THE RISE OF AFRO-HIP POP, EVOLUTION AND IMPACT 1970 TO 2021

The universal nature and power of music make it transcend beyond borders, it is a bridge for and between people of various parts and cultures of the world. Music is generally shaped by the attitudes, values, culture and sounds of people, from one or more cultures and that is the case of Afro-hip hop, which is a combination of hip-hop elements and African musical style, culture, and rhythm. In music, Hip hop is a style/ genre of music that is characterised by a rapping vocal track, and a strong and rhythmic beat, DJing, it is known to incorporate rhythmic or rhyming speech as its musical style. Looking at what hip-hop as a genre of music entails makes it easy for one to understand what Afro-hip hop is, It is simply the unique blend of African and hip-hop elements.

The emergence and origin of Afro-hip pop is multifaceted but has been traced to the origin of hip-hop and the spread and theAfricanisation of Hip-hop. What is important is that Afro-hip hop emerged as a unique and distinct genre in Africa which was influenced by the African American hip-hop movement which is the hip-hop music scene and music in African-American culture and the second origin is directly related to Africa which is the emergence and incorporation of Hip-hop elements and the fusion of African culture.

To better understand the origin story of hip hop music scene and music in African-American culture popularly known as the African American hip hop movement, It is important to trace how Africans got to the Americas in the first place, the two ways in which Africans got into the Americas is through involuntary migration through the slave trade and voluntary migration through relocation. The high influx of Africans into the Americas before the 21st century and the period of 1800-the 1900s was traced to the slave trade which was an involuntary migration, and, during this period of migration, African culture, language, and music style travelled and was preserved through generations by the African and blacks.

The Origin of Hip-hop has been traced to the 1970s, when the African American hip-hop movement, began. The movement was a cultural as well as political movement that showed the effects of societal problems, industral decline, it was a way for the people to express themselves and attempt to change the world etc. According to Jay Z “ Through Hip Hop we found a way to redeem those lessons, and use them to change the world”. The African American hip-hop movement led to the emergence of hip-hop music in  South Bronx of New York City in the 1970s by African Americans. was introduced by a popular DJ named Clive Campbell but his nickname was DJ Kool Herc ,along side  Coke La Rock who was his MC, The Hip Hop culture began to spread and people like Grandmaster Flash, Afrika  Bambaataa began their career in this music genre. Thus,Hip hop became recognised with the combination of Deejaying, Mceeing, Rapping , beatboxing and graffiti skills/activities.

From the 1980’s  to 1990s, Hip hop began to spread across different location, in the West Coast there was TUPAC  who used his song as a tool to address injustice in the system and police brutality , On the West coast there were  The likes of Jay Z and Fugees. During this period It also expanded beyond America’s borders, getting played on the radios, television, films ,broadcasting station to mention a few. An important aspect of hip hop that cannot be overlooked during its inception was the infamous dispute between East coast rappers and West coast rappers. 

In addition to this, the historical and cultural  significance of hip hop movement is evident as it marks a pivotal time in the evolution of music as well as black culture in  within America. Culturally, it brought about self knowledge , awareness and self expression which made it possible for people to realise that they can  take control of their life . By the 2000s, the hip hop movement was everywhere,  there was the rise of 50 cent, Missy Elliot etc, Although some say the root is traceable back to Africa. It is important to note that hip-hop has being before mainstream discovery in the 1970s. Thus, the history of hip-hop has its roots in African-American culture, which also became widely appealing and thus influence the second emergence story of Afro-hip hop which is the emergence of Hip-hop in Africa.

As hip-hop became mainstream across the globe, the different African Americans artists who championed the hip genre became an influence across the world and in Africa, began to influence people who liked hip hop and this led to African and local artists adapting and incorporating the different elements of hip hop, this officially led to the fusion of African culture and hip hop the influence of African American artist like Dj Kool Herc, Afrika Bambata, Ice cube, Kurtis blow, Rappers Delight, MC ShaRock, Dr.Dre, Jay Z, etc. 

