THUGLI - "Run This" (Official Video)

UK #HipHopEd Top 60

Last week the UK #HipHopEd Twitter Chat took on the ridiculous task of compiling a Top Ten list of UKHH tracks to use in teaching. After much suggestion, advocation and championing, what we got was NOT a Top Ten! There was such a wide range of contexts, purposes and subject areas that tunes were suggested for that trying to qualify any decision over a place in or out of the Top Ten would have been impossible to reconcile; let alone which order the final ten should appear in! So, what we have got is a UK HipHopEd Top 60 UKHH tracks to use in education, in no particular order. Well, nearly true...actually, the list is ordered by artists depending on how many of their tracks were submitted for the Top Ten. So, if there is a winner, it is held by the first 2 artists on the list. Both artists received 4 submissions for different tracks, from different chatters. And that all means that your winners are...

UK HipHopEd Top 60

Dizzee Rascal - Fix Up, Look Sharp

Dizzee Rascal - Sittin' Here

Dizzee Rascal - I Luv U

Dizzee Rascal – Imagine

Roots Manuva - Juggle Tings Proper

Roots Manuva -Dreamy Days

Roots Manuva - Witness (One Hope)

Roots Manuva - Movements

Akala - Fire In The Booth

Akala - Find No Enemy

Akala – Shakespeare

Skinnyman - Council Estate of Mind

Skinny Man - Day to Day Basis

Skinny Man - No Big Tings

Rodney P - The Future

Skitz feat. Rodney P - Left

London Posse - How's Life In London

London Posse - Money Mad

Ty – Hercules

Ty - Emotions

Jehst – England

Jehst – 1979

Blak Twang - Red Letter

Black Twang – GCSE

Ms Dynamite - Put Him Out

Ms Dynamite - It Takes More

Smiley culture - Cockney Translation

Smiley Culture - Police Officer

Lethal Bizzle - POW

Lethal Bizzle - Oi

Braintax - The Grip

Braintax - Future Years

Katch 22 - Reverse World

Katch 22 - Death of the Flat Black Circle

Task Force - Butterfly Concerto

Chester P - Little Man

Wretch 32 - 24 Hours

Swami Baracus - The Recipe

MCs Logik - Operatin Logikally

Broken Glass - Rapology

Ruthless Rap Assassins - And it Wasn't a Dream

Scorzayzee - Great Britain

Lowkey - Let Me Live My Life

P-Money - Slang Like this

Hijack - Daddy Rich

Krispy 3 - Destroy All The Stereotypes

Kano - Ps & Qs

Rhyme Asylum - Holding On

MC Buzz B - Last Tree

Labrinth - Express Yourself

Rebel MC - Black Meaning Good

So Solid Crew - 21 Seconds

The Streets - A Grand Don't Come For Free

Neneh Cherry - Buffalo Stance

Melanin 9 - The 7 Blues

Cyrus Malachi - Black Maria

Tippa Irie - Complain Neighbour

Durrty Goodz - Born Blessed

Madness - Baggy Trousers

Other artists who were mentioned non-specifically:


Shadia Mansour

Caxton Press

Wee Papa girls

She rockers

Cookie Crew

Monie Love

*Props to Dizzee and Roots Manuva for leading the way with their UK #HipHopEd bangers!!

peaCe

UK #HipHopEdTopTen Twitter Chat

Tonight at 8pm we will be discussing the best UK Hip-hop songs to use in the classroom. These are the suggestions from HipHopEders so far...


