As Hip Hop Culture embarks on its 50th Anniversary with worldwide celebrations, the National Museum of Ghana, located in the capital of Accra, is set to open its doors for Culture Curators: Hip Hop 50 exhibition to honor this golden anniversary, while recognizing and paying homage to Ghana’s unique influence and contribution thru Hip Life, Azonto and Hip Hop created by Ghanaians at home and abroad who are amongst the pioneers who set the foundation for the African sound takeover that the world is witnessing today, thru Afrobeats, Ghana Drill and other unique African sounds penetrating globally.
In the 90’s and early 2000’s, while Hip Hop was moving from its American underground youth culture movement in self-expression to growing wings worldwide as a global culture, it was catching fire in Ghana with Ghanaian youth living abroad, like Hip Life Grandpapa Reggie Rockstone and Panji Anoff, marking their own years of return to create and introduce a new genre of music called Hip-Life that blended Hip Hop and Ghanaian High Life music with the introduction of rapping in local languages, along with a dance called Azonto that later became its own off-shoot genre that set the foundation for viral dance videos from Africa. As America had its Native Tongues movement, Ghana had its Talking Drums era with the introduction of Ghana’s first Hip Hop group pushing its African roots through Rhythmic African Poetry (RAP), whose foundation had also been laid in Ghana with one of the pioneers of High Life Gyedu Blay Ambolley, said to have recorded Ghana’s first Rhythmic African Poetry (RAP) with his forever classic “Sinigua-do” song in 1973.
On Sunday, 27th August, Culture Curators in collaboration with a collective of artists and industry stakeholders in Ghana will present a unique African experience in honor of Hip Hop’s 50th anniversary and Ghana’s Hip Life /Azonto history with a full day of events at the National Museum of Ghana (Accra) including: artist and industry talks, a cypher, live graffiti art, film screenings and an exhibition curated from the archives of Ghanaians at home and abroad creating, manifesting and telling their own love and hip hop stories. From Accra to New York and London, Ghanaians have been contributing to the global culture that is Hip Hop in all of its elements.
The exhibition will include memorabilia such as: Hip Hop producer Eric “Coptic” Matlock’s platinum plaque for Notorious B.I.G, DJ Kofi’s 1995 Technics UK Mixing Championship jacket, one of the first Hip Life vinyl ever printed and classic newspaper clippings from the 90’s – 2000’s of Hip Hop living legends like Public Enemy, Fat Joe, Jay Z and Busta Rhymes on their first trips to Ghana for performances, along with commissioned art works from Accra Art Week.
“I am beyond amazed and excited about how this exhibition and event is manifesting itself solely from the commitment of creatives who love and grew up on Hip Hop coming together to celebrate ourselves and our icons and living legends”, said Culture Curator, Aretha Amma Sarfo-Kantanka. “To me that’s so Hip-Hop. Growing up in New York this is what I saw and loved about Hip Hop in its ability to unite artists to heed the call to come together, be creative in all of our different talents and just have fun in creating memorable and magical moments in time, for the culture”
Staying true to Ghana’s first president Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah’s words, “I am not African because I was born in Africa, but because Africa was born in me”, Culture Curators: Hip Hop 50 continues the Pan-African connections between Ghana and the Diaspora in archival exhibition honoring Queens, NY native, Producer/Music Executive DJ. Rab Bakari, who was one of the pioneers in coining Ghana’s Hip Life genre of music while leaving his impact on Hip Hop’s expansion in Africa; along with Bronx, NY native, Poet/Actor Craig muMs Grant, whose first and only trip to Africa before his passing was to Ghana in 2008, shooting the documentary Black Star Rising, covering the sports and creative arts scene in Ghana’s 50th year of Independence.
Culture Curators: Hip Hop 50 exhibition will run through December 2023 at the National Museum of Ghana (Accra) with monthly activations along with changes and additions to the exhibition, offering museum patrons new and unique experiences every month with a focus on the different elements of Hip Hop Culture.
About National Museum of Ghana
The National Museum of Ghana is in the Ghanaian capital, Accra. It is the largest and oldest of the six museums under the administration of the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board (GMMB).
The museum building was opened on 5th March 1957, the eve of Ghana’s independence as part of the independence celebrations. The museum has three primary collection areas: archeology,
ethnography and art. After closing in 2015 for major renovations it reopened its doors in 2022 in a new renaissance to showcase Ghana: Past, Present and Future.
About Culture Curators
Culture Curators is a collaborative space and concept for curators of culture conceived by
Global Fusion Productions Inc. / GF Productions
Contact: [email protected]
+233 26 372 3678 (Whatsapp Texts Only)
