Reaction to Brothers from Another Planet

 I found that the John Corbett article Brothers from Another Planet illuminated new information about the unique style and music of Sun Ra, Lee "Scratch" Perry, and George Clinton. The music and performance of these individuals forms a connection between their music and afro-futurism through technologically manipulated sounds, elaborate costumes, and constant allusions to space in their lyrics. Through musical exploration, these artists attempt a reconstitution of the African American identity. By deconstructing the disempowerment of slavery and turning it into a creative extraterrestrial situation, the absolute identity of African Americans becomes mystified to anyone but themselves. 

Something I found particularly interesting is that each of these 3 individuals (although from very different backgrounds and creating music of different genres) have individually created similar narratives. Using myth to their advantage, they form a sense of disorientation, "which becomes a metaphor for social marginalization." All three present themselves as a kind of extraterrestrial, postindustrial shaman, taking on a specific alias. They convey their reactions to the alienation of black bodies through clever wordplay, complimented by elaborate costumes. The costumes seem particularly important to their artistic intentions of reimagining black identity in a fantastical context. By embodying otherworldly alias' they rise above the constraints of the white-dominated society existing on earth, in turn threatening and disregarding oppressive powers.