Skitz feat. RODNEY P - Left
http://youtu.be/8O2R39GYGAs

London Posse - How's Life In London
http://youtu.be/-ahFJmFcY98

Roots Manuva - Juggle Tings Proper
http://youtu.be/dkHu_x1YkNw

Roots Manuva -Dreamy Days
http://youtu.be/bJmoxDA1cTg

Skinnyman - No Big Tings
http://youtu.be/tb01FSSZ4-4

Task Force - Butterfly Concerto
http://youtu.be/AUZlH7N-24I

Braintax - Future Years
http://youtu.be/87ADE3iVyFQ

Ms Dynamite - Put Him Out
http://youtu.be/E0YzqD9HqUA

Wretch 32 - 24 Hours
http://youtu.be/SdJ7HV8PcvA

MCs Logik - Operatin Logikally

Scorz - GB

Broken Glass - Rapology

(For post-Windrush narrative) Ruthless Rap Assassins - And it Wasn't a Dream

(For extended metaphor) Swami Baracus - The Recipe
http://t.co/cVUqKLmHhp

Akala - Fire In The Booth

Scorzayzee - Great Britain

Katch 22 - reverse world

Katch 22 - death of the flat black circle

Lowkey - Let Me Live My Life

P-Money - Slang Like this

Hijack - Daddy Rich

Krispy 3 - Destroy All The Stereotypes

Akala - Shakespeare

Black Twang - GCSE

Lethal Bizzle - POW

Lethal Bizzle - Oi

Dizzee Rascal - Sittin' Here

Dizzee Rascal - I Luv U

Kano - Ps & Qs

Rhyme Asylum - Holding On

MC Buzz B - Last Tree

UK #HipHopEd Manifesto

Over the last 2 years the UK#HipHopEd crew have been working towards a manifesto of our beliefs. On Monday 4th November we will be inviting responses to this manifesto as part of the relaunch of our UK #HipHopEd Twitter chats. These chats were the groups first official foray into HipHopEd, following on from the ground-breaking work of our US family. The chats will continue weekly throughout Novemebr before the work on our 5th UK #HipHopEd seminar in February 2014. If you are interested in matters of hiphop and education, find us on Twitter using  '#HipHopEd' and have your say on the topics raised. peaCe

Even More FREE Hand Made Mash Up - Volume 4 *DOWNLOAD*

Once again back it's the incredible...

Hand Made Mash UP Volume 4.

If you've been following this series of compilations, you'll know the deal. The first 3 volumes of this series contained 10 live recorded, single take mash ups, ranging from Pop to Hiphop to Dubstep to Trap and a few eclectic gems aside.

This time things are not too different, but different they are. Volume 4 presents 9 new mash ups, recorded in iDj live, just as before, but in addition, this volume also contains 315-20 minute mixes recorded live in a single take without headphones - old school via new school!! Just click on the image to go to the Dropbox link.

The same disclaimer applies to those who are easily thrown by anything less that pro Tools perfection when it comes to mixes and mash-ups...these are all mixed, arranged, effected and recorded live - one shot!

Hopefully this gives you something fresh to fill your iPod with as you set off on your summer holidayings!

Next stop Barcelona!!!!!

paCe

Hand Made Mash Up Volume 4 features:

M-Dubs

GTA

New Edition

Marley Marl

Craig G

TWRK

Nas

Madonna

Yellow Claw & Yung Felix

Rudimental

Flight Facilities

K Flay

CNTRL

Tropkillaz

Zapp

Notorious BIG

Tupac

And many more in the mix...

UK #HipHopEd Seminar 4: Keepin it Real"? - Authenticity, Race, Gender and Hip-Hop Education in the UK.

Curious snapshots from the first 4 UK #HipHopEd Seminars.

Each Uk HipHopEd seminar has had a different energy brought to the room due to the subtly profound changes in dynamic that different people bring. Avoiding the obvious Barrington Levy puns, a hallmark of the seminars to date, is that the range and depth of the debated topics have been both broad and deep. Each day existing as an example of academic cyphering that is as authentically hiphop as it is academic. However, despite the breadth and depth, each has distinct characteristics and uniquely defining moments that leave snapshots in the mind to be recalled like cerebral backdrops to future conversations and reflections. Here are my snapshots from the first 4 #UkHipHopEd seminars...

