Hip-Hop Island

Finally, we get a glimpse into Arab-Muslim culture through its youth without the tainted images of war. “I Love Hip Hop In Morocco,” directed by Josh Asen and Jennifer Needleman, documents Moroccan hip hop culture coming to rise in this impoverish country. Asen and Needleman follow Moroccan DJs and rap artists as they put together the country’s first ever hip hop festival, I Love Hip Hop In Morocco.

Unlike American hip hop, Moroccan hip hop artists struggle with censorship inflicted upon them through religious views and their country’s lack of freedom of speech. Hip hop culture grew in America because of its freedom of expression, so how do Moroccans balance the views of Islam that calls popular music a sin and still find solace in their music? They don’t – and that torn feeling fuels their music.

Asen and Needleman introduce us to DJ Key, a self-taught pioneer on the turntables, H-Kayne, a rap group rising to celebrity status, Fatima, a woman trying to make it in a man’s world, and Brown Fingaz, a street rapper who rhymes his true expression in English. Together these artists with the help of the American Embassy in Morocco work to put together a three-city hip hop festival.

In a country that is ruled by king, most Moroccans live in utter poverty, but its own brand of hip hop culture has brought life and spirit to the youth – something their king has never given them. In Moroccan hip hop, you’ll never misogynistic terms or materialist values because these ideas have no existence in Moroccan culture. Through their music, these artists are expressing their love for Islam and their hatred for the country’s poverty. It’s street music everyone in Morocco can relate to.

“I Love Hip Hop In Morocco” gives an incredibly in-depth look at the melding of American hip hop culture and Moroccan youth. The film documents the youth’s views on America, Islam and world politics told through music.

Originally published @ http://www.hhnlive.com/reviews/more/147