Pioneer Unit

Make sure you tune into Trace Your Roots, a 13 part SABC 1 series documenting indigenous knowledge systems and African cultural practices to see how they apply to the modern African.

Produced and Directed by Isaac Chokwe aka Krook’d, with original music by Ben Sharpa, DJ Raiko and Soweto Kinch.

The first show will be airing on SABC 1 on 20th August at 18:30.

Join the Facebook group for updates and more info.

I have a lot of respect for what Mizi and his team are doing for SA Hip Hop at Hype Magazine, but I was concerned with the Crack Boys fashion shoot in this month’s issue.

Do we really need to glorify drug dealing, gangsterism and gunplay in South Africa? Is this the sort of imagery we want to have associated with SA Hip Hop?

I know they are called the ‘Crack’ Boys, but as Cash has explained on numerous occasions on Africa’s Gateway, that is just a metaphor borrowed from Juelz Santana to explain the addictive nature of their music and the street hustle associated with selling it (although Cash does stretch the nature of that ‘metaphor’ to breaking point by having white powder on his CD cover, but that’s another issue).

Doing a photo shoot that actually portrays the Crack Boys doing drug deals, unpacking cocaine and posing with gats takes the concept beyond a metaphor. Hype Magazine is buying into, and implicitly supporting, the glamourous gangster fantasy that white corporate America has been force-feeding the world for years. Remember, we’re not talking about real life here - Hype is not addressing the reality of the social situations that lead to gangsterism and drug dealing - it’s just a fantasy fashion shoot.

Putting a red circle with the diagonal line through it over the guns doesn’t absolve Hype of their responsibility for promoting this imagery. Where is the red circle over the cocaine? Is Hype saying that guns are bad, but cocaine is ok?

50 Cent has a beautifully shot series of photos that portray G-Unit in a variety of strikingly similar scenarios. The difference there is that 50 actually claims that that imagery represents his real life, and has built his whole persona around this.

You could argue that Curtis Jackson has created 50 Cent as a fantasy gangster for the sake of entertainment no different to Ray Liotta playing Henry Hill in Goodfellas. Indeed, this is an argument often used by ‘gangster’ rappers when they get arrested. However, the point still remains; in a country that is afflicted by drugs, guns and gangsterism, is it responsible behaviour to glamourise gang culture, drug dealing and violence to an impressionable young audience?

What would have been wrong with showing the Crack Boys hustling their mixtapes at parties, choosing which Louis Vuitton bag to buy or investing in property? These are things that are based in reality and that would provide something positive to aspire to?

Wordsworth made a great point at the Red Bull Academy talk he gave in Cape Town recently. He said that rappers are often poor role models because, when interviewed, they just talk in cliches instead of saying anything that a young kid can listen to and learn from… “yeah, you know how we do”, “we’re grindin’ dawg”, “we ballin’ out of control”, “we thuggin’ it out big style” etc.

It’s ironic that Hype is guilty of putting out mixed messages. On page 7 of the same issue there’s a ‘Hype court order’ made out to Seida Crook for being involved in a cheque fraud syndicate. It says, “You’re meant to be a role model Crook. Do the right thing.”

Maybe I’m making way too much of this whole thing (it is just a fashion shoot after all), but the Hip Hop community and the media that represents it mustn’t forget its responsibility to the community at large.

Peace to everyone at Hype Magazine and The Crack Boys.

Just a quick post to big up Thando, Qhama, Sara and everyone else who made the effort to arrange the gig. I always have a great time in Gugs, and yesterday was no different. We were treated to some quality entertainment too.

I was having too much fun so I forgot to take photos, but here are a few…

Emile YX (click for larger image).

B Boyz (click for larger image).

The crowd (click for larger image).

Rah (click for larger image).

Rattex (click for larger image).

Rattex and Ma-B getting down (click for larger image).

Rattex and Ma-B finishing the set (click for larger image).

Africa unite. Say no to xenophobia.

The recent wave of brutal xenophobic attacks on fellow African brothers and sisters in South Africa has left 56 people dead, 650 injured and tens of thousands of innocent people displaced and living in fear. The situation is fast becoming a humanitarian crisis.

The South African government has begun to set up ‘shelters’ to house people seeking refuge from the violence. These ‘shelters’ are being described by international aid agencies as ‘refugee camps’.

The Hip Hop community has come together to raise its voice in protest against this unacceptable situation. We want to let the world know that we condemn these attacks, and that whilst many South Africans are living in situations of unacceptable poverty and hardship, turning on fellow Africans is not the solution.

