Cape Flats hip hop legend Emile YX? has returned to Cape Town to celebrate hip hop in the Mother City.
Not only is the South African Hip Hop Museum Hall of Fame inductee celebrating 41 years of hip hop in Mzansi, he’s also celebrating his appointment as the international director for Hip Hop Congress.
Fresh from his appointment, the activist, real name Emile Jansen, arrived innie Kaap last week from the US Atlanta, Georgia , to host a celebration of the impact of hip hop culture on youth from the 1980s, 90s and 2000s.
Among his goals is to educate Kaapse mense about the city’s global impact because he wysed that locals seldom celebrate their own heroes.
Some of the examples he listed include Black Noise, Prophets of Da City, Brasse vannie Kaap, Godessa, Kanyi Mavi, Dope Saint Jude, YoungstaCPT, Hemelbesem, Jitsvinger, Driemanskapp, Moodphase 5, Dokoom and Ben Sharpa.
Emile YX? has developed a strong global footprint over the years.
Not only has he taught at local universities like UCT, UWC and Maties, he’s also done so at world-renowned institutions like Harvard, Stanford, UCLA, Howard University and the University of San Francisco.
Now, he taken it upon himself to create events to celebrate Cape Town hip hop, and he has invited a Madison University professor, Roberto Rivera, and “movement healer”, B-boy Spirit, to join him for Heal the Hood Project at the “Hip Hop As Healing” talks, discussions and exhibitions.
The exhibitions will be held on Thursday at UCT, Friday at Iziko Museum, Saturday at The Good Hope Castle, and Sunday at Heal the Hood Projects’ future offices and museum in Grassy Park.