Some criticise today’s Cape Town hip-hop artists for being too concerned with themselves as a brand. But the landscape is rich with conscious, interesting artists who are wrestling with the city's fraught history through their rhymes, writes Sihle Mthembu
Some criticise today’s Cape Town hip-hop artists for being too concerned with themselves as a brand and not concerned enough with what they’re saying in their songs. But the landscape is rich with conscious, interesting artists who are wrestling with the city's fraught history through their rhymes, writes Sihle MthembuIf you’ve been reading #Trending for any stretch of time, you’ll know who YoungstaCPT is.
Secondly, what is also true about South African hip-hop’s pioneering spirit is that it forms a loop around itself – it seems as if everything has been done so nothing new can be done. But a truly original concept is at the centre of 3T – a time capsule of coloured history in this city and in South Africa.“We have a variety of cultures and ethnicities, but, in my opinion, it’s the Cape coloured people who make Cape Town unique. I mean, we even have the word ‘Cape’ in our name,” Youngsta says.
3T is a work whose value extends beyond the reach of hip-hop. For the first time, we are allowed to eavesdrop on an intergenerational conversation between two coloured men born and raised in a city that tries to push them out. 3T is an extension of work done by Eusebius McKaiser in his books of social criticism such as Run Racist Run, as well as that of film makers Sarah Summers and Kelly-Eve Koopman in their web series Coloured Mentality.
So how do you cut through all this noise? Well, the city’s artists are finding new and innovative ways to connect directly with music consumers and develop new audiences. Exhibit A: Mkosi. She has been on tour for the past year and a half – and all shows have been sold out, even though she is mostly unknown outside of Cape Town. This is because she hasn’t been bringing her brand of chill ego rap to huge stadiums or high-end music venues.
The tropes of the Cape Town hip-hop scene are familiar. Usually, they’re artists from poor and underserved communities who are forced to weave their way in and out of each other’s circles to reimagine the city’s sound, culture and slang, and to document the contradictions of life in the area. One of them is E-Jay, a notorious Cape Town rapper whose relationship with cliques is promiscuous at best.
“I think the amount of money and the focus on it is a little dangerous because it makes people so willing to compromise their values. If you want to see what some of these artists are really about, just put money in front of them and see how they react. That’s why not so many last,” says Stehr.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Cape Town cops search for Congolese woman who fled deceitful would-be groom | Cape ArgusJoel Kayembe, 20, was allegedly brought to Cape Town from the Congo under the pretext that she was going to marry a wealthy husband. TheCapeArgus
Read more »
LIVE: BREAKING: The DA has won the Western Cape; ANC takes the Northern CapeJUST IN: 35 small parties who have over the past two days raised objections over alleged irregularities in the voting process, have accused the IEC of “ducking and diving”. SAElections2019
Read more »
LIVE Election Results: DA retains Western Cape, ANC wins Northern Cape, NWFollow the action of today's big polls to decide who governs the country and each of its nine provinces for the next five years.
Read more »
LIVE: DA wins Western Cape; ANC takes Northern CapeWith official vote counting moving closer to its conclusion, ruling party ANC has already amassed a strong lead, with the DA trailing far behind and the EFF still fighting for relevance.
Read more »
DA retains Western Cape, but fail to push ANC out of majority in Northern CapeWhile the DA retains the Western Cape, it did not manage to press the ANC out of an outright majority in the province Northern neighbour, as they had hoped.
Read more »
#SAElections2019: Numerous hiccups cause headache for Western Cape IEC | Cape ArgusThe DA and the ANC Western Cape have confirmed that they have filed a number of complaints to the IEC over the elections operations in the province.
Read more »
News24 projects: DA to win the Western Cape, ANC to win Northern CapeNews24 can project that the DA will hang onto the Western Cape, beating back a strong effort by the FF Plus and with the ANC losing support in the province.
Read more »
Over 13,000 dried abalone found in car in Cape TownA man has been arrested after he was found in possession of over 13,000 shucked dried abalone in Table View, Cape Town, police said on Sunday.
Read more »
Man arrested in Cape Town for possession of over 13 000 abaloneThe estimated street value of the abalone is still to be determined.
Read more »