The much-hyped Bulawayo Hip Hop Summit that was supposed to be held on Saturday failed to kick off after the organiser MC Tytoh was arrested the previous night for a curfew violation.
The hip hop summit was supposed to be held at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe in Bulawayo on Saturday morning virtually under the theme #FOR THE CULTURE #LevelUp #hiphopisalive. Panelists were supposed to give out their knowledge about the genre and its location in the Zimbabwean music landscape.
It was supposed to be hosted by organiser and founder MC Tytoh, with some of the panelists at the Byo Hip Hop Summit including ZimHip Hop Awards CEO Aldrein ‘Beefy’ Harrison, ZiFM Stereo presenter Lady K, Blogger/arts journalist Plot Mhako, Radio DJ Emity Smooth, Vlogger Brian Willis and Prozac. However, as some hip-hop enthusiast milled around the gallery, it looked like nothing was happening and are around 11pm a statement was released by the organisers, announcing that the summit had been postponed.
“The director, board and all affiliated entities would like to apologise for the late changes. The Bulawayo hip hop summit has been postponed to a date to be announced due to reasons beyond the organisers’ control. We will also wish to categorically state that the arrest of our director was for breach of the curfew and no political connotation as circulated on social media,” said the statement.
Some of the topics that were expected to be discussed include: “Turning your craft into a business model, Broadening Horizons, understanding the landscape of Zim music unique to the rest of the world, use of media outlets in career promotion and growth, Awards, Awards systems and the award value in one’s career, Impact of radio on the growth of Hip hop in the country, Relevance, Alternative outlets for career beginning and growth, Gender in hip hop, Ageism (debate topic) and Exporting talent.”-chronicle.co.zw
