Press Release #YCreate - Bridging Dutch and West African Hip Hop
(Amsterdam, 13 June 2019) From 16-23 June, ten standouts from the Dutch hip hop scene head to Senegal as part of a new #YCreate initiative. Zwart Licht’s Hayzee and Leeroy, Rotjoch, Yung Nnelg, Simone Zeefuik and more will join the largest hip hop festival in West Africa, Festa2H. The trip was inspired by talks between Dutch hip hop icons and Senegal’s’ activist rap group Y’en a Marre during TRANS//FORM, an event series on hip hop culture that toured the Netherlands last year. (NEDERLANDS HIER)
To flip the script, now the Netherlands is headed to Senegal to build on those initial encounters and see what new creative connections emerge. At Festa2H, the visiting rappers, writers, DJs, producers and hip hop artists will perform, participate in conferences, give and take workshops, and take part in international juries to discover new Senegalese hip hop talent.
#YCreate facilitated the initial talks in 2018, and is now teaming up with Y’en a Marre and Africulturban to organise the Festa2H trip. #YCreate a platform for sharing the stories of creatives from around the world, powered by the Prince Claus Fund. Highlights from the trip will also be featured. Find them on Instagram @YCreate_pcf.
Participating Artists
- Hayzee & Leeroy from Zwart Licht
- Rotjoch, founder and face of 101 Barz
- Yung Nnelg, rapper
- Ella John, rapper
- Elten Kiene, spoken word artist, host, organiser, programmer, and workshop leader
- Stacii Samidin, photographer
- Simone Zeefuik, writer, programmer, organiser
- Bamba Al Mansour, DJ, producer, artist and activist
Background: The trip to Festa2H grew out of a 2018 collaboration between #YCreate and CT Collective (Compagnietheater). Together they initiated TRANS//FORM, a city-hopping hip hop programme throughout the Netherlands.
#YCreate invited Senegalese rap activist group Y’en a Marre to the Netherlands and paired them with the Dutch hip hop group Zwart Licht. They took part in panel discussions in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht and Leeuwarden, accompanied by performances and talks by many artists from the local hip hop scenes. Y’en a Marre was inspired, in turn, inspired many of the participating local artists with their story about how they used their music to encourage young people to vote in Senegal. It was apparent then that the creative flow shouldn’t just end there. Through #YCreate, the Prince Claus Fund initiated the trip to Festa2H to encourage new connections.
Stories from trip will be featured on #YCreate, a platform that asks creative people from all over the world one question: Why do you create? Follow their extraordinary stories on Instagram @YCreate_pcf.
About Festa2H: The festival is run by Africulturban, an organisation that supports urban youth culture and is a NextGen partner of the Prince Claus Fund. This is the 14th edition of Festa2H, which brings together hip hop performers and other artists from across Africa and beyond for performances, panel discussions, workshops and residencies.
About the Prince Claus Fund: The Prince Claus Fund supports, connects and celebrates artists and cultural practitioners where cultural expression is under pressure. princeclausfund.org
Photos left to right: Simone Zeefuik. Leeroy of Zwart Licht. Yung Nnelg © Anouk Hulsebosch.
Note for the Editors:
For more information, interviews or visual material, please contact
Sarah E. C. Smith, Prince Claus Fund Coordinator Communications | [email protected] | +31.20.3449.169
