i love hip-hop in morocco

I Love Hip-Hop in Morocco is a documentary film project about the hop-hop scene in Morocco and the attempt to organize the first Moroccan hip-hop music festival. Very Grenada-esque. It never ceases to surprise me how much hop-hop has been able to spread to other societies, adapt and innovate.



see also: planet grenada and islam and hip-hop

planet grenada and islam and hip-hop

Over at Goatmilk, Wajahat Ali recently posted an in depth piece entitled: Fear of a Muslim Planet:Hip-Hop’s Hidden History by Naeem Mohaiemen on the historical connections between Islam and hip-hop. It made me want to do put together a sampling of Grenada posts on the same subject.

Pieces range from

a simple list:
an old list of rappers and their religion

to specific peeks at particular Muslim hip-hop artists:
digging below the underground
more on lupe fiasco
one.be.lo - s.o.n.o.g.r.a.m.
de la soul
ali shaheed muhammad
whatever happened to q-tip?
boricua rappers drop anti-imperialist album

to discussions of Islam's presence in pre-hip-hop African-American music:
the last poets
muslim roots of american blues
all that jazz...

to broader more "sociological"discussions of the phenomena of Muslim hip-hop across different musical groups:
verily, there is only one hip-hop umma
al-ahram does a story on muslim hip-hop
more on muslims and hip-hop
hisham aidi

to pieces which focus more on the Muslim community and speak about the music in mostly general terms:
new age jahiliyyah
islam and hip-hop
traditional islam for the hip-hop generation

to more regional-based posts...

on African Muslims doing hip-hop (whether in Europe or the Continent)
in bleak projects, emerging culture
daara j brings rap back to its african roots

or Arab and Arab-American hip-hop:
rap the casbah
(global) southern girl
representin' the west (bank)

or Asian-related hip-hop:
an african american muslim convert as the founder of chinese hip-hop
afro-asian crosscurrents in contemporary hip-hop

Enjoy.

the writings of yusef lateef

Blatantly stolen from Marc Manley over at The Manrilla Blog:

"From a small, self-published book entitled Something Else, jazz legend Yusef Lateef published an engaging book back in 1973. Yusef, who is known as a master multi-instrumentalist, is also a gifted writer, producing everything from short plays, essays, and poetry [as in this installment]. I have been putting segments of the book up on line. Here's the newest addition for your reading pleasure: http://www.manrilla.net/blog/reflections/

For more of Something Else, just visit the Blog and see the links under "Reads" on the right-hand side.

Enjoy"

Dr. Hip Slick: On Hipness
Ode To Pieter Bruegel
Reflections
Spiritual Aspects of Creating Music
The Constitution of Aesthetics, The Declaration of Genius and The Aesthetic Address
The Garments
The Outgame

no le pegue a la negra (rebelion)

At first I was going to argue that Joe Arroyo's Salsa classic, No le pegue a la negra, was too understated in terms of criticizing racism (along the lines of Ismael Rivera's Negro Bembon). But then as I started to get this blog entry together I changed my mind and decided that it has more of an "edge" to it, but it still isn't at the level of I Shot the Sheriff.

Quiero cantarle mi hermano un pedazito de la historia negra, de la historia nuestra caballero y dice asi: En los anos 1600 Cuando el tirano mando Las calles de Cartagena Aquella historia vivio Cuando aqui Llegaban esos negreros Africanos en cadenas Besaban mi tierra Esclavitud perpetua (coro) Esclavitud perpetua Esclavitud perpetua Que lo diga Salome Ucatele Eh. Chango, Chango, Chango, Chango. Un matrinomio africano Esclavos de un espanol El les daba muy mal trato Y a su negra le pego Y fue alli Se revelo el Negro guapo Tomo venganza por su amor Y aun se escucha en la verja No le pegue a mi negra (coro) No le pegue a la negra No le pegue a la negra etc.

see also: negro bembon mami el negro esta rabioso (el africano)

cheikh lo

I'm going to have to check him out the next time I go to a CD store. Muslically, he performs African music tinged with Cuban sounds. Spiritually, he is a member of the Senegalese Sufi order known as Baye Fall Sufi (sometiems called "Muslim Rastas").

