Brazilian hip hop

Brazilian hip hop is one of the world's major hip hop scenes, with active rap, break dance, and graffiti scenes, especially in São Paulo, where groups tend to have a more international style, influenced by old school hip hop and gangsta rap.

History

Brazilian hip hop was born in Sao Paulo.

São Paulo's hip hop scene is largely influenced by social inequality and racial factors. Rappers like Racionais MC's focus on criticizing the city's unequal wealth distribution, the lack of opportunity given to children growing up in the slums, and São Paulo state's corrupt government, and avidly promote an anti drug-use agenda. Brazilian slums known as favelas are frequently referenced in songs, as more radical types of Brazilian funk and hip hop have been used as a forum to speak out against local, regional, and national issues. Groups such as Cambio Negro and Chico Science adhere to a musical style known as rap consciencia, or socially conscious rap.[1] In the mid-1990s, Brazilian hip hop and funk were advertised to the public as being connected to the drug scene in Rio de Janeiro. Reports in the press around this time classified both styles of Brazilian music as being rooted and funded by the main drug lords in Rio. Part of the speculation of the connection expressed in the reports came from a famous rap that came onto the scene in the early 1990s, entitled "Rap do Borel." Borel, a slum in the neighborhood of Tijuca where drug lorders are notoriously known to operate, was recorded by Brazilian musicians William Santos de Souza and Duda. It has been speculated that subsidized funk parties organized by the Brazilian crime group "Comando Vermelho" (Red Commandoes) were actually parties in which Brazilian youth could be recruited for drug dealing. Brazilian rap, at least as it has developed in poor neighborhoods here in the country's largest city, tends to be highly politicized and scornful of lyrics that boast about wealth or sexual conquests. In contrast, the funk movement in Brazil, also imported from the United States but centered in Rio de Janeiro, is unabashedly about celebrating sex, bling and violence. Since established commercial radio stations and publishing houses have shown minimal interest in the music and poetry that new hip-hop artists are producing, or want to impose contract terms that are too stringent, rappers have developed their own channels to distribute their work. These range from selling their discs and books themselves on the streets and at shows to having the works played on a network of low-power but linked community radio stations. [2]

Brazilian rap has served as a reflection of political, social, and racial issues plaguing the disenfranchised youth in the suburbs of São Paulo and Rio. The lyrical content, band names, and song names used by Brazilian hip hop artists often connote the socio-political issues surrounding their communities. For instance, Racionais MCs were "unanimously regarded as the voice of the suburbs," with songs such as Pânico na Zona Sul (Panic on the South Side) and Tempos Difíceis (Hard Times). Rapper Gabriel o Pensador titled one of his songs "Tô Feliz, Matei o Presidente" (I'm Glad, I've Killed the President), which addresses former president Fernando Collor's corruption-related impeachment.

Additionally, police brutality against poor black youth in Rio and São Paulo is also a salient issue incorporated into Brazilian rap. According to George Yudice, "in 1991 in São Paulo alone, the military police killed 876 street youth." With violence rates of such a devastating proportion, it is no wonder that impoverished Brazilian youth use hip hop as a voice to speak out. Markedly, Pavilhão 9, a live hip hop group, got their name from the exact location where about 100 convicts were murdered by the police inside the Carandiru jail.

In other major cities like Rio de Janeiro and Recife, hip hop also appears in fusion styles. Rio de Janeiro represents the largest urban area of national politics, and in popular culture (in general) in Brazil. Rio de Janeiro is portrayed as the headquarters for major corporations of the country's popular music industry. Rio is the most important place for new music composers to gain knowledge of the business, In Recife, manguebeat, a style which was born in the early '90s, mixes regional folk styles as maracatu and coco with hardcore punk rock and hip hop. In Rio de Janeiro in the late 1990s, MV Bill opened the way to hip hop. Brazilian funk was considered somewhat naive until its sudden "rediscovery" in 2000s, following the international fad towards the "exotic" style.

A new movement has started to make use of the Brazilian hip hop and creative music scene to keep favela residents out of trouble with the ever dangerous and ever evasive Brazilian drug lords versus the Brazilian police force drug war. A brave new documentary has been made about this subject entitled Favela Rising. The film is a documentary about the group Afro Reggae. Formed in 1993 by Brazilian José Junior, Afro Reggae is a non-profit organization that aims to take young favela residents off the streets and away from drugs through means of music.[3] As a hybrid of traditional Brazilian dance music fused with hip-hop and reggae, Afro Reggae's ultimate goal is to offer young favela residents something to do other than join the increasing ranks of drug dealers. In the face of adversity, the Afro Reggae movement offers hope and leadership to young Brazilians, and has moved from the favelas to actual stage performances, as they recently signed a contract with Universal Records. Their Afro Reggae movement's music features styles also interesting to avid listeners of Brazilian hip hop, as well as other genres too.

