By The spotlight falls on 20 years of Palestinian hip-hop this month. Events and multi-media platform MARSM has cherrypicked ‘Slingshot Hip-Hop’ as its Music Film of the Month. The movie is backed up by a discussion session with two scene veterans from Palestine’s first hip-hop crew, DAM.
A good music documentary is hard to beat. Jacqueline Reem Salloum’s award-winning documentary, ‘Slingshot Hip-Hop’ chronicles the birth of hip-hop in Palestine. It follows the lives and dreams of pioneering artists championing the emerging scene in the early 2000s. Premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2008, the film captures the power of hip-hop to overcome divisions created by occupation and social injustice.
Messages and Demands
Subtitled in English, the film features hip-hop trio DAM, rapper Mahmood Shalabi, Gaza’s PR and Abeer Al Zinati, one of the region’s first female rappers. It reveals how the ambitious rappers set Palestine on the map musically, while taking their messages and demands for equality and justice to a global audience by conquering the stage.
You can stream ‘Slingshot Hip-Hop’ from Tuesday 6th until Monday 19th April right here. In the meantime, check out the official trailer for the film below.
Shaping Arabic Rap
The lesson doesn’t stop there. Tamer Nafar and Mahmood Jrere will discuss the past, present and future of Palestinian hip-hop in a special live discussion. Nafar and Jrere are well placed to give their opinions. They co-founded DAM – an acronym for Da Arab MCs – in 1999. The first Palestinian hip-hop crew, DAM were instrumental in shaping Arabic rap.
A unique fusion of east and west, DAM’s music combines fierce Arabic rap with Arabic rhythms, Middle Eastern sounds and melodies, and deep bassy urban hip-hop. Martin Vennard, from the BBC World Service, described DAM’s music as “the most entertaining, original and socially-engaged music to come out of the Middle East”. Known to speak up on hard-hitting topics and taboos, DAM released their third album Ben Haana Wa Maana in 2019. Listen to the first track from the album below.
Evolution
Sure to be lively, the conversation (in English) with Nafar and Jrere takes place on Thursday 8th April at 9pm (UAE). Tracing the trajectory of hip-hop in Palestine, they’ll chat about the creative tools available for artists, the role of social media, and the evolution of the music scene. Register for the free 90-minute discussion here. Jrere also co-founded the Palestine Music Expo.