Afro-hip hop over the years has had some influences such as the influences are African music genres which include the rhythms and melodies of the Traditional African culture, sound, instruments, and language example of this includes Afro beats, High life, Fuji, a mixture of local language and local genres like Yoruba, Igbo, Twi, which is now incorporated into Afro-hip hop, examples like Falz uses Yoruba, and Sarkodie uses Twi. Another influence on Afro-hip hop that cannot be overlooked is the influence of Western hip-hop music styles, beats, and production techniques such as rhymes, assonance, drum beat, turntables e.g.M.C Solaar, etc. Hip hop scene has gone beyond its African-American origins in New York. It is now widely recognised and practised across America, British, and French which is now categorised as Western Hip-hop scene. Thus, the Western hip-hop scene has influenced Afro-hip hop.

Additionally there are certain terms to be familiar with to understand The rise of afro hip hop , which is the hip-hop elements. The hip hop element are the pillars that makes up hip hop and these elements are Deejaying, Mceeing, Rapping ,beatboxing and graffiti skills. Thus these hip hop elements and characteristics blended with African culture became the Unique fusion as seen in Afro-hip hop songs artists like MI Abaga, Olamide, and Eno Baron. 

Futhermore, another characteristic is the cultural references and multilingual lyrics as seen in Falz, Dagrin, Nasty C, and Phyno songs. The diverse nature of the beats, DJing, and rhythms reflecting the different cultural and regional styles of each African country is another characteristic of Afro beats. Also, the use of storytelling, social identity, and commentary eg. Tony Tetuila, Rugged Man, Swatta Kamp, Show Dem Camp. 

In addition, the rise and early stage of Afro Hip Hop in Africa and the pioneers vary across the different countries and regions of Africa, from North Africa to South Africa, East Africa, and West Africa. Here is the growth and evolution across different regions and countries in different part of Africa.

In West Africa, countries like Nigeria, Hip-hop became popular among the youth in the 1980s, and by the late 1980s and  1990s, Afro-hip hop began to be popular in Lagos especially how Afro-hip hop music was a tool used by artists and youths as a means of escape from the crises that was brought on the decisions made by the military government and also demand change and criticise the government. During this period pioneer artists made use of Nigerian languages and elements of hip hop such as Junior and Pretty, The 3 members of  Remedies namely  EedrisAbdulkareem, Tony Tetuila, Rugged Man, Reminisce, etc. By the late 1990s and early 2000s, there were more Afro-hip hop artists like Eldee, JJC, 419 Squad, etc. For Senegal,  hip hop got there in 1985 and one of the pioneers was Positive Black Soul.

Moreover, In Ghana, by the 1980s Afro-hip hop had started to take root and had a female rapper named Eno Barony. In South Africa, there were Afro-hop artists like  Prophets of DA City (POC), Swatt Kamp, HHP, and Cassper Nyovest, in Kenya there is Ricky Oyaro, Kalamashaka, Octopizzo, etc. with the spread of hip hop in Cameroon,  artists like Negrissim, Jovi, and Manhitobecame pioneers of afro-hip hop. During this period, Afro-hip hop in Cameroon was a way for the artist to express their grievances, and this made it become associated with angry youths and rebellious behaviours. Over time, the hip-hop and Afro-hip hop music scene has evolved beyond the idea of angry youth. Hip hop sound got to Zambia in the late 1980s and influenced pioneer afro-hip hop artists like Daddy Zemus, and Mr Swagger. In Morocco, there was Don Bigz. 

Since the 2000s, Afro-Hip hop began to have mainstream breakthroughs across different African countries. There was a rise of new artists in various African countries like in South Africa, there was HHP, and Cassper Nyovest, Also Nigerian artists began to have significant influences and breakthroughs, examples of these artists were, Mode 9, MI Abaga, Dagrin, Naeto C, Sasha P, Bouqui, Eva Alordiah, Dr. Sid, etc. They began to make an impact. In contemporary times Afro-hip hop has gained global spread and global recognition with Nigerian artists like Burna Boy, Olamide, Phyno, Zoro, Falz, Show Dem Camp SDC and Ladipoe. In South Africa there is Nasty C, Aka, Sho Madjozi mixes her Tsonga culture, Nadia Nakai.  Kenya has Khaligraph Jones. In Ghana, Afro-hip hop is making waves with Sarkordi raps in Pidgin and Twi, Kwesi Arthur, and M.anifest to mention a few.

