Palestinian hip hop

Last updated

Palestinian hip hop reportedly started in 1998 with Tamer Nafar's group DAM. [1] These Palestinian youth forged the new Palestinian musical subgenre, which blends Arabic melodies and hip hop beats. Lyrics are often sung in Arabic, Hebrew, English, and sometimes French. Since then, the new Palestinian musical subgenre has grown to include artists in Palestine, Israel, Great Britain, the United States and Canada.

Contents

Borrowing from traditional rap music that first emerged in New York in the 1970s, "young Palestinian musicians have tailored the style to express their own grievances with the social and political climate in which they live and work." Palestinian hip hop works to challenge stereotypes and instigate dialogue about the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. [2] Palestinian hip hop artists have been strongly influenced by the messages of American rappers. Tamar Nafar says “when I heard Tupac sing “It’s a White Man’s World” I decided to take hip hop seriously”. [3] In addition to the influences from American hip hop, it also includes musical elements from Palestinian and Arabic music including “zajal, mawwal, and saj” which can be likened to Arabic spoken word, as well as including the percussiveness and lyricism of Arabic music.

Historically, music has served as an integral accompaniment to various social and religious rituals and ceremonies in Palestinian society (Al-Taee 47). Much of the Middle-Eastern and Arabic string instruments utilized in classical Palestinian music are sampled over Hip-hop beats in both Israeli and Palestinian hip-hop as part of a joint process of localization. Just as the percussiveness of the Hebrew language is emphasized in Israeli Hip-hop, Palestinian music has always revolved around the rhythmic specificity and smooth melodic tone of Arabic. “Musically speaking, Palestinian songs are usually pure melody performed monophonically with complex vocal ornamentations and strong percussive rhythm beats”. [4] The presence of a hand-drum in classical Palestinian music indicates a cultural esthetic conducive to the vocal, verbal and instrumental percussion which serve as the foundational elements of Hip-hop. This hip hop is joining a “longer tradition of revolutionary, underground, Arabic music and political songs that have supported Palestinian Resistance”. [3] This subgenre has served as a way to politicize the Palestinian issue through music.

Themes

Many Palestinian hip hop artists address themes that directly affect Palestinians in the occupied territories, living in Israel and those in exile. These artists use hip hop to address issues including patriarchy, drugs, violence, corruption and police brutality. Unlike the ideals of American rap, Palestinian rappers focus on exposing the lived conditions of the Palestinian people, especially the denial of Palestinian self-determination in their homeland. Palestinian nationalism is at the center of all Palestinian hip hop, regardless of the artists. [3] The current living conditions of Palestinians living in the occupied Palestine and within Israel is addressed in the songs 'Who is the Terrorist' by DAM and "Free Palestine" by the Hammer Brothers. Rather than succumbing to the violence that surrounds them, Palestinian hip hop artists instead, attempt to spread their politically conscious messages to the world. [5]

Israeli–Palestinian Conflict

Palestinian rappers have been explicit in their criticism of the current situation between Israel and Palestine. The song "Who is the Terrorist" by DAM is arguably the most explicit criticism of the relationship between Israel and Palestine. These rappers want to address the "paradox inherent in the notion of a state that claims to be both democratic and Jewish". [3] The book, Representing Islam: Hip-Hop of the September 11 Generation, states that "the Palestinian struggle for self-determination has become a major rallying cry for Muslim hip-hoppers. Many established or up-and-coming Muslim hip-hopper either have a song about Palestine or make references to the politics of dispossession in the third holiest land in Islam". [6] MC Abdul, a young rapper who has been raised in the conflict, focuses much of his work on the Israeli–Palestinian Conflict.

Living conditions

All Palestinian artists, regardless if they are within Palestine or abroad, have addressed their lived experience as Palestinians. For rapper Mahmoud who lives in Israel, he describes his experience as "whenever I walk the streets, my enemy steps to me in ignorance, he demands my ID, sees I’m an Arab. It drives him crazy. He begins to interrogate me, tells me I’m a suspected terrorist". [7] Similarly, in the song, "Who Is The Terrorist", DAM describes the physical conditions, rapping: "Crawling on the ground, smelling the rotting bodies? Demolished homes, lost families, orphans, freedoms with handcuffs?". The Palestinian female rap duo from Acre, Israel, Arapeyat, address challenges among the Palestinian community by rapping "what’s happening to our society, we’re imprisoning ourselves, with crimes and drugs, we need to make change now". [7]

Establishment of an independent state

Palestinian rappers have addressed the need and right to establish an independent Palestinian state in the Palestinian territories. For these rappers, "Palestinian liberation is obviously a key touchstone topic of identity...their music deals not just with issues of cultural identity but also of global politics". [8]

Palestinian unity and pride

For many Palestinian rappers, especially those in exile, their aim is to raise consciousness. In their song "Prisoner," DAM raps, "our future is in our hands, there is still good in the world my brothers, the sky is wide open, take flight my brothers". [7] The song "Born Here" delivers a similar message by saying "when we said hand in hand we should stand, we didn’t mean just a finger, cuz in order to achieve power we shall all be together". Despite location or overall theme, Palestinian rappers all support and wish to give hope to Palestinians. In his song "Sarah," Emirati-Born Palestinian rapper Ortega (Alhasan) who released a promotional track with Palestinian singer Rim Banna.

