Category: LIberia
-
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,…
-
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…
-
Samuel Sonnyboy Tubman : Liberian Rapper “Scientific”
Scientific was born in Bong County, Liberia but he grew up in Ghana in a refugee camp due to the first and second civil wars happening in his hometown. Like your average school kid, the young rapper once aspired to be a doctor but it was not until high school…
-
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,…
-
Bucky Raw Shows Us What Trapco is All About in “Pump Tire”
In one of his singles from 2017, Liberian Trapco artist Bucky Raw incorporates both Liberian colloquial and American references in “Pump Tire”. Pump tire is known as a form of punishment in Liberia where one squats up and down repeatedly until they have learned their lesson through the pain experienced.…
-
Hipco Artist Christoph stays true to his native liberian dialect
Christoph, Liberia’s upcoming hipco (Liberian hip-hop) artist is gaining popularity with his crisp style and hot verses. Aside from his attractive looks and charismatic personality, he has made great contributions to the Liberian hip-hop community. He stays true to his identity by rapping in koloqua (Liberia’s Local dialect) so that…
-
Christoph Remains Chill as a “Gbanna Man”
Many African artists travel overseas to places such as the United States and Europe to expand their careers and, sometimes, to live a better life. Some artists return back to their home countries to with new ideals and a new outlook on other cultures to implement into their own music.…
-
Liberian’s American Based Artist Stays True to the Diaspora
Liberia’s well known hip hop artists Mdot, migrated to the United States when he was just four years old. Although he left his native country at a young age, he uses his platform in Philadelphia to recount the horrifying nature of the Liberian civil war. In a sense, Mdot serves…
-
Diaspora Rappers
Diaspora based artists like K’Naan, Blitz the Ambassador, M3nsa, Wale, and French Montana, and Tabi Bonney have been covered heavily in this blog. There are several other first and second generation African MCs around the world who have not been covered as much in this blog. As students in the…