There are also artists of Brazilian heritage active in other countries, such as the UK grime MC Aggro, who burst onto the scene in 2006 with his hit song, Free Yard. The australian hip hop scene also harbors a group called Terrafirma ( Raph A.L. and Simplex the brazilian born mcs/producer ) who have been active in the underground scene and later on the charts since its establishment in 1995. they are also members of the Adelaide super crew, Certified Wise.

The aforementioned new movement has resulted in hip-hop stylings finding their way into the sub-culture of youth's throughout Brazil. In the TV series Cidade dos Homens we follow the lives of two best friends who struggle everyday to survive life in the favela and still manage to keep a smile on their faces. One of the mediums used to alleviate stress is hip-hop, although, since most of the episodes occur in Rio De Janeiro their music might be more attributed to Funk Carioca. Nonetheless, it is the Hip-hop mind set and the idea of a "cypha" (a circle of MC's that spit together and maintain a particular tempo without stopping) that is ever incarnate in the youth of Brazil. This is particularly apparent in the episode Sábado. While the young men are re-telling the crazy and, consequently, exaggerated stories of their crazy night, they form a cypha and begin to rhyme. When one of the supporting characters by the name of Alex, breaks the cypha because he gets offbeat, he is rewarded by a barrage of boos.Cidade dos Homens further accentuates the universality of Hip-hop in the character of Larinjhia, who is the other protagonist of the show. When he finds himself feeling trapped by society and by his social status he turns to hip-hop as an escape. Much like the real life documentary of Favela Rising, we see Laranjinha using hip-hop as a way out of gang violence and into positivity and activism. The show also features many actual Brazilian Hip-hop Stars such as Xis and Thaide. The songs written by Laranjhia and Hip-Hop stars shown in the series are often based on the rough lives they faced in the Favela, just like many MC's in the United States base most of their material retelling stories of the places where they grew up. Another episode from the series of Cidade dos Homens that deals with the influence of Hip-Hop in Brazil, specifically in the city of São Paulo, is called "Hip Samba Hop," where the main characters are exposed to the magnitude of molding that Hip-Hop has caused in that community.

In addition to the above, "periferia" and "marginalidade" are some of the most prominent cores of Brazilian hip hop. In reference to Derek Pardue's article it is arguable that that most hip hop promoters from the all major hip hop groups around Brazil, several years after the birth of hip hop in Brazilian society, were not very successful in co-modifying their understanding of slum reality within the domestic music economy hip hop promoters in Brazil understand it to have a high sense of reality or one being real/truthful. Thus in terms of place prominent places are some of those which in general, are viewed as the "periphery" periferia, which also include residential areas of the metropolitan areas of São Paulo, Campinas, Rio de Janeiro, Curitiba and so on. This is further supported by Sansone Livio in his article as he talks about the influence of the youth culture in Brazilian Hip hop and funk. One of the reasons why the periferia is a core of Brazilian hip hop is because, the periphery/periferia turned into a mid-20th century boom of industrialization and place for migration. Additionally, it is also understood to have neighborhoods that vary significantly with regard to safety, architecture, community organization, and services rendered.

During the period 1985–1995, many Brazilian black pop musicians were quite active in the local adaptation of African-American musical trends such as funk and rap. While rock music in Brazil has been associated predominantly with the white middle class, funk and rap are heavily supported in big cities by people (and especially teenagers) of the lower socioeconomic class, primarily blacks. Funk musicians have frequently commented in their songs about the race relations in Brazil and have expressed black pride openly. Radical types of funk and rap meanwhile have been used mostly for sociopolitical messages about local, regional, or national issues. Brazilian rap, at least as it has developed in poor neighborhoods, tends to be highly politicized and scornful of lyrics that boast about wealth or sexual conquests. The funk movement in Brazil is unabashedly about celebrating sex, bling and violence. The rap scene in Brazil is a way for artists to express their political oppression, while funk music relates more to the part of American hip-hop scene of drugs, sex, and violence.

The Hip Hop Scene in Brasília

Hip Hop has been present in the “brasiliense” social and musical scene since the late 1980s. It is arguably the second biggest Hip Hop scene in Brazil. The first generation of rappers included GOG and DJ Jamaika. The second generation initiated with MC RAPadura in the 1990s. Currently, the most successful female rapper from Brasília is Flora Matos. Furthermore, the current generation, from the year 2000 on, has many groups and MCs who are releasing their work and making new events to expand the scene in the capital of Brazil.

