Cocojams is a multi-page website that is an innovative way of collecting, preserving, sharing, and providing information about multiple examples of contemporary {1950s on} English language children's rhymes, children's game songs, and children's cheers. Visitors to Cocojams are encouraged to submit examples of rhymes & cheers. Visitors are also encouraged to include performance instructions, and demographical information along with their examples. Editorial comments that are posted with some of the featured examples reinforce the practice of including performance instructions and demographical information with rhyme examples. The editorial comments also help introduce visitors to the concept of folkloric research and familiarize them with such terms as "call & response" and "folk etymology".

In addition to its focus on children's rhymes, Cocojams presents examples of and commentary about African American fraternity & sorority chants; African American gospel & spiritual music; Mardi Gras Indian chants & songs; military cadences {jodies}; African American dance songs from slavery; and freedom songs {civil rights songs}. 

Cocojams also presents information about the origins & meanings of selected "non-standard" {in mainstream America} personal names.

The purpose of Cocojams is to encourage the collection, preservation, aesthetic appreciation, performance, and academic use and study of these often overlooked folk cultural forms. 

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Cocojams was launched in December 2001 as a program of Alafia Cultural Services. Alafia Cultural Services was a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 501c3 non-profit tax exempt organization that was founded in 1996 by Ms. Azizi Powell. "Alafia” (ah LAH fee-ah) is a Nigerian (West Africa) greeting word. The mission of that now defunct organization was to develop programs & products that help to increase awareness, understanding, and appreciation of African American culture and other Black cultures throughout the world.

Another program of Alafia Cultural Services was Alafia Children's Ensemble. This program, founded in 1997, provided after-school sessions, summer sessions, and special programming activities for girls and boys ages 5-12 years old. The primary purpose of Alafia Children's Ensemble is to explore the creative and performing arts potential of traditional and contemporary African American children's game songs, rhymes, and cheers.  Alafia Children's Ensemble programming is still available in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and its surrounding area through contract services with Azizi Powell.

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Cocojams is a volunteer effort. Azizi Powell is responsible for conceptualizing, hosting, and editing www.cocojams.com.

The name "Cocojams" was coined by the website's editor, Ms. Azizi Powell, as a reflection of this website's emphasis on African American culture: coco{a}-meaning "chocolate" + jams- meaning "songs."
 

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The majority of the material posted on www.cocojams.com comes from site visitors.

A significant number of rhymes & cheers that are posted on Cocojams were collected by Azizi Powell from participants of Lillian Taylor Camp {Kingsley Association, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania}, and Alafia Children's Ensemble.

Some material posted on www.cocojams.com comes from Azizi Powell's remembrances, collection activities, and research.

Some examples and commentary posted on Cocojams was  originally posted on The Mudcat Cafe discussion forum, http://www.mudcat.org/threads.cfm. These examples were either posted on that forum by Azizi Powell or were written by other individuals and were reposted with prior permission from these individuals or, in the case of guests, from that website's primary moderator.

In addition, some material posted on Cocojams was originally  posted on Whee! Blog http://blog.oftheoctopuses.com/000518.php and is reposted with prior permission of that blog's members.   Other material was originally posted on  http://www.gruntsmilitary.com/cadence/journal.cgi and is reposted with prior permission from that website editor.

Thanks to all Cocojams readers who have submitted material for possible posting on this website!

All material is reviewed by the editor before possible posting on this website.  As editor of this website, Azizi Powell reserves the right to decline posting any submission to this website without explanation.

Examples and commentary are posted on Cocojams without regard to the race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, or the age of the person submitting that material.

Submissions to Cocojams of text versions of children's and/or adult rhymes & chants, and/or children's chants, cheers, and game songs indicates permission for Azizi Powell to quote those examples-whether posted or not on this website- on any other website or any other print, video and/or audio publication or product .

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www.cocojams.com was designed & developed by Lucas Musewe.  Thank you, Lucas!!!

Special thanks to my daughter Tazi, for without her ongoing encouragement and input, this website would have just been a dream.

My thanks to the following organizations, institutions, and foundations for their generous support of Alafia Cultural Services and www.cocojams.com :

Kingsley Association's Lillian Taylor Camp

Fort Pitt Accelerated Learning Academy {formerly Fort Pitt Elementary School, Pittsburgh Public School District}

The Multicultural Arts Initiative, jointly funded by The Pittsburgh Foundation & the Howard Heinz Endowment

Heritage Health Foundation of Braddock, Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Council on the Arts

Pennsylvania Humanities Council

Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC

UPMC-Braddock

Carnegie Mellon University

Allegheny County Health Department {Pennsylvania}

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click here if you have comments, questions, or would like more information about Cocojams.

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Share! Learn! Enjoy!

Ms. Azizi Powell 
    

Disclaimer:
www.cocojams.com has attempted to credit all appropriate sources for material posted on this site.  If we have failed to credit any appropriate sources, our omission will be corrected upon receipt of forwarded information.