Back in July of 2012, I was in Eritrea visiting family and taking in a country I hadn’t seen in about two decades. Among all the other fun memories, I remember telling some teens there that I lived around Philly, to which they immediately asked if I knew Meek Mill. I already knew logically that Hip-Hop had a global appeal and audience, but that was my first – albeit minor – experience with it up close.
Nas recently teamed up with
The Guardian to come up with some stronger examples. They just put out a six minute doc above, highlighting how Hip-Hop (specifically breakdancing) has had a deep effect on the youth in countries like Uganda, Colombia and Yemen. Turns out using Hip-Hop to distract from troubled surroundings is a universal thing.