Hali Halisi: Rap as an Alternative Medium in Tanzania
Directed by Martin Meulenberg
Research by Thomas Gesthuizen
Produced by Madunia (Holland) for Sherpenzeel Foundation
Film can be found at AfricanHipHop.com
30 Minutes
Original VHS release: 2000, DVD release: 2004
Tanzanian Hip Hop 101
Hali Halisi tells of the rise of hip hop in 1990s Tanzania among the urban youth of both Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar.
Some of the pioneers of hip hop in Tanzania are featured. Groups like Gangstas With Matatizo ("problems") or GWM, 2Proud, and the Diplomatz were among the first rap groups in Tanzania to gain national attention. The emergence of hip hop in Tanzania, as depicted in the film, saw a heavy use of American rap beats and rhyme styles. Like in the United States during that time, Tanzanian rappers favored the fast rap styles of American artists like Das EFX and Tongue Twister. Tanzanian rap beats, especially on the mainland, also barrowed heavily from American artists. The hip hop artists from Zanzibar that are featured in the film infuse traditional Taarab music, which is a blend of African, Arab, and Indian music styles, with modern day hip hop.
The subject matter the Tanzanian rap artists talked about, however, distinctly unique. HIV/AIDS has hit Tanzania like a hurricane and the age groups most affected by the pandemic are the ones rapping about it. Issues of poverty and corruption also lace Tanzanian rap lyrics. The film highlights two very important figures in political rap in Tanzania, the Diplomatz and 2Proud.
Hali Halisi focuses on the early stages of hip hop's evolution in Tanzania. And, in order to understand how Tanzanian hip hop has developed into what is today called Bongo Flava, one must understand the origins of that movement. The early stages of hip hop in Tanzania saw several English speaking hip hop artists, like Kwanza Unit, whose member KBC is featured in the beginning of the film as a DJ with Clouds FM. The emergence of Bongo Flava came about as radio and club DJs began to respond to a call for strictly Swahili rap. Out of this call emerged hip hop artists and groups from all over Tanzania, primarily urban youth, who stand on the shoulders of 2Proud, Diplomatz, and GWM. These artists not only rap only in Swahili, but they have elevated the beats and style of the 90's rappers and made it even more distinctly Tanzanian.
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Hali Halisi is a great documentary on hip hop in Tanzania. With features of "old school" artists like the Diplomatz alongside newer rap groups like X Plastaz, the film shows the diversity of the rap music scene in Tanzania and the impact it is having on Tanzanian youth and culture.
Msia Kibona Clark, PhD is a native of Tanzania and a book, film, & music reviewer for AllAfrica.com.