Myspace: Cheikh Lo
catching up

mami el negro esta rabioso (el africano)

This post has been rattling around in my brain for a couple days now (or longer depending on how you count) but Kismet "made me" finish it a little bit more quickly due to her comment on negro bembon. If anyone wants to look at how race shows up in Latin music, "El Africano" by Wilfrido Vargas (actually written by Calixto Ochoa, but Vargas went further with it) is a necessary "text". In one version, the song lyrics are:

Mami el negro esta rabioso, quiere bailar/pelear conmigo, decicelo a mi papa. Mami el negro me echa miedo, me tapo la cabeza y el negro me destapa. (or alternatively) Mami, yo me acuesto tranquila me arropo de pie a cabeza y el negro me destapa. CORO : Mami que sera lo que quiere el negro? (repeat)

Wlfrido Vargas: El Africano  

 The classic merengue tune is about a "rabioso" (angry, literally "rabid") black man uncovering the innocent girl who has little experience with "lo que quiere el negro" (what the black man wants). On one level it is a festive party anthem, but on another it pretty clearly perpetuates certain alarmist attitudes towards Black sexuality. (e.g. see race and sex) DJ Laz made heavy use of a Vargas sample and updated the song musically, if not lyrically. While more recently, Cuban-American rapper Pitbull came out with "The Anthem" featuring Lil' John as an homage to the original. Miraculously, he manages to make the lyrics more lascivious (the girl is certainly not calling her daddy for protection) and racist (adding typical Latin stereotypes of Black female/"morena" sexuality to stereotypes of Black male sexuality). 

 DJ Laz: Mami El Negro

   

 Pitbull: The Anthem 

 So far, my favorite piece in this lineage is "Mami El Negro" by the 'conscious' Spanish (as in from Spain) rapper El Chojin. To be honest, I never heard of El Chojin until working on this post but he is growing on me. I also like the Grenada-esque anti-bling anthem Si Mi Chica Se Llamara Shakira /If Shakira was my girlfriend. But in "Mami El Negro" he is the most explicit in terms of breaking down the racist content of the original song, along with the ignorance and prejudice he faces in his everyday life. El Chojin: Mami El Negro  

  Lyrics to "Mami El Negro" by El Chojin

Alguien me pregunto de donde soy! hombre no es la misma cancion

pero si es un poco mas de lo mismo racismo,

he crecido como muchos han crecido

escuchando la cancion de los conguitos, la del negro negrito

y payasadas por el estilo

y me las he comido siendo un niño

pero amigo he crecido y tanta estupidez me ha convertido

en un hombre orgulloso y decidido

a no aguantar ni una broma mas,

me cago en el payaso de George Dan,

los del colacao, los de la Warner y todos los demas,

retrasados, que yo nunca me he reido de un blanco por ser blanco,

tanto tonto tan simpatico, tan asno rebuznando

\"ah tu no tienes que tomar el sol en verano\"

me daban pena pero ya estoy arto,

me dais asco, tontos que sois tontos

y lo curioso es que se creen graciosos

pues mami ahora el negro esta rabioso

otro tonto y monto el pollo gordo,

bobo te cojo y te pongo rojo,

avergüenzate si alguna vez creiste que de veras un blanco

con taparrabos gritando en lo alto de un arbol podria ser el rey de algo, no

a Tarzán se lo comio el miedo al hombre negro,

un desconocimiento inmenso te ha hecho ciego, terco, memo y no tengo porque entenderlo,

ser bueno paciente y toda esa mierda,

al proximo que me venga con la ingeniosa idea

de decir que me parezco a Jordan, Eddie Murphy o al que sea se la lleva,

ea o sea que esta es vuestra manera de hacer que me sienta en vuestra tierra integrado,

pues lo siento pues la habeis cagado,

yo no me quiero sentir integrado

tengo mi peña, mi micro, mi dj y los platos

y bastante interesado que paso,

que ni somos iguales ni tenemos que aparentarlo,

mami ahora el negro esta rabioso

pero es porque tu le has cabreado

¿Mami sabes tu que es lo que quiere? Que el negro esta rabioso de oir a tanto lerdo