First Generation

This section talks about two of the pioneers of the first generation of rappers in Brasília. DJ Jamaika is one the main pioneers responsible for elevating and spreading the Hip Hop scene in the Distrito Federal (DF) area since 1993. He has participated in various radio and TV programs, such as “Transamérica.” He is a rapper from Ceilândia, satellite city around Brasília. He had a Hip Hop group called Alibi in 1999. He also initiated the group Câmbio Negro in 1990. One of his best known CDs is “Pá Doido Pirá” which is also used as an important reference in Brazilian Hip Hop. In 2002, DJ Jamaika became a Christian and started working in only Gospel Rap CDs. In 2007, he won the “Prêmio Hutúz” national Brazilian award for best beat maker. GOG is another pioneer of the Hip Hop culture in Brasília. He was born in Sobradinho, satellite city around Brasília, and moved to Guará, satellite city around Brasília, in 1973, where he resided until 1991. He is a rapper and began his career as a poet. His first CD was recorded in 1992 with the title “Peso Pesado” (Heavy Weight). In 2007, he won the Prêmio Hútuz award for best artist. His most recent work is “DVD Cartão Postal Bomba!”, released in 2009.

Second Generation

MC RAPadura Xique-Chico was born in Fortaleza and came to Brasília in 1997. He demonstrated interest in Hip Hop music when he participated in GOG’s song “A quem possa interessar” in the “Aviso às gerações” album. MC RAPadura has participated in several repente contests (these are contestants in which people improvise with music from Brazil’s northeast region), on account of his original and innovative style, which is utilizing Brazilian “forró” music and mixing it with his self produced Hip Hop beats. In 2010, RAPadura performed in a TV Cultura episode of Manos e Minas with MV Bill and is well-known for performing with a farmer straw hat which was created in Fortaleza.

Female Rappers

There are also many promising female artists from Brasília, who are successful in Brazil. One of them is Flora Matos , who was raised by a musicians’ family. She performed on stage for the first time with the band “Acarajazz” when she was only 4 years old, because her father was the band’s songwriter. In 2003, Flora performed in her first solo project, “Noções Unidas”, with the producer Chicco Aquino. Her influences are Racionais MC's , Dina Di , Sabotage , Kamau , MC Marechal , etc. In 2006, she started to sing with DJ Brother, which earned her the award for the best singer of the year in Brasília. In 2007, she recorded a remix of the song “Véu da Noite”, from the singer Céu, produced by KL Jay (Racionais MCs’ DJ and beatmaker). She became popular after working with famous DJs of the Brazilian RAP such as KL Jay, DJ Cia, etc. In 2008, she was invited by KL Jay and Ice Blue to participate in the mixtape “O Jogo é Hoje”, supported by Nike and directed by Blue and Mano Brown , where she recorded the song “Mundo Pequeno.” In October of 2008, she toured Europe (Paris, Angers, etc). When she returned, she released her first single called “Jogo da Velha.” One year later, she performed with Emicida and in the end of the year she released her first mixtape called Flora Matos vs Stereodubs

Current Generation

Various events were created in Brasília to enhance the Hip Hop culture, from the DaBomb parties to the 2010 battles called “Calango Pensante”. Calango Pensante was created by MC Ahoto (Jorge Pinho) to motivate the various MCs to battle in Conic (a mall located in the center of Brasília). There are prizes for the runner up and winner of the battle, such as the sum of the money given by each competing MC in the beginning of the event or concert tickets to a Brazilian Hip Hop show. MC Ahoto also created other events such as "I love Rap DF" , which is an event where the hip hop groups can perform and promote their work. His first hit was the song “Fogo na Bomba” which was produced by Emtee (of Movimento Plano Crew – MPC). The song is basically about Graffiti art and tagging in general, bombing, since MC Ahoto is also an active graffiti artist. In fact, MC Ahoto started out as a graffiti artist. He has a tagging crew called “Kaligrafia Mardita” and was nominated in the Graffiti best prize category in 2011 (Prêmio Hip Hop Zumbi – Edição Dandara). Currently, he is one of the main representatives of Samambaia (neighborhood from Brasília) and has had several collaborations with other MCs, three of the most famous are: “Flowgados” (inactive), the group “Movimento Plano Crew”, and “Coletivação.” MC Ahoto won the 2010 “Microfonia” event, an MC Battle which happened in Brasília and which gave MC Ahoto the opportunity to travel to Rio de Janeiro and participate in the national Brazilian Battle: “Liga dos MCs.” He also won the award for best Brasiliense MC of 2011. Prêmio Hip Hop Zumbi was an event created in 2010 by ArtSam to make the Hip Hop culture in Brasília even more powerful. This event recognizes and values the many local talents of the DF state, which just happens to be the second biggest Hip Hop scene in Brazil. It also makes the scene more professional, with political and popular participation, thus making social activism known. The name chosen illustrates well this main objective, refreshing the memory of the Brazilian people to the slave who was the leader of the biggest “quilombo” (a clan of refugee slaves) from Brazil, Zumbi.