Pioneer Unit is supporting various anti-xenophobia initiatives. Rattex and Ben Sharpa will be performing at 2 awareness and fund-raising gigs this weekend (see below). We have also contributed tracks to Emile YX’s Heal the Hood CD and book project (more details soon). We will also be contributing to Nymabz’s forthcoming anti-xenophobia mixtape as well as releasing our own material. Keep it locked for more info.

State of Emergency (CPT)_

Date and Time: Sunday 1st June @ 12.00 - 19.00
Venue: All NYz, Gugulethu Sports Complex, Cape Town.
Cost: FREE! Please donate clothes, blankets, nappies and non-perishable food.
Performances: Rattex, Driemanskaap, Nosisi, Tapedeck Circuitry, Jitsvinger, Sketch, Khanyi & many more.
Speakers: Emile YX, Lizo (Round Table), Xito
DJs: Quake
Dancers: Black Noise
State of Emergency Facebook Event page

Headz Against Violence (JHB)_

Date and Time: Sunday 1st June @ 12.00 - 22.00
Venue: Baseline, Newtown, Joburg.
Cost: R50 Please donate clothes, blankets, nappies and non-perishable food.
Performances: Ben Sharpa, Tumi, Tuks, The Hymphatic Thabs, Reason, Middle Finga, Snazz-D, Koldproduk, Jub Jub, Zubz, Jozi & many more.
DJs: Papercutt, Bionic, Kenzhero, Beatoven, Redwood & Raiko
Headz Against Violence Facebook Event page

I was just checking out references to Hegemony by Ben Sharpa on Google when I came across, Be Sharp, Be Subtle, Be Complex on Flight808.com. The article is interesting in that it goes beyond the usual superficial references to musical style and analyses both the content and visual language of Sharpa’s videos.

“(Hegemony) is extremely capable at accomplishing it’s goal of creating within the viewer the visceral feeling of what going through daily life under the constant threat of attack and fear of having your liberties stripped from you.”

Read the full article here.

Whilst searching Google, I also noticed that the video for Hegemony is part of the required viewing for the Introduction to Cultural Studies at Columbia College in Chicago!

That’s how we rrrrrrrrrroll!!

When non-American actors go to Hollywood, they often have to learn how to speak with an American accent so that they can increase their chances of landing roles in films (where they are predominantly required to play Americans). Charlize Theron is an obvious example.

The same goes for non-American musicians such as Akon who live in the States. If they want to be accepted by the US mainstream, they need to be assimilated into the culture by sounding American.

However, I’m not sure that I understand the justification (or the value) of putting on an American accent for South African rappers. To me, it is one of the key factors holding SA hip hop back.

It’s one thing to listen to 50 Cent - he is American so we expect him to have that accent - but what does it say to the SA consumer when a local rapper sounds American?

Firstly it speaks to authenticity, or the lack thereof - why listen to a copy of the original when the original is so readily available? Secondly, it implies that these rappers are ashamed of their local culture, feeding into the innate inferiority complex that any country feels when comparing themselves to America, especially in relation to hip hop.

People want to feel proud of their own culture, but SA Hip Hop appears to be a brand built on self-loathing and inauthenticity.

The pro-American accent camp argue that it gives them international appeal that makes them more attractive to the local market. Whilst this may be true to a certain extent, the success of ‘proudly South African’ rappers such as HHP and Skwatta Kamp would point to the fact that the local audience actually prefer their emcees to be more representative of South African culture.

Whilst the top American Hip Hop stars will always be popular around the world, it has been shown time and time again that consumers also want music that is specifically relevant to their own culture. Language is one of the most powerful factors in expressing cultural identity. Limit yourself to speaking in American English and you lose the richness of your cultural identity.

The Sprite Emcee Africa competition highlighted how wack cats can sound when they try to rap with American accents. They can’t say what they want to say because they have learned to speak with American accents by copying what Americans say (in records or on tv). This places huge limitations on them.

It is important to make the distinction between being influenced by something, and copying it. America’s influence on global culture is huge because of the strength of their economy and the power of their media. We take it for granted that most of what we hear on the radio or see on TV is produced by America. It is all too easy to see global culture in terms of what America says it is - after all, they sell more records and gross more at the box office than anyone else.

This distinction between ‘influence’ and ‘immitation’ is a delicate balancing act that local emcees often get wrong. There is nothing wrong with wearing Bathing Ape or dressing along the lines of any global fashion trend. Likewise, there is nothing wrong with using a crunk beat. However, the balance between local and international must resonate with local consumers and the fine line between influence and immitation must not be overstepped.

The tiny island of Jamaica has a population of just 2,780,132 (2007). They are influenced by American culture as much as anywhere else in the world yet they retain their cultural identity. Africa should be taking its lead from Jamaica and start trends, not follow them.