The cultural identity of the indigenous peoples of the south Caribbean, who have settled in Belize, Honduras, Guatemala, and St. Vincent is preserved by the activists at the Biko Center: Garifuna language, music and culture preservation are creatively maintained through the musicians of the James Lovell and the Afrigarifuna Youth Ensemble and the Garifuna community who rehearse in the Biko space and perform regularly on behalf of the Biko Transformation Center and themselves.

James Lovell is an accomplished Garifuna musician from Dangriga Belize, Central America. Based in Brooklyn, New York, since 1990, James Lovell teaches music theory and instruments to children living in the East Bushwick and Ocean Hill neighborhoods in Brooklyn, at the Biko Transformation Center. James has worked and collaborated with many African musicians also living in NYC, which inspired him to experiment with a new concept of his own musical roots. He coined the term “AfriGarifuna” to describe his fusion of various West African rhythms with the traditional music of the Garifuna people.

The AfriGarifuna Youth Ensemble is comprised of nine children between the ages of six and fourteen, as well as four adult musicians. With the guidance of their teacher, James Lovell, the children are learning to read music and a variety of musical instruments and musical genres.