SEMINAR ONE

The first seminars energy came mostly from the newness of it all. The journey from the Twitter timeline to the Institute of Education seminar suite was a short and fast one. The potential in the room was palpable; teachers, youth workers, poets, academics, film makers, photographers occupying every seat. @rapclassroon (Darren Chetty) continued the natural leadership that had driven the original chats and hosted a day of performance, presentation, discussion and debate with a bit of live Skype to manage also! Amongst the eruditus and empowered eloquence (*strikes B-boy pose), the snapshot moment of the day will remain (in my mind at least,) that of the newly-formed group, forged into union, huddled diminutively, waving goodbye under the widescreen-projected god-head of Prof. Chris Emdin, at the end of our Skype chat; bridging LDN and NY's physical and educational divides in a supportive and inspiring way. The connection to the 'parent' movement gave a sense of authenticity and validity to this initial meeting of artist/teacher tweeters and the mythic retelling of how the US HipHopEd movement successfully and sustainably opened 2 Hiphop schools in the motherland of rap was inspiring. The spirit of reverence was apt. Onward towards a manifesto...

Additional Reading:

http://rapclassroom.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/uk-hiphoped.html

SEMINAR TWO
Seminar 2 should have been simple. Repeat a proven formula with a few different people and new themes. Enter Shay D. Female Iranian rapper with the Lyrically Challenged hiphop collective and hiphop workshop leader. Shay D brought a passion to the proceedings. She participated confidently and challenged some of the ideas about race and representation in the room vigorously. The snapshot moment of Shay D and Chris Mentalist going toe to toe (chair to chair), battling over a disputed comment; with the rest of the room either scrambling to defuse the tension or sitting back waiting for the storm to die down will remain the defining and most hiphop moment of the day, and stand as testimony to the belief and passion that exist within the HipHopEd movement; and like true battle MCs it was all love afterwards. This is not a snapshot of the movement’s greatest success, rather one of its passion, honesty and ability to push the boundaries of both the academic discussion format, and the hiphop cypher (perhaps battle is more apt in this instance) and find resolutions that stays true to the spirit of HipHopEd. This is where ideas and beliefs are cogeneratively forged in the fires of disparate notions of discourse and decorum; but where reality and theory collide with experience and instinct. This is bumpy ground, but well worth the ride.

Additional reading:

http://rapclassroom.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/10-thoughts-after-2nd-uk-hiphoped.html

SEMINAR THREE

If Shay D brought a more contemporary hiphop voice to the room, Seminar 3 let Uk hiphop royalty in the building. TY has been delivering conscious hiphop to the UK hiphop scene since before people said 'conscious hiphop' and TY is used to working a crowd. Bridging the hiphop/ed gap was Poisonous Poet turned teacher Reveal and rapper/music teacher Awate. Further to the 'ed' side, Dr Patrick Turner from London Met led the day with a presentation that sparked the debate about racial representation and identity that dominated this seminar. Himself an ex-member of a hiphop crew, Patrick was joined by his teenage son. From my position, the young man had TY challenging and leading the discussion to one side and his father feeding the debate on the other. This image reminiscent of the angels and devils (but with a less polar opposition) of cartoon folklore brought 3 fundamental strands of the movement into one space - hiphop; the educator and the young learner. A perfect example of praxis? This was the theme of Seminar 3; that awkward and much misunderstood merging of theory and practice; education's version of circular breathing. The space where all that is said and thought is done. Where, where, will, won’t, what, why and how collide to form experiences that can be as beautifully chaotic and deceptively complex in their fluid expressions as sub-aquatic lava flows. HipHopEd is built for praxis.

Additional Reading:

http://unseenflirtspoetry.wordpress.com/2013/03/10/top-10-hiphoped-lightbulb-moments/

http://rapclassroom.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/3-criticisms-of-uk-hiphoped.html

http://artofcurious.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/the-hip-hop-stance.html

SEMINAR FOUR
Whether it was the choice of Gender as one of the 3 themes of Seminar 4 that encouraged or inspired  more women to attend (and maybe men to not?) is less important than the fact that there were more women at this seminar. The UkHipHopEd movement has never been exclusively male.  Kate Ryan's pivotal role in the original cohort of tweeters has provides the only ever-present female voice, but Shay D in seminar 2 and Anne from www.rapgenius.com in seminar 3 (amongst others) have ensured that there has been a strong and committed, plural female voice throughout. I don't know whether the participation of a larger number of women changed the debate or not, but it certainly felt more 'authentic' as a representation of educators (and humans) to have a larger female presence; if not yet, a more 'authentic' representation of hiphop.
Ironically, my snapshot of the day is not provided by one of the female participants, but instead it is the image of both genders watching a white neo-nazi rapper from Germany perpetuating every rap video cliché you saw perfectly parodied in The Roots, 'What They Do' video; and then debating it's authenticity as a representation of whiteness. A 25-strong debate about the rantings of a young white supremacist, living out his black rapper fantasy, isn't what I expected to be engaging with in a primary school hall on a warm and sunny Saturday, 3 days before the end of the academic year, but it is more useful than trolling comment boxes on YouTube for challenging such surreal and dangerous co-options of Hiphop culture.

