Spaza, street slang and kasi at the Baxter

It will feature a jam-packed programme led by local legends of this genre with an exciting crew of emcees and singers. It pays tribute to music and artists from ekasi about life in the township.

Archie Sopazi (aka Dat), who spearheads the line-up and doubles up as the director of Hip Hop Kaslam, is widely regarded as the founder of this style of rapping. Other leading emcees in the show are Driemanskap, D.S.O (Delft South Origins) and Maxhoseni with Skom Productions' Zozo Mohoto and performance poet Khanyisile Mbongwa as hosts and DJ Volcano on the decks.

Rap in “ringas”

Sopazi is one of the first local artists to discard the American hip hop culture and rap style and create one in his own language. He chose to rap in “ringas” which is a township street slang also known as tsotsi-taal. This evolved into what has become known as spaza today - a combination of various indigenous languages.

What started out as a rebellion against the status quo and the direction that music was taking, ended up becoming a movement which even Dat (Sopazi) did not foresee. The ringas rhyme inspired a whole generation of existing rappers and made a significant change in the local hip hop scene. Artists like Driemanskap, D.S.O and Maxhoseni are only a few of the huge number of rappers who have hit the scene in South Africa over the last 15 years.

American wannabe

He explained: “In the 1990s the perception was that kwaito was the only style of music that qualified as ‘home made' in this country and any artist who rapped was considered an American wannabe. What made kwaito popular as South African music was that it was sung in indigenous languages. I don't believe that its success necessarily had anything to do with authenticity or creativity. So I thought that if it is the language that makes South African music Mzantsi, then I'll rap in an African language.”

Hurricane-like performances

One of the pioneers of the spaza movement is the dynamic foursome Driemanskap, featuring El Nino, Ma-B, Redondo and Dla. Since 2001 the group has wowed audiences in the Mother City with their high-energy, hurricane-like performances.

Driemanskap have performed alongside Cape Town's biggest underground artists, which includes Ben Sharpa, Archetypes and Writers Block. They have also shared the stage with some of the country's most prominent performers, such as Simphiwe Dana, Robbie Jansen, Pitch Black Afro, Pro Kid, Ntando, Ready D and Stompie Mavi. In 2005 they participated in the Baobab Festival where they opened for the legendary New York Hip-Hop crew Dead Prez.

In 2006 Driemanskap participated at the Tri-Continental Festival, warming up the stage for one of New York's most talented freestylers, Wordsworth, along with the UK's Jonzi D. They also performed at the National Arts Festival, Grahamstown, Fire on the Mountain, Cape Town Festival and Goemarati. In 2008 they released their second album “Igqabukile Inyongo”.

Focus on the community

The five-piece crew of rappers, D.S.O, comprising Manity, Bongs, EmSthie, LosKop and Malala, have dominated the hip hop scene in their area since 2005 with a strong focus on the community, and they have performed at platforms like the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown and Splash Jam in Johannesburg

Described as the master of punch-lines, Cofimvaba-born emcee and beatmaker, Maxhoseni, moved to Khayelitsha from the Eastern Cape in 2001. After learning about hip hop culture from bands in Cape Town he made his debut as battle script writer in 2003 and later started rapping and performing. He has appeared at Cape Town Festival, the Peace Jam Conference, South African Music Week and the Sprite Hip Hop Tour. The 21-year-old has shared the stage with heavyweights such as Slikour, Godessa, Jitsvinger, Zulu Boy and Zubz.

Undermined as a genre

“I don't know where spaza is going because in my opinion it is still undermined as a genre. I can't wait to see this style being showcased at jazz festivals, played more regularly on local radio stations and featured at big events. After all, it is home grown,” said director Sopazi.

Ticket prices for Hip Hop Kaslam are just R20 and booking is through Computicket on +27 (0)83 915 8000, online at www.computicket.co.za or at any Shoprite Checkers. For further enquiries call Phila Nkuzo on +27 (0)21 680 3963 (during office hours), cell +27 (0)83 239 7850 or email .