Albanian hip hop
Albanian Hip Hop refers to artists from Albania, Kosovo, the Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro as the Albanian language is spoken in the whole region of Albania and Kosovo and some parts of Macedonia, Greece and Montenegro.[1][2][3] The term Albanian Hip Hop also refers to rappers from other Albanian-inhabited places such as the United States, Switzerland, Germany and United Kingdom. Since 2012, a team of French people tried to help improve Hip-Hop culture in Albania. They created the first Albanian hip hop festival, which took place in Tirane, Elbasan, Shkodër and Korçë.
WNC (White Niggas Clan), another group from Pejë, were one of the first rap groups in Kosovo.
The second biggest rap group formed in Albania is Banda Butuesi. They were formed by 99ci, DMC aka Babloki and other members from Bajram Curri, a town in northern Albania. The group who brought Modern Rap to Albania though, was the legendary 2Die4 who were formed by 4 men from Fier, Albania.
Other old school famous Albanian rappers are Mr Elvis, Akrepi, Rudi, West Side Family and Vagabondi.
Rap found itself in Kosovo during the early 90's, where the most prominent rappers were Getoar Selimi, Unikkatil, Presioni, Ritmi Rruges, Duda, Etno Engjujt, WNC etc.[4]
Often inspired from the war against Serbia, but also helped by their melodious Nordic Albanian accent (Gege), HipHop artists from Kosovo gained a higher reputation and market sales in the Albanian-spoken territory (including Albania). Kosovo's HipHop has evolved very quickly in production and lyrics, to that point where we can say that it influences people and their way of living.
Unikkatil AKA Rebeli is one of the first Albanian rap artists. The rapper started rapping in the early 90s, mainly against the Serbian government who were causing a kind of genocide in the Albanian population at that time.
The album called "E-Gjeli" released in 2003 by a group called NR (urbaNRoots) was the album that made a revolution in the Albanian Rap Culture.
Modern Hip Hop Labels, Artists and Producers
Some notable Albanian Hip Hop Labels, Artists and Producers include:
TBA (The Bloody Alboz). This is the most well known and famous Albanian rap label, with their main artist being Unikkatil. Some of their other artists include: Kobra, DMC, DMK, Presioni, Tee and Klepto.
PINT (Për Inati Njoni Tjetrit) is another well known and famous Albanian rap label with members such as Lyrical Son, McKresha and Nuke along with many other rappers and producers who are a part of this label.
OTR (On Top of the Rest) who were the first Albanian rap label to become famous. Artists include Noizy, the best known rapper in Albania. Noizy was the first Albanian to achieve 1,000,000 views on YouTube. OTR started as a band of young gangsters in London, who moved to Albania afterwards. Other OTR members are: Varrrosi, Lil Koli and Mali-G.
BS (BABA STARS) is one of the most famous Albanian Rap Label, based in Kosovo. BS members are: Ghetto Geasy, Agon Amiga, Skivi, Cozman, Dr. Mic, Onat and Stresi.
Authentic Entertainment is another famous and successful label which includes big names like Capital T and 2po2
Ham Squad is a modern Albanian Rap Label which is the first Albanian Label to bring Trap music to the Albanian Music Industry. Its actual members are: Bloodychuck, SingullaR and Buta.
BAV_Records with acts such as +355, KurOrat Fiks, Da New Chain and G Bani.
T.B.R is Albanian hip hop group formed by 15 year old youngsters. This has never happened before in Albania. Some of their members are: Enio (The Notorious), Wiz Gab and Los.
There are a lot of Albanian Rappers that are independent or on labels that are not completely Hip Hop oriented. Some of them are: Gjiko, Mozzik and Getinjo.
Brief description of the Post 2010's Albanian Hip Hop music industry
Centered in Kosovo
TBA (The Bloody Alboz) is one of the largest labels based in Kosovo. Some of TBA members are UnikKatil, Presioni, Jeton, Cyanide, N.A.G Tee and Buja. Their leader, UnikKatil, is the most famous of all of them put together, although he has been living in New York City, USA since the early 2000s. His albums and songs are quite famous, especially on the Internet through social networks. Although the label has a wide support in the public, especially in Kosovo, their market share is low, with no real marketing and due to lack of albums by other crew members.
