by The BlaQ Hand »Fri Sep 25, 2009 3:27 pm
It's all too easy to be negative about the state of hip hop in camer, but facts being facts camer hip hop is facing a very uncertain future. true, efforts are being made to kick start the movement but u sense there's no real motivation or determination. thus far, kamer hip hop has been sidelined and the general public seems to think its the reserve of drop outs and delinquents. Sad but true and i think the artist themselves aint doing much to alter that view.
someone mentioned originality and to me that is key. i lived in the UK for years and was fortunate to mix in with the entertainment crowd. the local black artist knew from the start that trying to duplicate the US acts just wouldnt work, the states been perfecting that ish for 30 years near and no one can do thier stuff better than them. the UK cats took thier own underground sounds "garage" and "grime" and went mainstream with it and today they are making it internationally, Dizzy Rascal, Kano, Sway ec are proof that formula works. I had a few friend trying to do that US sound and no one would invite them to shows!
South Africa did something similar, if u listen to their hip hop its got a different feel to it.
French hip hop is french hip hop, be it done in france or its former colonies, all those dudes sound and almost rap the same, only variant is the accents and message and mayb the production.
So back to Camer hip hop, we identify, francophone rap and anglophone rap. those two are already in competition with each other before even starting to compete with the mighty bikutsi (which is coming back in force), makossa and the ever present coupe decale. problem? Big problem! If camer is to stand a chance we need to come up with a camer sound. i've been breaking my head over this predicament and cant find a way thru. maybe a fusion of hip hop makossa and bikutsi? i dont knw but X Maleya hav definitely touched sth there and may in fact be pionners of that new camer sound. who knows?
another thing i noticed is that hip hop made it big in those african coutnries that did not have an internationnaly recognised genre. eg Senegal, Nigeria and SA. local hip hop is finding it hard to come thru in ivory coast cusuf Coupe, in Camer bc of Makossa and bikutsi, DRC cuzuf Ndombolo and u can run off from there.
I'm really worried for anglo rap in camer. remember cameroon has not produced an anglophone international music star since... i dnt knw.
i could go on, but by now u get the drift. get creative folks.
It's all too easy to be negative about the state of hip hop in camer, but facts being facts camer hip hop is facing a very uncertain future. true, efforts are being made to kick start the movement but u sense there's no real motivation or determination. thus far, kamer hip hop has been sidelined and the general public seems to think its the reserve of drop outs and delinquents. Sad but true and i think the artist themselves aint doing much to alter that view.
someone mentioned originality and to me that is key. i lived in the UK for years and was fortunate to mix in with the entertainment crowd. the local black artist knew from the start that trying to duplicate the US acts just wouldnt work, the states been perfecting that ish for 30 years near and no one can do thier stuff better than them. the UK cats took thier own underground sounds "garage" and "grime" and went mainstream with it and today they are making it internationally, Dizzy Rascal, Kano, Sway ec are proof that formula works. I had a few friend trying to do that US sound and no one would invite them to shows!
South Africa did something similar, if u listen to their hip hop its got a different feel to it.
French hip hop is french hip hop, be it done in france or its former colonies, all those dudes sound and almost rap the same, only variant is the accents and message and mayb the production.
So back to Camer hip hop, we identify, francophone rap and anglophone rap. those two are already in competition with each other before even starting to compete with the mighty bikutsi (which is coming back in force), makossa and the ever present coupe decale. problem? Big problem! If camer is to stand a chance we need to come up with a camer sound. i've been breaking my head over this predicament and cant find a way thru. maybe a fusion of hip hop makossa and bikutsi? i dont knw but X Maleya hav definitely touched sth there and may in fact be pionners of that new camer sound. who knows?
another thing i noticed is that hip hop made it big in those african coutnries that did not have an internationnaly recognised genre. eg Senegal, Nigeria and SA. local hip hop is finding it hard to come thru in ivory coast cusuf Coupe, in Camer bc of Makossa and bikutsi, DRC cuzuf Ndombolo and u can run off from there.
I'm really worried for anglo rap in camer. remember cameroon has not produced an anglophone international music star since... i dnt knw.
i could go on, but by now u get the drift. get creative folks.