Additional Reading:

http://createinnovateexplore.wordpress.com/2013/07/21/hiphoped-4-a-rewind-and-rethink/

SO WHAT CHA SAYIN?!

The UkHipHopEd movement continues to build links between the sky high (and often pie in the sky) research of Hiphop academics; Hiphop educators working in schools (colleges, youth centres, theatres etc) and our young people, growing up to a Hiphop soundtrack in an ever- shifting capitalist landscape, where reality and authenticity are hard to pin down, but where creativity and knowledge are 'hard currency' for 'growth'. You can only win the game you're playing and all games have rules. All rules can be broken. Break rules.

This movement is ready for your surprises.

Can't wait, won’t wait for Seminar 5.

peaCe

Links:

Reveal Blog

Ty Music

Shay D Music

Rapclassroom Blog

Kate Ryan's Blog

Poetcurious Blog

Uk HipHopEd on Radio 1Xtra

Spoken word poetry at the V&A this Friday 28/6/13

FRIDAY LATE AT THE V&A

Come and see a one-off showcase of spoken word poetry from Angry Sam, Poetcurious, Keith Jarrett and Benny Diction, performing poems about Hackney, London and life from 6:45-7:15.

Free Admission

All Good (Mash Up) Things Come In 3s...

HAND MADE MASH UP VOLUME 3

The third and final instalment in the HAND MADE MASH UP series is available to download for FREE by clicking on the picture. This project has been a lot of fun and I hope you have enjoyed the mash ups!

Featuring:

Avicii

Skip Rage

Roots Manuva

The Cure

Big Boi

The Isley Brothers

Dizzee Rascal

James Blake

The Cool Kids

Insity

Camp Lo

Congo Natty

Beyonce

Disclosure

Ed Case

...and more! peaCe

Hand Made Mash Up Vol.2 - Free Download

Following on from my previous post, here's another bunch of mash-ups recorded live on my iPad. Again the mix is eclectic with pop, hiphop, trap, 80's, indie and all sorts sitting reasonably comfortably together. My personal highlights are Love Umbrella Has Gone; Not Giving I(co)n and So Fresh, So Clean, So Ratchetty. Let me know if you agree after clicking on the cover picture above to download this collection for free. More soon! 

Featuring:

Rihanna

Tyler the Creator

Jay-Z

Taylor Swift

Azealia banks

Les Rhythm Digital

Rudimental

Netsky

Outkast

Katy B

Benga

The Cure

Soft Cell

Nirvana

Diplo

SWV

peaCe

Hand Made Mash Up - Free Download

Hand Made Mash Up is a collection of mash-ups I have recorded using iDJ on my iPad. I am not being paid to promote this app or tablet device but I have had a lot of fun getting back into mixing without having to blow the dust (sad to admit) off the 1210s and spark up the Serato. Although there are many limitations to this type of DJing, such as the lack of immediacy for adjustments and no physical cross-fader (making scratching a novelty aspect), there are many advantages. The ability to mix anywhere and the range of functionality (looping, FX pad, EQ, cue points), as well as a well designed recording facility make iDJ a perfect tool for all levels of DJ.

*End of free marketing campaign* 

In making this collection I used iDJ in what should be called 'play mode', meaning I didn't use the optional splitter to allow for headphone monitoring. Instead, I planned out the arrangements in advance of recording and added cue points into the tracks before syncing the tempos (another hit and miss feature of iDJ). Once I'd worked out an arrangement and prepared the tracks, I recorded each mash-up live, without headphones. This is basically a long-winded excuse for the mistakes and slips that happen throughout this compilation. However, (and to further the excusing) I think the live aspect gives an organic, human quality to these unquantized (and unsterilised) recordings. Click on the cover picture at the top to download the compilation for free, and see what you think...

