zutopia

www.dampalestine.com 12.11.06

i went to this rap4justice event in amsterdam lastnight.. they showed clips from a documentary on hip hop in palestine and amoungst palestinians living in israel and the gaza strip. it was some serious shit. they had three groups from the area perform after the clips and a short talk about their relationship with hip hop (they did say that while they hold up tupac and mos def as heroes most of what goes on in hip hop now is irrelevant to them.. though when asked what they would rhyme about if peace were ever able to be achieved.. this mc, tamir, said 'jobs':). but it was amazing, if you could see what this form does for these folks that live in conditions and are fighting a battle thats inconceivable at least for me... it was powerful. one of the most powerful manifestations of the culture i ever seen. these guys were adamantly non-violent, feel there has been enough violence, but have found an answer and peace in the dialog created with hip hop. their dj/producer is jewish/israeli (though they joked - dont clap too hard for him, he's jewish, lol), do collabos with jew/israeli mc's (this seems a more tenuous relationship, but hip hop is the thread that keeps them together..), and work in the community with the kids doing hip hop workshops (leading "i am somebody" chants amongst the kids). ..and.. in the midst of their rhymes about having no country, and being under attack and the guns vs. stones debacle.. they wrote a song about women, muslim women and their need for liberation, not to be oppressed, and urged them to hold there heads high... it was fucking amazing.. i dont know what i can do.. but was so happy that they were able to use a form from my land to inspire hope in themselves (they said when they feel down, about for instance the tanks outside their windows, or friends being "martyred", they write a rhyme and feel better...) and their people. hip hop may not be THE answer (as i tend to think on most days:), but it is an answer.. bless, Z

ps.they had translations of their rhymes on the screen last night but i couldnt find any on the site.. but their bio and rest of text on site etc is in english if youre interested. one.

posted by z.a.k. @ 7:14 AM