The Folks Never Smile (HAAMS Composition)
Plastic Bag
This narrative-based Hip-Hop instrumental was submitted for a compositional assessment in the History of African American Music Studies module. The piece interrogates the concept of what constitutes Black music, whether its essence lies in sonic aesthetics or in creative approach and methodology.
To explore this tension, I constructed an underground, sample-based Hip-Hop instrumental built around Thai northeastern funk, molam, as its primary source material, while applying the creative frameworks and compositional approaches theorized and pioneered by African Americans.
Thematically, the track functions as a protest song, cutting through the patronizing veneer of Thailand as an idyllic nation of beauty, rich culture, and gratitude. It confronts the long-suppressed histories of political repression, state-sanctioned massacres, and the deep-rooted inequality and injustice that persist beneath that carefully maintained image.