Artists include:

The Roots

Caspa

The Art Of Noise

Nikki Minaj

2 Chains

Roska

Daft Punk

A$AP Rocky

Will.I.Am

Britney Spears

Dizzee Rascal

The Prodigy

SL2

Dawn Penn

D Double E

Rudimental

Gotye

...peaCe

Biting Elbows 'Bad Motherfucker' Video

Following on from my Zeds Dead post the other week, here's another...

I came across this video thanks to my friend Anna. The video is for Biting Elbow's 2013 single 'Bad Motherfucker' and as the title suggests it's pretty extreme at points. I don't know anything about the band but it reminds me of music from my skateboarding days and the video is sick! The single is available on iTunes if it floats your boat. Dog lovers beware!

Biting Elbows - 'Bad Motherfucker' (Insane Office Escape 2) from Ilya Naishuller on Vimeo.

peaCe

ME AND MY SCHOOL Project (essay)

Photo: Gavin Evans

They say all good/bad things come in threes. Here is the third of my writings on hip-hop and education. This one is less about hip-hop, although it does get a reference and much of the work I discuss in this essay informs my current practice and feeds into the HipHopEd work I am involved in. I wrote this in 2006 at the end of a year participating in the TAP Programme and it is presented here without appendices and with a few incomplete references.
TAP was a professional development programme for artists and teachers. It took participants on a highly creative and academically rigorous exploration of their own and each others practices and pedagogies. TAP focussed on multi-disciplinary approaches, creative risk-taking, relationships and collaboration. Run by L.I.F.T. and accredited by the I.O.E., TAP was an innovative and rewarding experience that hugely developed my understanding of teaching, learning and creativity.

*Obviously it lost its funding and now only exists in articles on the internet


ME AND MY SCHOOL Project By Chris Beschi (2006)

So, What's The Scenario? Hiphop for healing

The garden at St. Ethelburga, London.

Last year I was asked to perform at an inter-faith community centre in Queen's Park for an event run by the St. Ethelburga's organisation. Stories That Heal, Stories That Harm was a participatory day of talks and workshops for a range of educators, therapists, community practitioners, academics and others working with personal and community narratives. The aim was to explore different approaches and share experiences of working closely with people's personal stories and community narratives in various educational and therapeutic settings, in order to stimulate better practice and generate a greater understanding of the work being done in that field. I was asked to talk about the work I do with hiphop and education and how that contributes to this area of practice. I shared some examples from my practice of how hiphop culture has provided a starting point for developmental work with students in schools as well as my opinions about the culture's validity as a platform for engaging young people in story-telling that can contribute to their self-development. The day went well and there were some interesting talks and presentations. After the event I wrote some notes on my iPhone trying to sum up what I had said about my own work, as well as what I had learnt from the day. I later formatted these notes into a document that I share below. This was one of the first times I had spoken about my use of hiphop culture and music in my work to an audience, The response was very positive and it gave me more confidence to explore hiphop culture and it's contribution to my practice. This continues through the work I do with UkHipHopEd and within my role as a special needs teacher in a mainstream secondary school in North West London, where I use hiphop's content and principles to engage young people with behaviour and communication difficulties.

View and download So, What's The Scenario? By Chris Beschi

The Hip Hop Stance

#HipHopEd

The 3rd UKHipHopEd Seminar went off on March 9th at Gayhurst Primary School in London Fields, Hackney. Although this monolithic Victorian primary school lacked some of the kudos of the previous 2 seminar's I.O.E. residencies, it brought the movement back to the streets that raised it. This fortuitous relocation literally took UKHipHopEd back to the old school. The choice of location was no accident however, as it is the school where long-time UKHipHopEd practitioner, Darren Chetty (@rapclassroom) delivers hip-hop education to the local youts on a daily basis. It is where he organises and leads 'Power To The Pupils'; a highly successful hip-hop orientated project working with students creatively, to explore issues of identity, personal responsibility; social justice and chicken and chips! Darren is the driving force behind the UkHipHopEd movement and his passion and commitment are evident in the work he does at Gayhurst.

