Bob Geldof receives Al Saqar Trophy in Abu Dhabi.... (28/04/2011)
Today, at Abu Dhabi's prestigious Higher Education and Scientific Research facility Sir Bob Geldof was presented the Al Saqar Trophy by H.E. Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan for his outstanding commitment to humanitarian and peace issues throughout the world. Sir Bob went on to deliver the primary keynote speech on climate change issues and the impact of global warming on the world at Abu Dhabi's Food Security Forum.
Bob Geldof & band ready to Rock & Rebuild Sydney... (14/04/2011)
On Sunday 1 May, ANZ and Star City are hosting a charity concert to help those affected by recent natural disasters in Australia, New Zealand and Japan. Sir Bob Geldof will be joined by Jon Stevens and Danielle Spencer for an exclusive one-off show in Sydney at the Lyric Theatre, Star City Casino.
All funds raised from ticket sales will go to The Australian Red Cross and the Queensland Premier's Disaster Relief Fund to provide hope and inspiration to affected communities. Tickets to this unique concert are available from Ticketmaster. This is an intimate venue and ticket numbers are limited so be quick to avoid disappointment.
Rock and Rebuild
Date: Sunday, 1 May 2011
Time: From 7:00PM
Location: Lyric Theatre, Star City
Tickets: $150.00 available from Ticketmaster
To buy tickets visit www.ticketmaster.com.au
Rock and Rebuild reflects ANZ and Star City's commitment to the communities we operate in. We hope you join us at this unique event and help us give hope and support to those in need.
Best speech in 25 years . . . (31/03/2011)
"Sir Bob delivered the most thoughtful and well delivered keynote speech in the conference's 25 years." - Billboard Magazine.
17th March 2011 Geldof was in Austin, Texas, where he gave the feature keynote address at the South By Southwest festival and conference. In it, Geldof voiced despair over the state of rock 'n' roll, which he called "America's great cultural gift to the world".
"Rock 'n' roll needs to be against something," Geldof said in his 65-minute address. "It can't just be. It always needs a function in which to function. Of course there are great songs. There will always be great songs that don't suggest anything other than being a great song. But . . . where are our Ramones or our [Sex] Pistols today? Do we need them? 'Yes' is the answer. Will they be found? Maybe not."
Geldof went on to say that he doesn't hear any "disgust" with the state of the world being expressed by today's artists. He contrasted that with previous generations' responses to social issues. "Can you imagine the '60s without the bands interpreting the fast-moving agenda of the times? Maybe this hyper democracy of the Web simply gives the illusion of talent . . . . Everybody has got the means to say anything they want, but nobody has anything to say."
Addressing the sorry state of the music industry, in which album sales are in a downward spiral and even concert revenues have nosedived in recent years, Geldof placed at least some of the blame at the feet of the artists themselves and their disconnection from the world around them. Music, he insisted, "is only successful when it's relevant. The industry will not exist on the caterwauling of divas or pretty boys with lovely mouths. This thing we call content is actually about this conversation society has with itself. Rock music provided that: it is intensely powerful, this little minor art form we occupy ourselves with. And when politics is unconvincing even as entertainment, then entertainment might be the politics of our time."
Geldof, who has a new album out - How To Compose Popular Songs That Will Sell (58 1/2) - was also at SXSW to perform. He played a set of his own which took the crowd by storm and resulted in him winning the primary music award of the festival - The Groupies Choice.
Is the burqini the future? (31/03/2011)
Can the burqa and the bikini co-exist? Feminist writer and Kruger Cowne client Fatima Bhutto, author and activist from Pakistan, and Germaine Greer insist they should when they were addressing the session 'Can the burqa co-exist with the bikini?' at the 10th India Today Conclave in March 2011.
Bhutto, who has been witness to the new trend of an increasing number of women opting for the purdah, said: "This (the trend) has now dangerously become a sign of resistance."
"The more you isolate one group from the other, the easier it is to evict them from the society and the burqa just makes the association to a segregated section easier," she explained. And the more one outlaws one culture or its representation, the more bitter is the resistance against the prohibition. Countries such as Switzerland, United Kingdom and Belgium are considering a prohibition on the veil while France has already done so.
Bhutto, who travels the world extensively and has to balance both the veil and the bikini, pointing to history, said that it's not necessarily true that women in veils or Muslim countries are the problem. "While women in Western countries didn't have the right to vote till 1971, women in Japan have been voting since the 1880s, from 1930 in Turkey and 1963 in Iran. Without making the veil the issue, the world should look at other problems in these countries," asserted Bhutto. She added that the fundamentalism that is now used to characterise almost all citizens of Muslim-dominated countries, originated from Christianity and not Islam.
Greer, who is sometimes referred to as an anarchist, said the two should be allowed to exist with each other and they will eventually wither away as they lose their social relevance over time. While attacking the stereotype that a bikini showcases a woman as progressive, democratic and modern, Greer said: "The bikini actually forces women to have bodies of children, and women, who are naturally fat-bottomed animals, are forced to lose weight and then buy new breasts because they lose them as well."
Over the one-hour long, interactive discussion, Fulla, a Barbie lookalike, which is targeted towards the young Muslim population, became the symbol of both liberation and resistance.
Bhutto illustrated her argument by saying that while this 11 and a half inch tall, perfectly calibrated doll, is fully covered with a hijab, she also carries a cellphone, has a car, a house, books and a prayer mat. But unlike the conventional Barbie dolls, she does not advertise garter belts or pointy heels.
While men, their perceptions about the opposite gender and the battle of the genders were the main topic of the gender dialogue at the Conclave, Greer admitted that a woman's most severe critic will always be her mother.
And the only time Bhutto will ever wear a veil in France will be to spite the government's ban.
John Simpson at the Liberty Awards in Berlin (24/03/2011)
John Simpson recently delivered a keynote address for the Liberty Awards in Berlin.
The awards are aimed at recognising the work of foreign correspondents and reporters who have made notable explorations of the theme of freedom in their writing.
To see John's performance at the Liberty Awards please see the link below.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8F3o1YbtOsg
Bananarama and Rabbits . . (11/02/2011)
Kruger Cowne recently arranged for Bananarama to play live at CLSA's Chinese New Year party for the year of the Rabbit. The event was staged at Quaglinos in the west end of London.
"The evening was a huge success and Bananarama were spectacular" said one of the guests. "They were superbly polished and professional and brought the audience not only into the songs but also right onto the stage. A truly memorable evening".