The BABASTARS group has a huge advantage in the latter aspect. As of 2015, the group is composed of Ghetto Geasy, Agon Amiga, Skivi, Onat, Dr.Mic and Cozman. Through the years, the group started and was founded by the two members of Tingulli 3nt: Getoar Selimi (Ghetto Geasy) and Agon Amiga, as a "fusion" with Skillz (the HipHop group formed by Ledri Vula and Visar (Skivi)). Quickly the group expanded and was quite successful, also due to the previous success of the groups involved. However, the cooperation didn't always go well, as crew members came and went, like the case of Ledri Vula, who left the label in 2013. In the meantime, Babastars have featured various and famous Pop and HipHop artists in Albanian-speaking territories, like Stresi from Banda Butuesi, Mimoza Ahmeti, Tuna and Flori Mumajesi. Thus, they possess a much bigger market share than the other groups, and as often happens, this was often accompanied by video and lyrical controversy. Nonetheless, BabaStars have a bigger audience over other Kosovo labels in Albania.
Another group is P.I.N.T. - Per Inat t'Njoni Tjetrit - which is known in English as 'For Each Other's Ire'. Composed of Albanian HipHop veterans Lyrical Son, McKresha and BimBimma, the group differs in their approach as they tend to compile albums more often than singles, and they have a high market share and audience as well. Albums like BimBimma's "Rraj't" (2011), Lyrical Son & McKresha's "P.I.N.T" (2013) and McKresha's album "Emceeclopedy" in 2014 have all achieved high sales and popularity among the Albanian audience, although higher in Kosovo. They also often released features and singles with other famous Albanian Pop artists like Flori Mumajesi, Elvana Gjata, Dafina, DJ Blunt, Aurela Gace and Blero, or HipHop groups and artists like KAOS, Noizy, Varrosi and Real 1. They are often considered as the rappers who make every song a hit. McKresha's 2014 album "Emceeclopedy" is known as an album that made a rap revolution in the 2010s of Albanian rap.
GG Army is a label founded by Duda, another Albanian HipHop 'old blood' coming from the 90's. One of the oldest groups, it has passed through a series of changes and ups and downs. Their peak was in the early 2000s, with hit singles which gained reputation in Albanian-speaking audience for their rhythm and unique style: strong, greedy lyrics accompanied by equally strong videos, or funny and comical videos. However, with the imprisonment of their leader Duda, the label laid low until their comeback in 2015. Other rappers include B Genius and Overlord.
KAOS is a musical group centered in Pristina, Kosovo, composed of Lumi B and Vig Poppa.
Centered in Albania
In the Albanian territory, the two largest labels are OTR and Banda Butuesi. The first one, an abbreviation for 'On Top of the Rest', was founded by the likes of Noizy, JR, Varrosi, Lil Koli, etc. The leader is Noizy, quite famous with his single career in both countries, having quite a fair share in the market and a good marketing strategy. Most of the early members have lived in London, UK for a time, or in a few cases, they still live there. The group expanded through the late 2000s, mainly in Albania. In the overall market, including both countries, the only singer who had a wide market share was only Noizy, mostly with singles or sometimes Albanian Pop features like Ciljeta, Enca Haxhia, Eni Koci, etc.
Gold AG is well known in all Albanian-speaking lands. He often uses nationalistic and religious themes in his songs, especially Muslim ones. He connects his religion with politics, corruption, and everyday life in the new independent Kosovo, even going a little 'against the flow' from his colleagues, with famously denying any type of drugs or alcohol. His favourite theme is nationalism as he represents the idea of Greater Albania.
Banda Butuesi was founded by Stresi, another Albanian rapper. He was born in the city of Kukes, in Northern Albania. Although Stresi has featured a variety of well-known Albanian Pop artists, his label aims towards Gangsta' HipHop. The two labels have been the source of problems in Albania and its capital Tirana, for their feud, which has quite sometimes resulted in violence between the corresponding followers and fans.
Ledri Vula, previously a member of the Skillz musical group, is a popular solo artist. He is constantly present in celebrity magazines for his personal relationships.
As of concerts and shows, almost all of the HipHop artists in Albanian-speaking territories prefer live shows and performances in pubs and clubs throughout Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Greece, Switzerland, Sweden, USA, UK, Denmark, Austria and Germany - basically wherever you can find some Albanian population.
The biggest solo concert ever held in Kosovo and Albania was UnikKatil's. It took place on July 15, 2012 at Pristina Stadium. Around 27,000 people were present for his first and only wide-open concert.
References
- ↑ Kosovo - Gail Warrander, Verena Knaus - Google Books. Books.google.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-02-28.
- ↑ * (2005-03-03). "Kosovo's Burning: Punk rock and Albanian rap—in a war zone". Anthem Magazine. Retrieved 2014-02-28.
- ↑ Mark Mardell. "BBC NEWS | The Reporters | Mark Mardell". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-02-28.
- ↑ Wikipedia