Being back in a primary school, led me to think back on my own time as a primary teacher, working in a special needs school in north west London. It was during this time, having completed my teacher training, that I first started to think about hip hop in an educational context. In 2006 I was encouraged to participate in  a teacher/artist professional development and action research project run by L.I.F.T. and called TAPP. In this highly academic environment I was able to explore my identity and beliefs as a practitioner, as well as learning much about pedagogical approaches and theories that bolstered my belief in the validity of hiphop as not only an educational tool, but as a transferable framework for shaping and informing an entire approach to teaching and learning. The Hip Hop Stance is an essay I wrote while facilitating on TAPP in the following year. It explores my personal history with hip-hop and education and begins to define some of the key aspects of my practice at that time; much of which still informs my current practice. 

Inspired by a culture I had stumbled across as a kid in Wembley, I unknowingly started along a journey of self-managed continuous professional development (cpd) that would eventually lead (after 7 years) to a parquet-floored hall (on a Saturday morning) in East London, to discuss the finer points of hip-hop pedagogy with leading hip-hop academic, Dr. Patrick Turner; legendary British rappers TY and Reveal and an assembled crew of teachers, workshop leaders, music producers, DJs, MCs, educators, environmentalists and the very nice lady from rapgenius.com. 

When KRSONE said that, rap is something you do; hip-hop is something you live, even he couldn't have imagined that 20 years later, events like this one would be further pushing the boundaries of hip-hop  and exploring the culture's potential for enriching the lives of a whole new school of hip-hop kids.

The Hip Hop Stance by Chris Beschi (2007)

(Link now works!!)

Out Spoken 26/2/2013

Out Spoken returned to The Star Of Kings for another rammed out night of spoken word poetry, hip-hop and live acoustic performances from:

Curious - http://www.artofcurious.blogspot.co.uk/ - @poetcurious

Kat Francois - http://www.katfrancois.com/ - @KatFrancois

GREEdS - http://www.iamgreeds.com/ - @iamgreeds

H.L.I - https://www.facebook.com/pages/HLI/128854530496063 - @HLI_Starship

Rufio Summers - https://www.facebook.com/OfficialRufioSummers - @RufioSummers

Jacob Banks - https://www.facebook.com/JacobBanksOfficial - @MrJacobBanks

Hosted by Anthony Anaxagorou and The Ruby Kid, Out Spoken brings together a loyal and diverse crowd of creative minds in a sometimes sweaty basement in the heart of Kings Cross. The vibe is lit-hop and the production is slickly managed by the hosts. The line ups are always varied and crammed and breaks are in short supply. However, the spectacle makes the knee ache worthwhile, and the whole thing is thoroughly documented thanks to Luigi Karim Elliot so you can watch back the highlights from the comfort of your sofa at a later date.

Out Spoken has been running for about a year and has quickly eared a reputation as one of London's freshest nights to attend or perform at!! Check facebook for the next Out Spoken event and book your ticket early!

Big thanks to Anthony and Ruby Kid for getting me down. Looking forward to the next one - soon come!!

In the meantime, enjoy these videos from February...

peaCe

Video - Zeds Dead "Demons"

Wicked video for "Demons" by Zeds Dead (via THE FREAK BEAT) and directed by Benjamin Millepied.

Got a Thriller meets Got To Dance vibe about it, but in a good way, and some of the dancing is top notch. The track is as dutty as you'd know to expect if you check out the trap sounds on THE FREAK BEAT.

When Words Collide on iPlayer + download

Last night's BBC Radio 1Xtra documentary, "When Words Collide, was a truly epic look at hiphop, poetry and education. Made by sound recordist and documentarian Nick Taylor, this programme featured the words and work of such luminaries as Chuck D, KRS One, TY, Mystro, Akala, Mos Def and Dels from the hiphop camp, and Kate Tempest, Angry Sam, Mark Grist, Deanna Rodger, Scroobius Pip, Polar Bear, Kat Francois and many more.

Stand out contributions came from Kate and Akala, whose linking of hiphop and poetry through time was enough to have a spoken word performer and hip hop head like me shouting, "Tell DEM!" at my laptop screen!

