Author: samvercellotti
-
French Montana Pays Homage to his Moroccan Roots
French Montana, an internationally acclaimed rapper based out of New Jersey, has not forgotten his African roots. Born in Morocco, French Montana, whose birth name is Karim Kharbouch, moved to the United States when he was thirteen. However, even after several prominent albums and singles in American markets, French Montana is still sure to pay
-
Recent video showcases 8 female Liberian emcees
A video posted in January, titled “The Female Cypher,” features eight female Liberian emcees, each rapping a verse. Queen V, Cookie, Lady Skeet, Pillz, J Flow, Da Vero, Faith Vonic, and Pretty Zee are the emcees included. The video was released in January, but this is fairly recent as far as female Liberian hip-hop standards
-
Hipco: The Political Music of Liberia
Hipco songs, a style of hip-hop unique to Liberia, commonly contain political messages and imagery. It is not uncommon for hipco artists to cast aside images of wealth and prominence, contrary to the embrace of consumer culture found among modern American hip-hop artists. Christoph The Change, a distinguished hipco artist, and considered by many to
-
Liberian hip-hop used for anti-corruption purposes
In 2012, Liberian activist/author Robtel Neajai Pailey published Gbagba, a children’s book that sparked a national dialogue on corruption. The book has been assigned to Liberian schoolchildren, and seeks to help rectify the state’s systemic corruption problems. The book is under review by several ministries of education in neighboring countries. This February, Pailey released the book’s
-
Polar Opposites: Breaking down the differences between two Liberian music videos
Two Liberian hip-hop videos, released within two months of each other, portray strikingly different themes of Liberian life. The first is by Christoph the Change, whose video accompaniment to his song, “Call Me Your Pa,” displays a flashy, luxurious side of an upper class life in Liberia. On the contrary, the music video to “Woomii”