In the article, Singing their Way Out of Poverty: Africa’s Urban Youth Find a Voice, Rasna Warah writes about how youth all over Africa have embraced hip-hop. She cites numerous examples of artists who have been able to pull themselves out of poverty by becoming successful hip-hop artists. Many people in African say “hip hop has always had a positive influence on kids from the urban centres of the world”. Hip hop empowers young people because they are able to voice their concerns and educate others about the problems that affect them. Many artists do not just use their success as a means to alleviate their own economic problems, they give back to their communities. Many artists and groups use this money to go back to school and/or fund the education of their younger family members.
In South Africa, a new genre known as Kwaito has become extremely popular. Kwaito fuses rap and traditional African jazz, gospel and rock. Many artists also use South African slang to relate to many young people in the region.
Warah is optimistic about the growing hip hop culture in Africa. She hopes that people will be able to exact change by using hip hop.