The show, presented by Nihil, is available to listen back on iPlayer

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Download link

Big props to everyone who contributed and especially to Nick for doing the damn thang!

peaCe

When Words Collide - BBC Radio 1Xtra - 27/1/13. 9pm

Nick Taylor's documentary exploring the relationship between hiphop and spoken word poetry airs this Sunday on BBC Radio 1Xtra at 9pm. The documentary centres around a night organised by poet Angry Sam that took place at East London's, Bedroom Bar last August. A synopsis of the night is included below; it was a great night  and you can find out who won if you listen to the show on Sunday!

Via 1xtra website...

When Words Collide

"Are hip-hop and poetry worlds apart? Or are the lines between these two celebrated art forms starting to blur? Nihal investigates the relationship between hip-hop and poetry, hearing from some of the finest rappers and spoken word artists around - including Chuck D, KRS-One and Scroobius Pip.

Along the way, we head to a bar in East London where five rappers and five poets are battling it out across three rounds to decide which form of expression is the best. The results may surprise you...

In Round 1 of Poets vs Rappers, the two teams do what they do best. We find out the shared history of the two art forms, and learn that the connection between hip-hop and poetry might go further back than we think - from the vibrant rap and poetry nights in New York in the 90s, to the legendary 'godfathers of hip-hop' such as Gil Scott-Heron and The Last Poets, to American recordings of the 1920s. Could the romantic poets and Shakespeare even be connected? Spoken word artist Kate Tempest and hip-hop artist Akala tell us how.

Round 2 sees our competing poets and rappers taken out of their comfort zones, where poets have to do their thing to music, and rappers have to do their thing without a beat. Nihal speaks to some of today's finest spoken word artists who started off as rappers, including Kate Tempest, Polar Bear, The Ruby Kid and Scroobius Pip. We also hear from established rappers who have taken themselves out of their comfort zones and strutted their stuff at spoken word nights. UK rappers TY and Mystro tell us why so many rappers are crossing over in to spoken word today. Finally before we find out how our own rappers and poets got on, we meet poet Mark Grist and MC Mixy, otherwise known as The Dead Poets, who tell us about their unique theatre show about learning each other's art forms.

Then, in our final round of Poets vs Rappers, it's an out and out battle of words as our rappers and poets clash - but this isn't the first time a rapper and a poet have gone head to head. At the beginning of 2012, teacher-turned-poet Mark Grist battled MC Blizzard as part of Don't Flop, the UK's largest rap battle league. We find out how this battle became an online sensation, and hear from other spoken word artists who have tried their hands at battle rap.

In hip-hop, a rap battle is one of the best places to show off your lyrical skill. We head to Shake The Dust, the UK's biggest ever youth, poetry slam, where a new generation of lyricists are embracing poetry. We hear from those competing about their love of words and how they draw influence from both poetry and hip-hop.

But where are these new poets and rappers coming from? Nihal finds out how both poetry and hip-hop are being used in education, from the many brilliant poetry and rap workshops, to the growing 'HipHopEd' movement, which aims to bring hip-hop culture in to the classroom and prove that it can sit comfortably next to classical poetry.

Finally we return to Poets vs Rappers, to hear what happened when our competitors clashed and find out the winner."

peaCe

Human Writes 3 - THIS SATURDAY !!

Come and catch me performing alongside a whole host of poetry and hiphop talent this Saturday at Human Writes 3. Restless Beings are a charity working to raise awareness of human rights issues. They put on a sick party!! One not to be missed!

peaCe

I Used To Be A Rapper (second edition) *OUT NOW*

Thank you to everyone who bought a copy of the first edition. There are no more available and never will be again, so hold onto it and hope I die young and famous!

This second edition of  'I Used to Be A Rapper' contains several different poems, as well as photographs, illustrations and a new full-colour cover showing a detail from my 2008 painting 'It's Yours'.

The book is available online from www.lulu.com. There is a discounted online to compensate for the delivery cost to addresses in the UK. Overseas mail order is also available (contact me for a quote) and I will be selling and signing copies at various gigs throughout 2013.

Thanks for everybody's support. I look forward to my first review!!

peaCe