¿Mami sabes tu que es lo que quiere? Que el negro esta rabioso es hora de exigir respeto

¿Mami sabes tu que es lo que quiere el negro? No hay ningun problema mientra veas donde termina el juego

¿Mami sabes tu que es lo que quiere el negro? Pues que le dejes simplemente ni mas ni menos

Es cierto, las cosas son mucho mas sencillas de lo que parecen

no tenemos porque andarnos con estupideces,

ya somos mayores, mira, no somos iguales,

no te escandalizes el racismo existe

es real y esto no es una llamada a la reconciliacion

es simplemente informacion

porque sabes que?

lo cierto es que no me importa una mierda lo que tengas en la cabeza,

simplemente callatelo, no hagas comentarios,

no intentes ser gracioso y ya veras como asi a todos nos va a ir mucho mejor,

que yo no tengo porque ser mejor persona que tu,

que no te he pedido de ningun favor, simplemente digo las cosas como son,

soy realista y tener esta actitud la que me han hecho tener a lo largo de mi vida,

ha hecho que incluso haya gente que me llama racisma,

es la risa, o sea que me vigilan, hacen chistes, cancioncitas,

no me quieren en sus familias y encima yo soy el racista

pues nada hombre cuidado que te tengo discriminado,

a ver si voy a hacer que te sientas marginado o algo,

mira cuando alguien dice lo que todos piensan pero no lo dice,

se le decalifica pero bueno asi es como funciona esto,

pero bueno yo soy el que tiene el micro, tengo un disco y consigo

que lo que digo se te meta en el cerebro

ahora piensa por ti mismo firmado el Chojin 1999 a diez meses del 2000.

also: shakira and wycleff at the grammys

negro bembon

Mataron al negro bembón
Mataron al negro bembón
Hoy se llora noche y día
Porque el negrito bembón
Todo el mundo lo queria
Porque el negrito bembón
Todo el mundo lo queria

Y llegó la policia
Y arrestaron al maton
Y uno de las policias
Que tambíen era bembón
Le toco la mala suerte
De hacer la investigación
Le toco la mala suerte
De hacer la investigación

Y saben la pregunta
que le hizo al maton
Porque lo mato
Diga usted la razon
Y saben la respuesta
que le dio el maton :
yo lo mate
por ser tan bembón
El guardia escondio
la bemba y le dijo :
Eso no es razon



I was recently thinking about the ways in which race shows up in Latin music when the song "Negro Bembon" by Ismael Rivera popped into my head. The song makes me think of how Afro-Latinos in Latin America didn't really undergo US-style civil rights / Black power movement. So instead of making a loud and angry statement like NWA's "F*** tha Police" or a righteous and defiant statement like Marley's "I Shot the Sheriff", "Negro Bembon" gives us the muted and insufficient "Eso no es razon" from a Black cop who, even with a gun and badge, is still not strong or brave enough to truly challenge a racist system. Occasionally I wonder if the song's refrain is deliberately understated as way of making a powerful social critique, but most of the time I tend to think that the voice of protest is so muted because certain white supremacist assumptions are pervasive and taken for granted in Latin culture, even in the music of Afro-Latino artists like Ismael Rivera.

tego calderon: latin america needs its own civil rights movement
a rising voice: afro-latin americans

o son of being / the spark

I honestly don't remember what chain of links first brought me here, but these days I've been intrigued by this new Bahai hip-hop group called the Dawnbreakers Collective and their catchy new single, O Son of Being.

The refrain:
"O SON OF BEING! Make mention of Me on My earth, that in My heaven I may remember thee." comes from a Bahai text called "The Hidden Words", which some Bahais identify with a Book of Fatima which the prophet Muhammad's daughter is said (according to some Shiis) to have received from the angel Jibreel after the Prophet's death.

