Abstract

The Olodum Cultural Group was established in 1979 as a carnival group by neighborhood of Pelourinho area in the city of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. The group has articulated the locally rooted "Black identity" through music and multi-faceted social activities as a NGO. The way they invented their "Afro culture" and that it became publicly recognized as "authentic" seems very suggestive to understand today's global cultural condition under modern world system. In the article, firstly I describe the trajectory of their practice and its intricate contexts , and, secondly, I analyze Olodum's strategy to articulate their cultural identity and to keep it authentic. Using Ohta Yoshinobu's term "objectification of culture", I argue that for Olodum, their "Afro culture" is objectified and operated for group's empowerment. Then, the global condition of culture is discussed in more general framework. Referring James Clifford, I propose the point of view of "invention", instead of "loss", of culture. And referring Arjun Appadurai, I mention cultural "disjuncture" and propose his definition of "culture" as "a set of differences that either express, or set the groundwork, for the mobilization of group identity"