Apple Music’s Hip Hop DNA | The Sound of Freedom: The Evolution of SA Hip-Hop

Apple Music is celebrating the 50th anniversary of hip-hop with the “Hip Hop DNA” series. One episode is focused on South Africa. The Hip Hop DNA series shows the diversity of hip-hop sounds, histories, and communities worldwide through radio episodes, playlists, and album selections. This episode on South Africa spotlights the country’s hip-hop scene. It dives into the roots of hip hop in South Africa, looking at the early days in the 1980s and 1990s when legendary Cape Town groups like Prophets of Da City and Black Noise gained prominence. It also mentions groups like Skwatta Kamp and Teargas that achieved radio success in the 2000s and early 2010s. Also covered are the more recent hip hop stars – AKA, KO, and Cassper Nyovest – and a new generation of “kwasi-trap” rappers, such as Bravo Le Roux.

The South African public television network

SABC – released a series of documentaries to celebrate hip hop’s 50th anniversary internationally and 40 years in SA. The documentaries were shown on Sundays and ran from November 12th – 26th, with a special broadcast of this year’s Back to the City music festival. The first documentary, directed by SPeeKa, was titled “Slaghuis Joint Elements” and told the story of one of the country’s most impactful hip-hop movements, Slaghuis. The next documentary, “Ladies First Women in SA Hip Hop” looked at the gendered dynamics of rap in SA and how women have both shaped and been affected by the music. The final documentary, “Champion’s League,” looked at SA’s battle rap scene and focused on issues of freedom of speech and how youth culture has influenced the art form.

Move Afrika

Kendrick Lamar has teamed up with the philanthropic organization Global Citizen on an effort to establish a music touring circuit across the continent. A kickoff event for the “Move Afrika” tour will take place in Kigali, Rwanda at BK Arena on Dec. 6, with Lamar as headliner performing alongside other artists from Tanzania and Rwanda. Lamar is also working with his creative partner Dave Free and his company, pg Lang, on the tour, which has agreed to curate annual shows across the continent for the next five years as part of the initiative. Global Citizen focuses on eradicating poverty, so the Move Afrika project comes with a focus on job creation and attracting other of the world’s greatest artists to the continent. You can get tickets for the December show in Rwanda at moveafrika.org.

20-23 December | B-Global Indigenous Uganda Hip Hop Summit

THE 21ST ANNUAL CELEBRATION OF THE B-GLOBAL INDIGENOUS UGANDA HIP-HOP SUMMIT will be held in Kampala. This year it will be held December 20-23, and they will be celebrating hip hop’s 50th this year. The B-Global Indigenous Uganda Hip Hop Summit is an educational platform that celebrates and encourages indigenous hip-hop in Uganda. The summit’s vision is to educate and empower young people.

28-29 December | AfroFuture Festival | Accra, Ghana

This year’s AfroFuture Festival in Ghana will be headlined by British-Gambian rapper J Hus and Ghanaian rapper Black Sherif. The event, formerly known as Afrochella until last year, is aimed at celebrating Africa’s diverse culture and the work of entrepreneurs and creatives. It will take place at the El Wak Sports Stadium on Dec. 28 and 29. The theme for this year’s festival is “Black Unification and Pan-Africanism,” to honor the achievements of Black people throughout the continent and diaspora and highlight their contributions to art, innovation, and culture. Ahead of the festival, AfroFuture will also host a series of events, including a two-week expo of screenings, panel discussions, sessions on wellness, and other activities. There will also be a “Rising Star” challenge for newer artists looking for an opportunity to perform at this year’s festival and share their music with a wider audience. You can apply for the opportunity on the AfroFuture website (https://www.afrofuture.com), where you can also purchase general admission and VIP tickets for the 2-day event.

17 December | Manifestivities | Accra, Ghana

Manifestivities is an annual musical concert hosted by Ghanaian rapper M.anifest.

Interview with Rap Joint Lagos founder Akinwale Irokosu

We dive into Lagos’ Hip Hop scene with Akinwale Irokosu, the co-founder of Rap Joint Lagos, which is a Hip Hop and Lagos cultural center. Irokosu is also the creative director of Rap Joint Lagos as well as a lawyer. He describes himself as a Hip Hop head who is very passionate about Hip Hop culture, which he says added values to his life that he views as a “cheat code.” Irokosu talks about how he and his friends lacked a space to digest Hip Hop and Rap due to judgmental environments in both personal and professional spaces, leading them to call themselves “internally displaced rap heads.” He cites these experiences in inspiring him to create this cultural center. He also discusses the impact Hip Hop and Rap music have had and continue to have on his life as well as how they shaped the way he digests modern-day rap albums. Irokosu also discusses why Rap Joint Lagos is important both as a Lagos cultural space as well as a Hip Hop space. He dives deeper into the distinction between Afrobeat, Afrobeats and African Rap/Hip Hop as well as the future of Hip Hop in relation to the African continent.