Welsh reggae sound systems: ‘We had no future, so we made one’

Growing up Black in Wales in the 1970s, "it was like we were cut off from the rest of mankind," said Lawrence "Tylo" Taylor. Despite Cardiff hosting one of the UK's oldest Black communities, life could be harsh: "As children, the police would abuse you, calling you a Black bastard," Tylo recalled.

"There was pure racism in school and you’d be singled out by teachers and belittled. We grew up very disillusioned." Reggae and sound systems offered a way to belong. Black International was the first sound in Cardiff, followed by Conqueror Hi Power in 1975 and Countryman in 1981, set up by Tylo and Gary Jemmett.

Andrew "Bingham" Binns, who moved to Cardiff from London, embraced Rastafarianism and the music, while Kervin Julien — who arrived in the late 1970s — described the scene as "very isolated" but one that "created a community and a sense of belonging." Crews packed speaker stacks and travelled to London, Bristol, Birmingham, Gloucester and Huddersfield, picking up records and clashing with other systems.

Wales, Cardiff

welsh reggae, sound systems, cardiff, black community, tylo taylor, countryman, conqueror, rastafarianism, speaker stacks, sound clash