Global Hip Hop Festival 04.02.2008
Founded in 2006, the Trinity International Hip Hop festival was created to tackle the segregation and violence of Hartford, CT and Trinity college. Focusing on hip hop’s global proliferation and power as a communicative idiom, the Trinity International Hip Hop Festival tries to unify Trinity College, the city of Hartford and the world.
Some folks argue that the corporate world of entertainment has played a major role in sapping American hip-hop of the positive energy that was once been represented in its roots stages. They also argue that American radio stations focus on the ‘consumer-driven’ choices of pre-selected hip hop tracks and carry play lists that only express views on materialism and use derogatory language. For them, it would seem that only outside the US have the majority of hip hop artists preserved its true form of expression, spreading a collaborative fusion of cultural influences and generally re capturing the cultures more positive elements. Whether or not this is true, those folks are going to love this year’s festival.
Talent from all over the globe — Israel, Puerto Rico, Liberia, Kenya, Brazil and many more — are representing this year to reinvigorate our faith in global hip hop’s ability to enlighten, empower and cross cultural borders.
The festival, which is free and open to the public, is taking place at Trinity College April 4th, 5th and 6th.
Check out the rest of this year’s participating artists, activists, graffiti writers and films here.
April 3rd, 2008 at 7:10 am
Sometimes i think that the purists are not very realistic, but then other times i think they’re the only people who haven’t sold their souls.
On the one hand, I worry about these folks that you speak of-they demonstrate symptoms of hipoberry (a disease whereby all music is judged in the basis of how broke the artist is and how deep the lyrics are). Artists rap about money because people like money. Commercial stations play commercial music because they need lots of people to listen; otherwise, they won’t meet their targets and will eventually be closed down. Derogatory language is used because it can be pretty fu*king funny.
Though I imagine if you love hip-hop and you’re aware of how creative and wonderful it can be, then every time you hear another song about a diamond ring on a beautiful girls toe who is sleeping with her cousins baby mother’s best friend’s dad, a part of your soul is
crushed.
You can’t make everyone appreciate beauty, but you can provide them with the opportunity to look beyond their typical music choices. This Trinity Hip Hop festival looks like one of those opportunities.