last year, so it's kind of been recognised, because it's part of the history of boats in Leeds, it's the history of the development of Leeds, you know, because prior to the connection of the canals, Pontefract, Wakefield and Castleford were smaller than Leeds, and it was boats like this that helped Leeds become the city it is. The main thing about it is the fact that it's got a good selection of books, and Vic, who chooses the books, you know, we get a lot of compliments on people saying, you know, this is a really nice choice of books that you've got here, and as well as new books, we've got second-hand books, which is good, because obviously, you know, everyone's, well, it feels for the last, like, few decades at least, we've had, you know, people haven't had as much money, so second-hand, pre-loved is a nice way, but, you know, it's becoming more respected, so we've always had a nice selection of second-hand books. And has it always been your dream to own a floating bookshop? I can't take credit for the idea, it was my wife's, it was Vic's idea, and I thought it was a silly idea when she first said it, so it shows how much it was her idea, and she used to work in libraries, she's read, I've read all my life, but she's more enthusiastic, faster than me, she's got through a lot more books, and she's got more qualifications than me. And what's the response been like from the community since you've opened? Yeah, it's been lovely, really humbling, lovely, people who come into bookshops, generally you get some really, like, mad conversations, you know, you find yourself talking about things that you never thought you'd talk about, because the world of books is a lovely world to be in, to be honest, it is really lovely. And how many books and plants do you need to sell to stay afloat as a business? I'll let you in on a secret, we haven't done a business plan, so all our decisions have been like, should we do this? And I guess we've been lucky that we've probably made, you know, a series of hopefully good decisions. The boat also sells plants with their own special names. I'm proud of the fact that we name our plants, and we give them names like Richard, Rebecca, whatever, and people respond to that. Yeah, I used to have a spider plant called Phil, so I'm glad I'm not the only one who names the plant. Yeah, there's quite a lot of people too, and obviously, I think you're more likely to look after your plant if it's got a name, and half of the battle is keeping them alive, so yeah, I'm glad to hear you're the spider plant called Phil, that's brilliant. Chris showed me around the boat, and I spied something interesting in the corner. Is that a vintage fireplace? Yeah, yeah, it's from Belgium, that weighs enough to get a forklift to lift it in. You can see the tiles underneath. Yeah, yeah, it's absolutely, it weighs an absolute tonne, but as you can feel, it does the job, yeah. This week is International Women's Week, and we're joined by Abby Johnson, who is here to tell us more. Abby, what is International Women's Week? Hi, thanks for having me on. You're alright, any time. So, the aim of International Women's Week is to create a gender equal world, full of, free of bias, stereotypes and discrimination, and really to make women feel included and part of something. It's basically just where women are valued and celebrated, and that's the whole concept of it. And obviously, gender equality is everywhere, but we can celebrate that in Leeds, like, as a city. Is there anything happening in Leeds this week to do with the programme? Well, the question is, what isn't happening in Leeds this week? Honestly, everything that you can think of is happening tomorrow. So, Women2Women are hosting an amazing line-up of professional panel guest speakers with health therapists, practitioners and entrepreneurs, honestly, you name it. They'll be discussing and sharing insights on unhealthy attachment relationships, also growing a healthy mindset, leadership and empowerment. Also, at the Belgrave, they're celebrating with some of the favourite and coolest acts around, like Hannah Diamond, Jessica Winter, Lucy Torn, and Leeds' own Lucky Iris for an amazing night of women power. Chapel FM Arts Centre are having a day of conversations, crafts, well-being and food, for all self-identifying women. Let's Bank invite everyone to the second big free disco of the year. This will celebrate all women playing the best divas from the 60s to the 2000s. I also spoke to female singer-songwriter Penny Brazier, frontwoman to the band Tiger Island, who famously use crazy animal masks to support their punk rock music. Playing in bands in Leeds since, well, for the last 24 years in that time. I started off kind of in my very early 20s doing kind of original stuff and then I spent about 10 years in the middle of that kind of playing in sort of covers bands and have come back to doing original music and releasing and recording and playing on the circuit. I know that when I'm standing in the crowd watching a woman on stage, it feels really empowering to me to watch. So as like a singer-songwriter, where do you get your influences from? I don't really consciously sit down and write songs about specific subjects. I tend to just write a stream of consciousness. But generally, I think that a theme or a story tends to come out from that. So I think it depends a little bit on the band as well. Tiger Island, because it's an angry band, I tend to write about things that make me feel angry, I guess. But yeah, a lot of the time I just tend to throw myself open and see what kind of things comes up. It's a bit like therapy, really. Weird question, but why the pig mask? Aimee, do you like the video? OK, well, I mean, I wish I could give you a really profound and meaningful answer to this. I will tell you the truth, which is I had this idea that we would have a kid wearing a tiger mask. So a big all over the head tiger mask and just paper mask. You've seen these kind of paper masks that you can order, like the stencil, the template, and you have to print it all out and put it together yourself. Well, I