Joy Fairclough Leads St Andrew Workshop On Intellectual Property Rights

Joy Fairclough's creative resume stretches across several disciplines. She is listed as a musician, singer-songwriter, composer, recording artiste, music educator and performance health science trainer working in the creative arts.

Fairclough has also helped to shape several Jamaican performers. She trained the voices of dancehall artistes Macka Diamond, Mr Vegas, Agent Sasco and Danielle "DI" Isaacs, and served Digicel Rising Stars as a vocal technique workshop trainer for talents including Camille Davis, One Third, Romain Virgo and others.

Beyond music, Fairclough has made intellectual property one of her key causes. She says she is eager to share what she knows with creatives who want to better understand how their ideas and work can be protected and used commercially.

That focus continues this afternoon at the Mamby Park Baptist Church hall on Constant Spring Road in St Andrew. The session is being held under the theme "The trade and commerce of IP rights through administration, publishing and distribution", with participants also able to attend by Zoom.

"This workshop is targeting all Jamaicans and persons interested in Intellectual Property, or who are curious to know what is Intellectual Property. All creative industry and manufacturing industry persons are interested in this topic," Fairclough told The Gleaner.

She said the programme will examine IP in Heritage Assets, IP in Personal Ideas, and the use of IP in Distribution and Sales, or Commerce. Fairclough's Joy Music is among the sponsors, alongside Walk Good Heritage and the Louise Bennett Coverley Estate.

Clayton Coverley, representing the Louise Bennett Coverley Estate, said Fairclough has shown strong commitment to rights protection. The estate is the legal body responsible for the intellectual property and literary works of the late Dr Louise "Miss Lou" Bennett-Coverley, the celebrated cultural icon and folklorist.

Coverley described Fairclough as "a determined advocate for the protection of rights across all categories".

"[She] has been the designated point of contact for all inquiries surrounding the estate to date. This seminar aims to address past misuse of intellectual property related to the estate, educate the public on its proper handling, and, significantly, assist individuals in protecting their own creative works," Coverley told The Gleaner.

"We believe this initiative is crucial for fostering a greater understanding of intellectual property rights within the community," he added.

Fairclough's long experience in music has helped drive her campaign to educate creatives about IP. Her recording journey began before her teenage years, when she sang as part of a children's choir made up of one thousand voices.

She said organising the latest workshop has not been without difficulty. "Finding a venue was the biggest challenge, as venue owners are also mostly unaware of their heritage asset in Jamaica," Fairclough said.

In the Jamaican context, heritage assets are generally linked to Traditional Knowledge and Traditional Cultural Expressions. These reflect the creative thinking and cultural identity of indigenous and local communities, and may include both physical and non-physical forms such as music, art, handicrafts, costumes, jewellery, rituals and folklore.

Fairclough said another obstacle is that many Jamaicans do not recognise the worth of IP rights, believing ideas and the skills used to develop them should be freely used and freely shared.

She said the workshop is intended to help participants understand what can be done with an idea and with the ownership right known as intellectual property. It will also look at how people can earn from ideas and creations connected to tangible and intangible products and services.

Fairclough's previous workshop, "Beats of Reggae", was held last month.