If you weren’t at Back To The City (BTTC) this year, well, all I would like to say to you is – You missed out! If you’re a hip hop fanatic and happen to rap to almost all the hip hop songs ever made (like myself), you shouldn’t have missed this event. Hippies everywhere and ladies rocking as little clothing as they possibly can (even in the cold) was what you could’ve witnessed. At some point I felt like I was at a re-union. Let’s be honest, if you had friends back in the days and you never find the time to hook up – without letting each other know that you’ll be at BTTC, everyone will be there. Which is quite hysterical and dope at the same time.
Anyway, 27th of April finally arrived. Tickets are being sold, the media queue is horrible but bearable. Spotting Thomas Gumede and Silkour waiting for their passes slowly getting aggravated by the long wait. To pass time they start talking about their projects (the irony of talking about what’s in the pipeline while being surrounded by journalists). Nevertheless, everyone is out in numbers and many of us have been waiting with baited breathe for this Hip hop festivity. The line-up was out of this world and really set the stage for an epic night of celebrating hip hop. Over 12 graffiti crews, a 10k challenge among the mc’s, over 15 DJ’S, an impressive list of artists, 3 stages and market area, I noticed that BTTC was an event where anything is possible. Dreams come true and people are there to make things happen for themselves.
Held at the Mary Fitzgerald Square in Newtown, the area became packed as each minute went by. Even if it was chilly, the transitions from the likes of Dj Speedsta giving us the best of old school hip hop to the likes of Riky Rick, nobody paid much attention to the breeze
The undeniably talented Cassper Nyovest took to the stage and I must say I feel bitter sweet about his performance. A keyboard being played in substitution of the bass in certain arrangements of his songs was magical. Waiting for the ultimate song that kinda made him famous – “gusheshe”, everyone was already in the moment about to sing along to the lyrics as the beat was about to drop. Instead, he dropped mic and stormed off the stage. I do not think that was a pleasant thing to do to people that support you through and through and waited for an hour for you to perform. Even though I understand his frustration of being given 15 minutes on stage, a few words letting us know that he loves us wouldn’t hurt (as I sulk).
Moving on to the tribute by Skwatta Kamp to their fellow group member – Flabba. Tweets across the screens that were displayed on stage showed how disappointed the crowd was. One of the tweets that stood out for me read, “The tribute was a rip off”. And I agree. As we were busy sulking over the tribute, a blast from the past hip-hop mix hit us when we least expected it brought to us by DJ Capital.
As my feet started to feel numb, I wasn’t going to give in to the delightful comfort of a chair kilometres away from the good vibes. Eventually the K1 kings of Hip Hop came on to the stage. That’s Reason and Kwesta. One song people were waiting for was definitely “do like I do” in which he features the late Flabba.
A lot of tweets regarded three artists as lyrical geniuses – Reason, Kwesta and Pro Verb. Talking about the tweets that were displayed. Here are my top three funniest tweets that tell us how we are not all there for the same reasons:
- “If anyone spots pulane, please dm me”
- “I didn’t get a chick, I’m leaving”
- “Blackles looks like my father”
Without getting carried away with peoples ulterior motives. BTTC was an experience I wouldn’t mind going through again. It was a representation of how hip hop should be celebrated. Bringing old school, new school, and the up and coming for us to enjoy in one large festivity.
Words @Morwesi_Ndlovu
Photography @PrettiPiktures
Back to the City www.backtothecityfestival.com
