MUMBAI: Award-winning UK hip-hop artist and social entrepreneur Akala is all to introduce his ‘Hip-Hop Shakespeare’ singing project in India. The hip-hop singer will present a live performance on 1 November at Tata Theatre in Mumbai.
The gig will feature Akala and live band performing a medley of songs inspired by scenes/themes from famous Shakespeare plays and sonnets. Comprising of six members, Akala live band includes Angelina aka Jipse (vocals and keys), Lori (analytical poet and rapper), James Billinge (drums), Prashant Mistry (keys/bass), Chirandjiv (percussion and djembe) and Tom Hollings (guitars).
The singer will perform on tracks from his Shakespeare Live repertoire which includes melodies like ‘Othelle Prologue’, ‘Sold our Souls’, ‘Sonnet 18/Freedom Lasso’, ‘Heroes Much Ado/Power Struggles’, ‘Am I King’, ‘Destroy The Beauty’ and ‘Comedy, Tragedy, History’ and more.
Speaking with Radioandmusic.com about the show and the whole idea behind the production, Hip-hop artiste Akala said, “The idea came because I feel that hip-hop and Shakespeare are two art forms that are often grossly misrepresented, in that Shakespeare is mostly viewed through a lens blurred by all the baggage that subsequent academia has attached to his name and hip-hop has stereotypes attached to it that have very little to do with the actual quality of the poetry that people like Rakim or Nas or Saul Williams produce.”
The performance is said to explore the parallels between hip-hop and Shakespeare through rhythmic, poetic, energetic and inventive forms of expression. Supported by British Council in association with Lit Live, the gig is also looking at developing the arts education sector in the country, and engaging with the education and arts space in India. Commenting on the show India film and interactive Head of music Tasneeem Vahanvaty said, “As an artist, Akala marries theatre beautifully with music, and his performance as a part of Lit Live fits perfectly. More importantly, as a creative artist, he is able to cut across into education, and bring in an education perspective into theatre and music. We’re hoping to do more with Akala in terms of arts education in India”
Apart from the educative gig, the hip-hop artiste will be featured at ‘Jack & Jones the Other Stage’ of Bacardi NH7 Weekender on 3 November in Pune. Later on, Akala will also be part of Star world’s musical travelogue ‘Dewarists – Season 2’. The singer will be collaborating with critically acclaimed lyricist, actor and director Piyush Mishra for the episode which will air on 4 November at 8 pm.
Hip-hop artiste ‘Akala’ is also a label owner and social entrepreneur who fuses rap/rock/electro-punk with fierce lyrical storytelling. Inspired by the likes of Saul Williams and Gil Scott Heron, Akala has also developed a reputation for stellar live performances with his drummer Cassell ‘TheBeatmaker’ headlining 5 UK tours and touring with renowned artiste including Jay-Z, Nas and Damian Marley, M.I.A., Christina Aguilera, Siouxsie Sue, Richard Ashcroft. The artiste has appeared at numerous UK / European and US festivals including Glastonbury, Big Chill, Wireless, V, Hove and SXSW. He has also partnered with the British Council promoting British arts across Africa, Vietnam (the first rapper to perform a live concert in Vietnam), New Zealand and Australia. Akala has also featured on numerous TV programmes across MTV, Channel 4, ITV2 and the BBC.