Palestinian hip hop artists

Palestinian hip hop is not limited to the Palestinian Territories. Rappers and hip hop groups that consider themselves Palestinian hip hop artists have emerged around the world. These "Arab and Palestinian American hip hop artists are part of a transnational hip hop movement that includes young artists in Palestine/Israel". [9] In Gaza, Ortega (Alhasan) who released many albums he lives in United Arab Emirates, MC Gaza (Ibrahim Ghunaim), Palestinian Rapperz and MWR rap about positive expression, everyday struggles, and the conditions of living in the occupied territories. Similarly, rappers Arapyat, Saz and The Happiness Kids discuss the experience of Palestinian youth in the West Bank. In Israel, DAM rap the experience of the Arabs who live in Israel. Internationally, Palestinian American rappers Excentrik, the Philistines, Iron Sheik, Ragtop and the Hammer Brothers all touch on themes of alleged racial profiling and discrimination against Arabs in the United States while expressing solidarity with Palestinians in the Palestinian Territories and in the diaspora. Refugees Of Rap Palestinian hip-hop group. Based in Paris, France, it Was in 2007, in a Palestinian refugee camp in Yarmouk, Syria, that the brothers, Yaser and Mohamed Jamous, created this group. Their texts offer a glimpse of life in the camp and denounce the situation in Syria . Shadia Mansour, a British-born female rapper, has brought attention to Palestinian hip hop in Europe along with others, Ettijah, a female rap group from Dheisheh Refugee Camp who are the first Palestinian female refugee rappers [10]

Media

American filmmaker Jackie Salloum's 2008 feature-length documentary Slingshot Hip Hop traces the history and development of Palestinian hip hop in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza Strip from the time DAM pioneered the art form in the late 1990s. DAM, Palestinian Rapperz, Mahmoud Shalabi, and female artists Arapeyat and Abeer Zinaty are all featured in the documentary. The film was screened at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. [7]

See also

Related Research Articles

Palestinians Ethnonational group of the Levant

Palestinians or Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinian Arabs, are an ethnonational group descending from peoples who have inhabited the region of Palestine over the millennia, and who are today culturally and linguistically Arab.

Israeli–Palestinian conflict Ongoing military and political conflict

The Israeli–Palestinian conflict is an ongoing dispute between Israel and Palestinians, beginning in the mid-20th century. It is one of the world's most enduring conflicts; the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip has lasted 55 years. Various attempts have been made to resolve the conflict as part of the Israeli–Palestinian peace process, as well as efforts to reduce the broader Arab-Israeli conflict.

Music of Palestine

The music of Palestine is one of many regional subgenres of Arabic music. While it shares much in common with Arabic music, both structurally and instrumentally, there are musical forms and subject matter that are distinctively Palestinian.

Subliminal (rapper) Musical artist

Ya'akov "Kobi" Shimony, generally known by his stage name Subliminal, is an Israeli rapper, singer and record producer.

Tamer Nafar Palestinian rapper

Tamer Nafar is a Palestinian rapper, actor, screenwriter and social activist of Israeli citizenship. He is the leader and a founding member of DAM, the first Palestinian hip hop group.

Israeli hip hop refers to hip hop and rap music in Israel.

Lowkey British rapper and activist

Kareem Dennis, better known by his stage name Lowkey, is a British rapper and activist from London. He first became known through a series of mixtapes he released before he was 18, before taking a hiatus from the music business. He would return in 2008, with appearances on BBC Radio and at various festivals and concerts including the BBC Electric Proms, Glastonbury, T In The Park and Oxegen in the buildup to his first solo album Dear Listener, as well as collaborating with other British musicians to form the supergroup Mongrel. He released his second solo album, Soundtrack to the Struggle, independently on in 2011.

Arabic hip-hop is a segment of hip hop music performed in the Arabic-speaking world. Due to variety of dialects and local genres which exist in the localities, Arabic hip-hop music may appear very diverse depending on the country of the song. Like most artists of the genre, the hip-hop artists from the Arabic-speaking world are highly influenced by American hip-hop. Emcees of the worldwide Arabic diaspora, including Europe, North America, and Australia, are also attributed as part of Arabic hip-hop scene.

DAM (band) Palestinian hip-hop group

DAM is a Palestinian hip-hop group. Based in Lod, Israel, DAM was founded in 1999 by brothers Tamer and Suhell Nafar and their friend Mahmoud Jreri. Their songs are largely about racism and poverty.

Culture of Palestine Overview of the Culture of Palestine

The Culture of Palestine is the culture of the Palestinian people, who are located in the Palestine, and across the region historically known as Palestine, as well as in the Palestinian diaspora. Palestinian culture is influenced by the many diverse cultures and religions which have existed in historical Palestine.

Issues relating to the State of Palestine and aspects of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict occupy continuous debates, resolutions, and resources at the United Nations. Since its founding in 1948, the United Nations Security Council, as of January 2010, has adopted 79 resolutions directly related to the Arab–Israeli conflict.

