Bankie Bankx -- Big Chief

[Maximilian Forte]

Quite by accident (I had never heard of Bankie Banx before today), I found this video titled "Big Chief." The story line that accompanies it reads:

In the lands, where the Arawaks roamed... A Visually stunning music video, recounting the story of the Arawak people who once inhabited the islands of the Caribbean. The 'Big Chief' story centers on a modern day island boy, who discovers an ancient scroll that reveals the true roots of his people.

I'm not sure if that is the "official" plot line, or the one created by the person who uploaded the video. Looking at the video, it is hard for me to decipher, visually, what it intends to convey.

I would love to hear your thoughts. Here is the video:

[Maximilian Forte]

Thanks Zeeska. In some cases I really need to view something in someone else's company to be able to get a better sense of what is going on, and your comments were a good "substitute" for in-person company.

[Zeeska Lee]

When the boy's father died, he handed him a jade. He discovered his father left instructions in the form of a scroll directing him to go to the sacred cave. There he left the jade. He returns several years latter as the explorer. A new awakening begins when he returns to the sacred cave...he sees visions and apparitions of his past. He reacted to the conch shell in his home because his father poured water from it and it was another apparition.

Please do not think I am suggesting that the quality or accuracy of the depiction is any good. But the symbolism is easier to understand if you're not too familiar with the culture.

It says what the ancestors passed on (the jade) is hidden in a sacred place (the cave).

[Maximilian Forte]

Sorry to be so thick...I see two boys at the start of the video, I think it is the same boy, who becomes Amerindian. Later on, a young man, like an explorer, who finds himself bathing under a conch shell in his home--is that man the grown up version of the little boy? I am totally lost.

[Zeeska Lee]

The story is being told from the perspective of one cut off from his roots. It's a journey of self discovery through shaman type experiences, surrounded by the prevailing attitudes mocking and taunting "You could never be the big chief now!"