Additionally, Various factors led to the spread of Afro-hip hop and its global recognition, one of which is the fusion with other genres and their influence (Afro-trap, Afro Pop, Afro-beats) Falz with Simi, Ladipoe with Simi. Collaboration with international musicians as well as The presence of social media platforms and digital streaming platforms has made it easy for people around the world to listen to the songs, Also, the visualisation of  Afro-hip hop music is captivating. The touring of Afro-hip hop artists has also aided the spread of Afro-hip hop globally, Also Afro-hip hop songs are being used in movies.

There have been notable collaboration between Afro-Hip hop and international musicians and hip-hop artists such as Stormzy and Burnaboy, Cassper Nyovest and black thought, Kwesi ft Wale, etc. HPP featuring NAS

A question that comes to mind is how has Afro Hip hop evolved overtime? The evolution of Afro Hip hop can bee seen in the movement  and activities through time. It has evolved from the 1980s -1990s which was the period where by different africancountries where going through military rule. During this period Afro-hiphop became a tool for expression for the youths, it was also a way to critic the government and the politics of the country, thee lyrics reflected the issues and plight of the people. From 2010, it is became evident that Afro hip-hop had evolved since it has been in the music scene for over 30 decades. It still retained its nature to criticise the activities on government, it still showed the plights of the people, but in recent times it is more now a tool for entertainment, it cannot be ovelooked that it addresses social and political issues in the country examples of Afro-hip hop music/ songs that address this is Tony Tetuila’s “E Go Better” Falz Moral Instruction, this is Nigeria and Mr. Yakubu. Today, Afro Hip hop is very vibrant and it stands at the forefront  and has a strong influence, 

In addtiton  to that,  different prominent Afro hip-hop  has had an impact on the global music scenes which is evident in its influence on some other music genres globally, whereby Afro-hip hop element have been incorporated into mainstream and popular music , examples Eg. Burna boy performing with Edsheeran in the Wembly,. Also the fusion of of African and hip hop elements has contributed to the genres appeal and popularity beyond African border.

Additionally, Afro-hip hop has had some impact and influence on society and culture. It has contributed to economic growth in their different countries through the payment of tax, provision of jobs, etc as seen in the different concerts, festivals, and music streams e.g., Show Dem Camp Palm wine festival that holds yearly. Afro-hip is also a way for identity expression and cultural representation. It has impacted the music industry and aided industry development in its way, and has had an influence on global hip-hop and music trends. It has also aided the advancement of African culture and also the importance of maintaining African roots and identities across the globe.

To sum it all up music is a human product, and Afro-hip hop has been growing globally since the 1980s/ 1990s and has become recognised globally in the 21st century, It is a music genre known for its fusion of elements of hip hop and African music style, rhythm, and cultural influence and is now distributed and consumed worldwide. The Afro-hip hop concept thrives on Africanity ideology and culture.  Across the different parts of Africa, Afro-hip hop styles might differ because of the nature and culture of different African countries, but it still has the same elements and characteristics that make it Afro-hip hop. It has had some influence on society and culture, and one of the most profound impacts of Afro-hip hop is how it addresses social and political issues in the country.  It is also significant among the youth and people across Africa and the world as it is the way people use music to relate and express their sound, culture, and challenges in the different African countries, which is now received globally. There have been collaborations between international hip hop artist and Afro-hip hop artist example includes Stormzy and Burnaboy, and HPP featuring NAS, etc. which has further led to the widespread popularity of Afro-hip hop and Afro beats.  Afro-hip hop is unique and a hybrid that will be around for a long time, spreading beyond borders, especially with the aid of the agents of globalisation.

Credit: “this article was first written for ‘Insight Africa in 2023,’

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