Concert

Ghana Hiplife

With: Kwaw Kese, Bradez, Sway, Appietus, Awesome Tapes from Africa

Compiled by Brian Shimkovitz aka Awesome Tapes from Africa

Hiplife is an ultra-dynamic amalgam of Rap, Hip Hop, Reggae and local musical styles from Ghana. Its creative center is the capital, Accra. Powerful and playful at the same time, this style has become the dominant urban sound in a country where more than 100 different languages and dialects are spoken.

Awesome Tapes From Africa
The musicologist, ethnologist, DJ and curator of the Ghana Hiplife evening, Brian Shimkovitz, keeps a blog “Awesome Tapes From Africa”, with which he archives products of West African tape culture and offers background information on political and economic conditions.

Kwaw Kese
With his massive sound and deep, relaxed vocals, Kwaw Kese regularly cleans up at the Ghana Music Awards. His interpretation of Hiplife gathers together all kinds of styles, from Irish Folk to Norwegian Black Metal.

Bradez
The two brothers from the Ghanaian capital Accra have become one of the latest Hiplife sensations, with their original sounds and clever lyrics. They made the breakthrough with their prophetically titled second album “The Breakthru”, which shook up the Ghanaian charts with no fewer than three number one hits.

Sway
This British Hip-Hop icon of Ghanaian extraction adds some extra spice to the line-up for this evening. Sway’s style is not just appreciated by the critics, it wows young people from Brixton to Kaneshie, a suburb of Accra.

Appietus
The extremely creative but also highly competitive Hiplife scene in Accra is agreed on one thing at least: Appietus is a trend-setting and highly respected producer and beat architect whose productive output is legendary.

The evening is accompanied by DJ ZHAO.