Exhibition shows 500 years of Black British Music

The panel displays will be on show at libraries across the UK until 25 August

An exhibition at a Portsmouth library is looking at how 500 years of black music has "transformed British culture".

The city's central library is one of 30 across the UK looking at the people, places and genres behind black music in Britain over the last five centuries.

It will run, in collaboration with the British Library’s new Beyond the Bassline exhibition, until 25 August.

A Portsmouth City Council spokesperson said the city had "a rich musical history and a diverse culture".

'More than a soundtrack'

The displays will look at clubs, carnivals and community hubs from across the country that have played their part in influencing black music.

The library, in Guildhall Square, will host a talk by Simon Hudson, the author of History Through the Black Experience, on 25 June.

Dr Aleema Gray, lead curator of Beyond the Bassline, said: “Black British Music is more than a soundtrack.

"It has formed part of an expansive cultural industry that transformed British culture.”

The exhibitions are part of the Living Knowledge Network, which is a UK‑wide partnership of national and public libraries.