Palestinian fedayeen Palestinian militants

Palestinian fedayeen are militants or guerrillas of a nationalist orientation from among the Palestinian people. Most Palestinians consider the fedayeen to be "freedom fighters", while most Israelis consider them to be "terrorists".

<i>Slingshot Hip Hop</i> 2008 documentary film

Slingshot Hip Hop is a 2008 documentary film directed by Jackie Reem Salloum that traces the history and development of hip hop in the Palestinian territories from the time DAM pioneered the art form in the late 1990s. It braids together the stories of young Palestinian artists living in Gaza, the West Bank, and inside Israel as they discover hip hop, and employ it as a tool to surmount divisions imposed by occupation and poverty.

Outline of the State of Palestine Overview of and topical guide to the State of Palestine

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the State of Palestine:

Sagol 59 Israeli musician

Khen Rotem, known by his stage name Sagol 59, is an Israeli rapper, singer, songwriter and guitarist. He is best known for being a Jerusalem-based hip-hop MC and has been hailed as the "Israeli godfather of hip hop." He also writes about music for many Israeli publications, including Haaretz and the Tel Aviv guide City Mouse.

Shadia Mansour Musical artist

Shadia Mansour, also known as "the first lady of Arabic hip hop" is a British-Palestinian rapper who performs in Arabic and English. Much of her music revolves around Middle Eastern politics.

2009 Arab Capital of Culture

Al-Quds Arab Capital of Culture was the name given to Arab Capital of Culture programme in 2009. The programme, organised by UNESCO and the Arab League, is designed to promote Arab culture and encourage cooperation in the Arab world. The 2009 event was the 14th programme since its establishment in 1996.

<i>Ihda</i> 2006 studio album by DAM

Ihda (Dedication)' is the debut album by DAM released in November 2006 by British record label Red Circle Music - RCM. It is DAM's debut album and the first Palestinian hip hop album. The album was licensed to EMI Arabia to distribute it in the Middle East except for Palestine where it was distributed independently. The album contains 15 tracks, the cover of the album was taken by the Palestinian photographer Steve Sabella.


Suhel Nafar is currently the Vice President of Strategy & Market Development- WANA at Empire Distribution, the leading independent label, distributor, and publisher in the US and the first label to open a division in the US to help grow the local scene in West Asia & North Africa and its diaspora.

Abdel-Rahman Al-Shantti known professionally as MC Abdul or MCA Abdul is a Palestinian rapper from Gaza, Palestine. He is studying at a school affiliated with the UNRWA. He gained popularity when he sang a rap about freedom, in front of his school in Gaza among his friends, which garnered hundreds of thousands of views on social media. Subsequently, as of June 2022, his videos for "Shouting At The Wall" and "Palestine" have received 297,000 views and 505,000 views, respectively, on YouTube alone. However, his videos routinely draw hundreds of thousands of views or more on Instagram, where he is most active. As of June 2022, his "Palestine" freestyle has received more than 5 million views on Instagram, and his songs have received

References

  1. ↑ Nissenbaum, Dion (September 29, 2005). "'Palestinians' embracing hip-hop to push 'perspective of the victims'". Jewish World Review. Archived from the original on August 16, 2007. Retrieved April 25, 2007.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  2. ↑ El-Sabawi, Taleed (2005). "Palestinian Conflict Bounces to a New Beat". Angelingo. Archived from the original on April 18, 2005. Retrieved April 25, 2007.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Maira, Sunaina (2008). "We Ain't Missing: Palestinian Hip Hop - A Transnational Youth Movement". CR: The New Centennial Review. 8 (2): 161–192. doi:10.1353/ncr.0.0027. S2CID   144998198.
  4. ↑ Al-Taee, Nasser. "Voices of Peace and the Legacy of Reconciliation: Popular Music, Nationalism, and the Quest for Peace in the Middle East." Popular Music 21 (2002): 41–61. JSTOR. EBSCO. Brandeis University, Waltham. Apr 1. 2008.
  5. ↑ "Palestinian political rap attracts growing crowds by Rachel Shabi - Common Ground News Service". www.commongroundnews.org. Archived from the original on 2007-10-22. Retrieved 2008-05-08.
  6. ↑ Mohamed Nasir, Kamaludeen (2020). Representing Islam: Hip-Hop of the September 11 Generation. Indiana University Press. ISBN   9780253053053.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Slingshot Hip Hop http://slingshothiphop.com
  8. ↑ Massad, S. (2005). "Liberating Songs: Palestine Put to Music". In R. L. Stein & T. Swedenburg (eds.) Palestine, Israel, and the Politics of Popular Culture. Duke University Press. 175–201.
  9. ↑ Maira, Sunaina (2008). "We Ain't Missing: Palestinian Hip Hop - A Transnational Youth Movement". CR: The New Centennial Review. 8 (2): 161–192. doi:10.1353/ncr.0.0027. S2CID   144998198.
  10. ↑ "British Palestinian rapper conducts a 'musical intifada'". BBC News. September 7, 2010.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.