Chronicle Editor
Mbulelo Mpofu, Showbiz Reporter
WHAT is the barometer for knowing who the greatest rapper in the hip-hop genre is? Many lovers of wordplay believe cyphers are what separate men from boys.
A hip-hop cypher is an improvised freestyle cyclical rapping session. These are verbal wars for lyrical supremacy between emcees and are synonymous with underground rappers who have street credibility.
In Zimbabwe, hip-hop cyphers have gained momentum too with Naboth Rizla’s Rap Battles celebrating a decade of hosting these in Bulawayo and next Saturday the Bulawayo Public Library will see him host “The Grudge Battle’ with the matchup between Briza from Bulawayo and Axe Poz from Masvingo being the highlight of the show. There will also be the Queen versus King Battle (battle of the sexes) will be between Llady Eef will and CJ Flex.
Curator Naboth Rizla (born Naboth Rimayi), the man behind DGV (DaGrapeVine) said the decade-long journey was worth it.
“DGV Rap Battles were started in August 2013 as a way to grow the rap battle culture. After a successful hosting of Da Flow Sessions back in the day, (this was a hip-hop open mic event at Cape to Cairo every Saturday) we then noticed that there were always rap battles that would break out during the show. So, we decided to invest in cameras and explore this fresh avenue and creative expression that hip-hop has been known for and that’s how DGV Rap Battles came about.
“Ten years later, we are still at it and over the years we have included Producers Beat Battles, Poets, Comedy and so much more. It’s more than just a rap battle event, it’s a celebration of hip-hop culture through rap battles. I am very excited to be celebrating a decade of DGV Rap Battles this year. It’s inspiring to look back at what we have done in the past and sit down and plan for the future. We have been hosting these battles at least once every two months.
“When we started I had help from Tswa Mothobe from Initiative Arts and Trey Ncube the filmmaker to organise the event plus film and edit the videos. My favourite battle has to be between Asaph then known as Kwanfire Asaph as he was a Gospel rapper then VS Spliffah Ray,” he said.
Naboth Rizla, a rapper in his own right, called for kings of rhymes, bars and metaphors to join the bandwagon for the Rap Battle set for Saturday.
“In order to be part of the DGV Rap Battles, one needs to be unique. One cannot mimic a style or a persona we already have. We want fresh characters that bring in artistry on stage that will have us playing and replaying their videos over and over again,” said Naboth Rizla.
The theme for DGV Rap Battles this year is “Bars beyond Borders”. The idea is to introduce the concept to other countries. DGV has already left a footprint in Botswana and Lesotho. Award-winning rap artiste Luminous has been to Botswana and Jilly Tha Black was in Lesotho.
Naboth Rizla believes that these battles have acted as launch pads for a lot of hip-hop artistes.
“A lot of artistes from DGV Rap Battles have gone to make names for themselves and these include Asaph. He actually won a tournament and money.
“Mandla The Comedian was also with us showing how spoken word reaches out not only to rap music but comedy. Yung Tyran is doing very well in South Africa with his rap career. Siriboy also went on to join Scrambles for Money in South Africa. Luminous is still in the league and doing well for himself winning awards so it’s evident DGV Rap Battles is a great platform to showcase and hone your skills,” he said.
Naboth Rizla is an award-winning freelance writer, curating a hip-hop centred television show on Ztv, Hip-hop 263. The co-manager of Luminous recently became the first creative to receive the “I AM Hip-hop Honorary Award” at the Zim Hip-hop Awards. — @MbuleloMpofu
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