Personally I find the Hidden Words to be very reminiscent of the Hadith Qudsi (The intensely heart-softening subset of Islamic hadith where Allah/God speaks in the first person).

The above 'hidden word' is particularly reminiscent of the following hadith:

On the authority of Abu Harayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: Allah the Almighty said:

I am as My servant thinks I am. I am with him when he makes mention of Me. If he makes mention of Me to himself, I make mention of him to Myself; and if he makes mention of Me in an assembly, I make mention of him in an assembley better than it. And if he draws near to Me an arm's length, I draw near to him a fathom's length. And if he comes to Me walking, I go to him at speed.

I would argue that there is much in the Bahai faith which is derivative of Islamic sources (including later Sufis, poets and philosophers along with obvious sources like the Quran and hadith). To show this carefully would take more time than I'm able to spend at the moment, but some of those links are pretty evident, even from a cursory analysis.

While we are on the subject of the spiritual inspiration behind hip-hop music, the other example which was on my mind as I was writing this is The Roots' song "The Spark". (I wouldn't consider The Roots an "Islamic" hip-hop group per se. From what I gather, one of their members is a Five Percenter and another past member is Sunni, and both perspectives come out in their lyrics). For example, in "The Spark", the hadith qudsi:

"My servant draws not near to Me with anything more loved by Me than the religious duties I have enjoined upon him, and My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory works so that I shall love him. When I love him I am his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes and his foot with which he walks."

becomes the somewhat more irreverent lyrical chorus:

"Yo, the feet that I walk with
The ears that I hear with, the eyes that I see with
The mouth that I talk with, the terror that I stalk with
Now it's time to spark shit"

I wish I could find the video online, but instead I could only find the lyrics (included below). In spite of the vulgarity, the song actually does come off successfully as the sincere prayerful voice of a flawed Muslim.

Original Hip-Hop Lyrics: The Spark
Hip-Hop Linguistics: Dawnbreaker Collective creates Baha’i album

Other hadith qudsi:
last man to enter paradise
and so it was said

Grenada's Bahai past:
since when was blindness a good thing?
bahai thought police

sean muttaqi, vegan reich and the hardline movement

The following is an interesting contrast to the previous entry.

Sean Muttaqi is a Muslim who takes a very atypical perspective when it comes to animals. He was a member of a political punk band named Vegan Reich which developed and catalyzed something called the Hardline movement

The Hardline philosophy was said to be rooted in one ethic (the sacredness of innocent life), but in reality the ethos rested on that base and on an idea of an immutable Natural Order. Put in more specific terms, Hardline can be described as a synthesis of deep ecology, straight edge, animal liberation, leftism, and Abrahamic religion.

And so when discussing the Islamic dietary laws and the concept of qurbani, Sean Muttaqi emphasizes the sanctity of life throughout:

Every Surah of the Qur'an came to Muhammad (sal) in response to certain events that were taking place of a period of many years. In the case of halal dietary laws, before their implement, many people were slaughtering countless animals, in very inhumane ways - wasting much of the food, and treating animals abhorrently. Living in a desert environment, vegetarianism wasn't a possibility and thus not a practical answer to this situation and problem. So what Muhammad (sal) said, and what the Qur'an says, is that one must treat animals fairly, and if one must kill to survive, they must do it in the most humane manner possible (and also, since only Allah can create life, the animals life must be taken in the name of Allah, as only Allah has the right to end such a life). Never is indiscriminant murder encouraged or even condoned. Far from that, what was encouraged was that less killing be done - and that when it must be (for survival) that one must share the meat with the poorer members of society, and to be less gluttonous in one's eating habits, so that less life must be taken.

Muttaqi has developed his ideas in some interesting directions. It is my understanding that he is no longer with Vegan Reich but is behind the Uprising Records label. And he also has a number of his articles still available on the Al Qadar website. (The articles are generally well-written and flesh out the ideas of the Hardline movement. They do a reasonable job of presenting basic Islamic principles in a way consistent with vegan politics.)

Interview with Sean Muttaqi
Hardline Movement
Uprising Records
Al Qadar Website