Maria McCloy
Hip-hop’s influence in Africa will, at=20 last, be evident at this year’s Arts Alive=20 Festival. Senegalese act Positive Black=20 Soul, one of Africa’s best known hip-hop=20 groups, are to perform alongside Cape=20 Town’s Black Noise as the replacement act=20 for Me’Shell NdegeOcello, who withdrew=20 after an accident.
Festival organisers had planned to sign ”a=20 star who was as equal in stature and as=20 well- known” as NdegeOcello, but attempts=20 to lure jazz artists Wynton Marsalis or=20 Buckshot le Fonque were unsuccessful.=20
This new event, to be held at Mega Music,=20 on September 19 and 20, isto be billed as a=20 hip-hop festival. But the question needs to=20 be asked: why were Black Noise chosen above=20 other local hip-hop crews?=20
”Tell me how many hip-hop groups you know=20 of. There aren’t many in South Africa.=20 Black Noise are brilliant,” says festival=20 organiser Roshnie Moonsammy.
It seems strange that Prophets of da City,=20 South Africa’s internationally renowned=20 hip-hop act were not immediately=20 considered. The official response was that=20 POC were ”busy” but rumour has it that=20 negotiations are underway.=20
Although the main acts will be Positive=20 Black Soul and Black Noise, an open-mike=20 session is also on the cards, so local=20 rappers will be able to show their rhyming=20 skills.=20
Dakar Rappers Amadou Barry (Doug E Tee) and=20 Didier Awadi – who both appeared on Baaba=20 Maal’s 1994 album Firin’ in Fouta – are the=20 core of Positive Black Soul. Their act=20 features two singers/dancers, a=20 percussionist and a Moroccan DJ in a fusion=20 of hip-hop, ragga and Senegalese=20 traditional folk music. The rap is mostly=20 in Senegal’s national language, Wolof, and=20 includes some English and French.=20
Their stage act should be pretty slick=20 since they’ve done 130 concerts over three=20 years, travelling to neighbouring West=20 African countries,and France, England,=20 Canada and Reunion Island. They’ve also=20 worked with the renowned French DJ, Cut=20 Killer and with DJ Abdel.
Positive Black Soul released their album=20 Salaam in 1996 with MC Solaar producing=20 some tracks. Titles such as President=20 D’Afrique (which has a sample of Nelson=20 Mandela’s voice) and Return of the Griot,=20 give an idea of the kind of Africa-focused=20 hip-hop they create.
Moonsammy is confident that the hip-hop=20 festival tickets will sell well, despite=20 the limited local release of the group’s=20 album. It was the festival organisers who=20 made journalists and the public aware of=20 African artists like Salief Keita and=20 Ismail Lo, and they see themselves playing=20 the same role ”introducing South African=20 audiences to rappers from other countries”.