Back to the City Street Festival in Newtown

7 April 2011 No Comment

The purpose of the Back to the City festival is to celebrate hip-hop and youth culture through an afternoon/evening of live performances, street art and exhibitions with the aim of bringing kids back to the city.

Featuring artists representing the pinnacle of artistic expression from South Africa this unique youth event will mark the first of its kind and set the wheels in motion for an ongoing discourse and fellowship amongst the artists, organizers, contributors and audiences involved.

Our showcase will be full of activities such as a Mini Educational Summit, live performances, skateboarding, bmxing, live graffiti art, merchandising and exhibitions.

The event will take place outside Ritual Stores corner Bree and Henry Nxumalo Street, Newtown. The festival is currently on its 5^th year attracting 9 000 kids last year we aim on increasing the number to 12 000. The day has become an iconic day in the countries calendar because it has become the biggest out let and platform for the hip hop community currently.

The day will begin with a Mini Educational Summit hosted by the Ritual Stores at the Museum Africa offering an exchange of knowledge from industry gurus working within the Media, Advertising and Music Business arenas.

Our aim is to utilize the culture as a tool to encourage critical thinking, social change and unity, while empowering communities through media, arts, education, preservation and independent initiatives.

Topics such as Publishing, Distribution, Recording, The Music Video, Independent versus Mainstream, Funding, Entrepreneurship and Advertising will be openly discussed in order to facilitate access to resources, to empower the community and invest in those who exemplify the Hip Hop spirit.

With sponsors like Redbull, the Spanish Embassy, Channel O, the City of Johannesburg and the Star Tonight the festival has been able to grow its platform and reach other communities and with these relationships we hope we can only reach greater heights.

Skateboarding, Bmx ramps will also be constructed to add another element of street culture to this outdoor initiative; there will also be a gaming zone. Ritual Stores will be hosting fine arts, digital arts and fabric exhibition which will feature a collective of artists from various backgrounds exposing the wealth of talent that exists amongst our communities. These art pieces will be up for sale at the stall space were various brands will display and sell they merchandise.

ARTISTS:

Tuks, Proverb, AKA, Amu, Kwester, Mr Selwyn, Driemanskaap(ct) just to name a few

DANCERS:

Relapse, Freeze Frame, Apocalypse.

DJ’S:

C-live, PS Squared, Ready D, Switch and Vigi, Dj Ricman and Nacheit from Spain.

DATE:

27 APRIL 2011

VENUE:

RITUAL STORES, NEWTOWN, JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA

For more info you can mail: info@backtothecity.co.za

www.backtothecity.co.za