MV Bill Brazilian Rap Activist

Only hip-hop can save us… How do I say so? Well, it’s not apt for me to say. Actually this line is most suitable for the man who has used his craft to bring a world of difference. Not only that he has gained fame in the Brazilian hip hop industry but more importantly, respect and admiration of people across continents. Who is he? Let’s just call him MV Bill.

Although I am not a huge fan of hip hop, MV Bill (Alexandre Barreto), a rap artist from one of the most violent regions of the city of Rio de Janeiro (favela of Cidade de Deus), (continue reading...)

I don’t believe that people know all about how to stake your claim on a singular genre. Especially if we’re talking about the kind of genre that’ll involve music – you just need to look around town and see just how many bands there are in the rock scene, and you’ll know that you have to be truly exceptional to become something like the Beatles. It’s the same thing in the world of rap and hip hop – to become something like Notorious BIG or P. Diddy, you need to stand up for something.

For MV Bill, rap has become a way for him to become something else. In a way, it’s the reverse for him – he used the genre to stake his claim on an even bigger scene – the visible activist scene of Brazil, specifically Rio de Janeiro. His rap is exceptional in terms of content, in that he uses his words, his lyrics to speak out against the injustices suffered by the children of Brazil. (continue reading...)

I don’t listen to hip hop. Seriously, there’s something about the genre that I rather dislike. I go out on the streets, hear all these kids belting out these lyrics that aren’t just obscene, they’re atrocious, and I know I’m better off going back inside and stepping into a cold shower. That’s how pissed off I get whenever rap music gets in my face.

It isn’t the form that bothers me. It’s the content. You can’t work with something that speaks of sex in the park, shooting folks that stepped on their “turf,” that kind of stuff. American rap, Brazilian hip hop, Mexican rap – they’re all the same.

I wouldn’t say that I haven’t heard of hip hop that doesn’t sit well with me, though. There are people who make decent rap songs that sit well with me. MVBill, for one, is a popular rapper who’s in the Brazilian music scene for a cause. That’s something else right here: whenever you see a rapper who’s in the business to make a difference, that’s something you have to admire. It isn’t just making a name for yourself in your listeners, or raking in the cash. This guy actually stands for something.

Not that it’s bad to work in order to earn your bread and butter – that’s part and parcel of having a job anyway. But for MV Bill, rap is more than just a way of making money. It’s a means to an end in more ways than one, and in the same way musicians like Bob Marley used their music to promote a belief system that emphasized on something that’s deeper, MV Bill uses his position as a fixture in the world of Brazilian hip hop to evangelize. (continue reading...)