On Christmas eve 2009, the Diamond Jubilee hall in Upanga, Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) made history for being the venue were Sugu’s tenth album was launched. The milestone in the career of Tanzania’s most prolific hip hop artist was celebrated with over twenty invited performers who opened up for Sugu. Africanhiphop.com was there to pay tribute to one of the icons of Tanzanian hip hop and we got some pics from the performances.
Read the full story »
Always wondered what Konono N°1 would sound like in a hip hop setting? The likembe (thumb piano) group from Congo, who quickly made a name in the west after their music was released on cd and picked up by influential deejays like Gilles Peterson (BBC), are featured prominently in the latest project of Baloji.
As the Belgian-Congolese emcee revealed last year in African hip hop radio, he has been working on a new album ‘Kinshasa Succursale’ with veteran Congolese musicians. The video ‘Karibu ya bintou’ (or short film, as the press release has it) echoes the rawness we came to like from Baloji’s first solo video ‘Tout ceci ne vous rendra pas le Congo’ (1997) but the image and sound of the new video take it to a next level. ‘Kinshasa Succursale’ is already among our most anticipated African hip hop albums of 2010, and the good news is that it drops next week (January 27).
Watch ‘Karibu ya bintou’:
http://www.vimeo.com/8907715
On the Dutch edition of African hip hop radio we have had an impressive number of artists phoning in and visiting the studio. The latter often impressed us with a little live session. These can be heard back by listening to our archived shows but to honour their talent, our last show in 2009 was an overview of some of the best studio sessions at African hip hop radio in 2008 and 2009.
Stream or download the African hip hop radio Live Sessions with Rootsriders (NL), Jitsvinger (South Africa), Blakk Rasta (Ghana), Ali Kiba (Tanzania), Sauti Sol, Stan & Dela (Kenya), Vieira (NL), Tony Cabral (NL), Fidjus di Cabral (Cabo/Portugal, Bantu Continua Uhuru Consciousness (South Africa), Mame Balla (Gambia), Devious D, I Amaze and Enzo (South Africa). The second hour is a non-stop mix by African hip hop radio dj Threesixty a.k.a. Bamba Nazar.
Read more »
On the Dutch edition of African hip hop radio we have had an impressive number of artists phoning in and visiting the studio. The latter often impressed us with a little live session. These can …
One of the shining stars in the urban clothing industry in Tanzania is Kina Clothing. Africanhiphop.com spoke to Mkuki Bgoya, one of the two owners, about the philosophy behind the brand, the cultural landscape of East Africa in 2009, the much heralded resurgence in international interest in the African continent and how this benefits young people in Africa, and the existence of a uniquely Tanzanian fashion identity.
It’s no secret that the African hip hop forums in the past ten-plus years has been an international breeding ground of talent. Think of two volumes of African hip hop mixtapes, initiated and produced by …
Ghanaian born, US dwelling rapper M.anifest just dropped the free 16 track album ‘the birds and the beats’.
Download at his website Manifestmc.com and listen to the African hip hop radio interview here.
Mensa is an indie-soul singer, emcee and producer from Ghana, Accra by way of North London who mixes true school hip-hop and West-African home grown hiplife music. Here is his new video ‘Adjuma’ off …
Can’t say much about this one right here, all I know that it is something to look out for. Coming soon!!
One of the pioneers of the Senegalese underground hip hop sound, Matador of Wa Bmg 44 aka Xarale aka Suspekt Numéro 1 is back in Dakar from attending WOMEX (World Music Expo) that took place …
One of the biggest voices from Nigeria is a California born, Nigeria raised singer-songwriter named Ibiyemi. Her artistic achievements include singing at the 2007 presidential inauguration ceremony and entertaining guests at various foreign missions in …
Nigerian rapper AQ, born as Gilbert Ubani, got initiated into the world of hip-hop in secondary school after hearing classic songs from Biggie, Jay-z, and Rakim. He started rapping professionally in 1998. After six years …
One ought to be very careful when using the old gun HIP HOP. We need to re-define keeping it real. As the saying goes: perception is not reality. Am tired of listening and receiving below par rhythmic nonsense in the name of keeping it real. It’s about time we combated these lyrical fraudsters.
Almost a year in the making, here is The Sequel, the second mixtape created entirely by members of the Africanhiphop.com forums. The first collection, called ‘Africanhiphop: the Naija chapter’ (2007) gained a lot of interest …
After the sudden death of Gabon’s president Omar Bongo, much is at stake for the Gabonese people and their government. Hip hop has been a popular tool in winning the people’s votes, and one of the candidates even tried his turn on the mic - after recording an album with James Brown’s manager in the seventies! Meanwhile, the ruling class is under scrutiny: where did the president and his family get all their wealth from?
America’s BET Hip Hop Awards pays tribute to Tanzanian hip hop: Gsan, member of the group X Plastaz from Arusha, Tanzania participated in this year’s cypher among legends such as KRS One, Wale, Mos Def, Eminem and dj Premier. Watch the video.
Remember JJC, the UK dwelling Nigerian producer of Big Brovaz fame? A couple of years back he released a solo effort ‘Atide’, then became presenter of BBC 1Xtra’s African show (currently hosted by dj Edu). …