thought that would be a great idea. So it was destined to fail. At the end it just looked a bit like a melted cat. We had about a day left to sort it out. As you may know, last year Leeds was named the City of Culture. This helped to show off how amazing the city is. Kate Page has more. Leeds, a city full of culture and pushing for the recognition it deserves. Leeds Playhouse, Northern Ballet, the Brunel. Just a handful of names that showcase the diversity of Leeds culture. These were also part of the reason Leeds was named the City of Culture in 2023. Claire Hutchinson worked on the project. One of our objectives as an organisation was to really showcase the vast variety of culture in Leeds and I think we've done that. But there's so much more to Leeds than what meets the eye. In Leeds, if you can get to know the thoughts of slightly more underground spaces in terms of music and art, there are lots of free events. There is so much more to discover about this city many of us call home. There's so many opportunities to do free workshops and film making. There's a lot that Leeds is vibrant which I haven't really seen in as many other cities. So get up, get out and immerse yourself in the diversity of Leeds. But when looking at culture, the most important people that culture should affect are the people it represents, sorry. Old or young, alternative or mainstream, a city's culture must reflect everyone. Joe, I believe you have this one. I do. Today I'm in Leeds asking people what they think about the culture in the city. What do you think is like the best part of culture in Leeds? Are you talking about the music scene at all or like the actors? Oh yeah, actually I will say that. Boom, the venue Boom Leeds, I know they've had some difficulties over Covid and that's one of the few, it's one of the best metal venues that I've known and I'm very happy that it's here. So what do you think is the most important part of Leeds culturally? The fact that we have a large and satisfying population, I feel like it brings a lot of culture to Leeds, especially not even just as people talk to you but if you see like walking down the shops, there's like a lot of shops like that. Noodle S is right there, Mr Su's is just right around the corner. So you get to not only experience new foods and new cultures but you get to speak to new people at the same time. Is that something you're quite proud of then? Yeah, I like it because it gives me like a wider appreciation. I think the institutions like the art gallery, the Tetley that's sadly no longer with us, places like, I can't remember what the gallery's called, the Audrey and Burton gallery in the Parkinson building are really important but I think recently we've had people not caring about it as much, like the council not funding places and smaller institutions. So how would you like to see the artistic side of Leeds be endorsed more so? How would you like to see that happen? I think if the council, there's lots of abandoned buildings, lots of empty buildings and I think if the council chose to lease those out or work with landlords to lease those out on a cheaper basis, I think you'd find that a lot more grassroots institutions come to Leeds. So what stands out to you about the cultural scene in Leeds? I think the most cultural thing I can think of is how Leeds United being the only team that's available in Leeds while other cities have like more than two. So I think that's like a unique standpoint in itself. I was told however that some genres of music are looking for better cultural representation in Leeds. Because I'm a classical musician, I would like to see classical music, I'd like to see folk music as well and things like that. I'd like to go somewhere and find out where it is. So it talks about classical music, I believe Opera North won something at the Philharmonic. Yeah there is an opera here, opera is good, yeah. There's not much classical music apart from the opera though. I don't think there is. Music wise, it's not really doing very well music wise. I've heard a few people say about like underground bars and stuff, it doesn't seem to be anything too prominent to me but I don't know if that's different for you. The big problem is like you look at Leeds' past, Leeds was a big music venue, like you're talking like 60s, 70s stuff like that, it was big, you had Leeds Hall that was down there, it's not there anymore, you had The Who and stuff like that play there, Queen, all that, they all played there. But all of a sudden it just turned into not a place where bands want to play. I mean you've got Leeds Arena up there now, but what bands are playing it really? Big bands? Nobody wants to come here? It's kind of poor. It's clear some work could be done to improve Leeds' cultural scene but there's certainly a rich vein of it in place already that can easily be built upon. Leeds is a city bustling with culture so let's find out what it has on offer in the upcoming months. Pounce your free boogie, head down to Left Bank on Friday the 8th of March for an International Women's Day free disco. Or swap your dancing shoes out for some ballet pumps at Northern Ballet's Romeo and Juliet is back at Leeds Grand Theatre from the 8th of March up until the 16th. It's a busy weekend for the First Direct Arena as they're graced with the presence of Neo and Jason Derulo. Go grab your tickets before it sells out. Up for a Guinness? Come down to the Leeds St Patrick's Day Parade in Millennium Square on March 17th. Pub Garden weather is fast approaching so why not take part in Leeds Heritage and Pub Brewery Tour before it ends on August 24th. I've never really realised how diverse of a city Leeds is Joe. No me, honestly me neither, it's really given me some food for thought about what more there is to this city. And I do hope it's given everyone some ideas of what they can do to immerse themselves in the city that we all call home. Absolutely, I'm sure it has. Well I've been Joseph Jacklin and I've been Jacob Grattidge and this was Leeds Explored. Leeds, a diverse city full of culture and ready to be explored. This is Leeds.