There were awards for the Distrito Federal (DF) Hip Hop projects released between July 2009 and October 2010.

The Categories ZUMBI BRASÍLIA 2010

• 1 – Best Demo/Single
• 2 – Best Album
• 3 – Best Video Clip
• 4 – Spreading the Revolution (Activism in Hip Hop)
• 5 – Award Media and Communication (Zine, Blog, Website, Etc.)
• 6 – Best Artist or Breaking Crew
• 7 – Best Artist or Graffiti Crew
• 8 – Award Root and Essence (Recognize the old generation who is active and still practices the militancy)
• 9- Award "No prejudice" (Recognize initiatives of promotion of racial equity)
• 10- Best DJ
• 11- Award Recognition
• 12- Best Music Producer
• 13- Award Hip Hop Woman

In 2011, ArtSam and the Family ONG Hip Hop with other partners: “Aquilombanodo” and the “Espírito Urbano” did the second edition of the Zumbi awards, only this time with another name: “Prêmio Hip Hop Zumbi – Edição Dandara” to recognize the talents of the women who rap and represent the hip hop culture. It also symbolizes the fight against violence and the prejudice they face when performing.

The Categories ZUMBI BRASÍLIA 2011

• 1- Best Album
• 2- Best EP/Mixtape
• 3- Best Demo/Single
• 4- Best DJ
• 5- Best Video Clip
• 6- Best Braking Artist
• 7- Best Breaking Crew
• 8- Award to the Best Graffiti Artist
• 9- Award to the best Graffiti Crew
• 10- Best Music Producer
• 11- Award Hip Hop Woman
• 12- Award Identity (no prejudice)
• 13- Award Recognition
• 14- Award Marginal Literature
• 15- Award Media and Communication
• 16- Award Spreading the Revolution
• 17- Award Roots and Essence
• 18- Award Audio Visual

Artists

• 509-e
• A Família
• Ao Cubo
• Black Alien & Speed
• Criolo(formerly known as Criolo Doido)
• Dina Di
• Jay Nano
• Rashid
• Projota
• Emicida
• Emtee
• Facção Central
• Flora Matos
• Gabriel, O Pensador
• Lords Of the South
• Marcelo D2
• Mc Ahoto
• Movimento Plano Crew
• KMILLION
• MV Bill
• Nitro Di
• Planet Hemp
• KL Jay
• Projeto Ladislau
• Racionais MC's
• RAPadura
• RZO – Rapaziada da Zona Oeste (Guys from West Zone)
• GOG
• Rhossi (Pavilhao 9)
• Clã Nordestino
• Reação
• Parteum
• Z'Africa Brasil
• Black Alien
• Thaide and Dj Hum
• Faccão Central
• Dj Jamaica

Notable songs

Profissao MC – Marcelo D2 Desabafo – Marcelo D2 Qual é – Marcelo D2 Eu tiro é onda – Marcelo D2 Babylon by Gus – Black Alien CPI da favela – GOG Fim de semana no parque – Racionais MC's Vida loka part. 2 – Racionais MC's Triunfo – Emicida Rua Augusta – Emicida E.M.I.C.I.D.A. – Emicida Projeçao – Projota Sem drama – Cabal Melhor do Brasil – Cabal Até o chao – Cabal Stab – Planet Hemp Respeito é pra quem tem – Sabotage Feito no Brasil – Face da Morte Acendam as luzes – Rashid

Films

• São Paulo, le rap de la saturation. Directed by Yves Billon.
• Favela Rising. Directed by Jeff Zimbalist and Matt Mochary.

References

External links

• Favela Rising film Official site
• "Brazilian Rap", from AllBrazilianMusic site
• http://www.favelapainting.com, from the project by Dre urhahn and Jeroen Koolhaas, check the movie Firmeza Total on hiphop in São Paulo and Rio.
• "Brazilian Hip-Hop Material and Ideology: A Case of Cultural Design", by Derek Pardue (March 2005)
• uplano
• Afro Reggae Official Site (Portuguese)