The next installment to our collaborative series with J.Love Calderon, this is a not-quite love letter written for Love, Race and Liberation: ‘Til the White Day is Done. The author of this post, Esther Armah, and J.Love, are speaking at the Brecht Forum on September 27th at an event called “Women on the Left; White ...
Our brother Eli Jacobs-Fantauzzi of Clenched Fist Productions/FistUp.TV just shot and cut this nice little gem featuring DJ Leydis of Cuba and Los Rakas repping Panama. DJ Leydis: Leydis was born and raised in Cuba. She became involved in the Cuban hip hop movement during its inception and helped organize events, community shows, and a ...
Opinions flew after the First Annual American Beatbox Championships in early August. HeaveN was robbed of a second round. B.Flow repped hard for Haiti, but did his vibrato cost him? Maximillian was the most versatile with an innovative cellphone schtick. FriScO‘s Optimus Prime style was on point, but was it enough to secure the win? ...
Baloji, a self-identified “Afropean”, born in the Congo and raised in a working class family in Belgium, drops his sophmore album titled “Kinshasa Succursale.” His debonair aesthetic and unique tonality compliment the afro-soul and rap he churns out. This album practically transports listeners to a lively Kinshasa club, like the one depicted in the video ...
This is the fourth blog entry in ‘Til the White Day is Done, a project by author and activist JLove Calderon. JLove can be considered an authority on the presence of racism, white privilege and persistent white supremacy in our society, and we think sharing her expertise in this space will create a great dialogue ...
Today the mighty Embassy MVMT launched “Something to Believe” a short film/music video from World Up favorite Blitz the Ambassador. In true Blitz fashion, this piece leads each viewer to nod his head, as well as use it. Directed by Terence Nance, the film addresses the detachment we all battle, when faced with the the ...
We were pumped to see Alexander Ospovich’s article, “Russian Rap Inspires a Movement” in WSJ’s Life and Style Section on July 24th. Ospovich points to the role of Russian hip hop today as a means of underground protest in a country where the Beatles and homegrown “guitar-strumming bards like Vladimir Vysotsky” helped spur Glastnost in ...
Cultivating their talents in the mist of San Francisco Bay, BlackMahal brings together myriad cultural influences to produce a truly unique sound. With traditional Indian classics blended into funk beats, this group takes hip hop to a whole new level. Percussionist and vocalist Lal Singh Bhatti is known in his homeland as the “Godfather” of ...
French, English, Portuguese and Spanish might sound like course offerings in your college’s language department, but they’re also mother tongues you can hear in the new track “Caramba” by Lou Piensa, one part of Montreal’s supergroup Nomadic Massive. This World Up favorite continues repping cross-cultural exchange through his music, as a solo act and in ...
We’ve been watching BLU for a while but this is by far the most fantastical and lengthy piece of street art ever. Wonderful!
