Everyone knows Hip-Hop. Everyone should know Cape Verde! Discover this archipelago off the West Coast of Africa through KRIOLO!, an artistic expedition with protagonists iLLspokinn (USA), Zajazza (France) and Paul Bourdrel (France)

A rapper, a producer, a director, 3 countries. The result : a Hip-Hop album recorded in Cape Verde featuring local artists accompanied by a documentary telling the story of Corey Lima aka iLLspokinn, a gifted emcee from an American middle-class family connecting with his origins.

The disc and the documentary will focus on culture, slavery, exile, colonization, but also the quest for meaning and identity. How do you illuminate the hidden parts of a great History in the light of personal history?

By supporting us, you become the first co-producers of KRIOLO ! and we will build together a unique adventure. So, what are you waiting for to join us on the road?

The Atlantic Music Expo, one of the biggest musical events in Cape Verde, invited iLLspokinn to perform in Praia in 2016. This was his first trip to Africa and to his mother’s motherland. In 2018, iLLspokinn & Zajazza were invited to rock a collaborative performance with other elite artists from around the globe, including Cape Verde's rap mogul Batchart. iLLspokinn was also invited to hold workshops for fellow artists and high school students on independent branding and marketing.

We gathered in a 4-day working residency with the artists that led to a grand finale performance on the biggest stage of AME. The performance, in the main square of Praia, was in front of an audience of 800+ people.

We documented the 2018 trip on out of our own wallet. We had a vision of creating something fresh and new and it's now coming to life.

We invited Paul Bourdrel, photographer and director from Lyon, along to document our day to day. Paul is a long time collaborator and we are big fans of his work. Check this :

For Paul, the interest came quickly: the archipelago, its musical history and influences on Afro-American music, the obvious link to colonization and slavery and the resulting repercussions: this has much more to do with culture than a classic promo video. Especially when having as main pillar of the project a MC renewing with its origins ...

KRIOLO! tells the story of iLLspokinn and his journey with identity through travels and music. Born from an African-American father and a second generation Creole mother, the story of his origins weren’t truly unveiled until his first visit to the Cape Verde archipelago in 2016.

A personal awareness as a starting point for a deeper look into the collective history.

Over the days, meetings in workshops, interviews in recordings, we realize very quickly that we are holding an incredibly fertile ground creative. Sub-themes start to emerge, but also the idea of finding a different treatment, because we are beginning to understand that we are dealing with something that would be "bigger than Hip-Hop".

Something that would put the roles of everyone and human migration into perspective.

The hybrid project begin to write itself as the days went on. Mixing music with a documentary became the clear vision to share the journey.

KRIOLO! was born with the desire to return to Cape Verde and help tell this story through two outlets: an album and a documentary film.

The project will run from the end of 2018 until the beginning of 2020. During this period they will revisit the Cape Verde islands and NYC for more project interviews, collaborations, and documentary footage.

- In New York to gather stories from ILLspokinn’s circle and film work sequences but also capture the essence of his daily environment.

- In Cape Verde, for two studio recording sessions with local musicians (instrumentalists, singers, singers, rappers ...)

We want to build strong links in Cape Verde while continuing our work of prospecting partners to ensure financial sustainability.

Hip-hop has this fabulous ability to absorb its environment to better regurgitate in a musical collage unique in its kind, through sampling (sampling other music to compose a new work in its own right). Backed by this culture, our association is not called "Musical Puzzle" for nothing: at a time of great questioning of identity and withdrawal, we defend the idea that we are all part of a single great mosaic.

KRIOLO! will be an extension of this statement: all music is "Creole", ie mixed.

For example, Portuguese and Cape Verdean Creole languages, Cape Verdean music feeds on European and African influences.

This is where the work of Zajazza, the record producer, comes in. A well travelled beatsmith and DJ with a love for Hip Hop and World music, Zajazza is studying the culture and connecting with Cape Verdean musicians to make magic. It is the same for the lyrics of ILLspokinn, and his rhythmic and vocal work that will be part of this continuity.

Between musical collages and tribute to the Cape Verdian heritage, the album KRIOLO! will defend music that builds on a past legacy yet remaining futuristic.

Which Outlets?

Our film will be broadcast on the net first through a unique site that will have exclusive content (full interviews, alternative montages, clips, goodies) and will be used at festivals and meetings organized around the world. La France. It will be available in English, Portuguese, and of course Cape Verdean for international distributiondiaspora all around the globe!

If our approach is widely shared, we will maximize our chances of finding a TV broadcaster!

ZAJAZZA

www.zajazza.com

iLLspokinn

www.illspokinn.com

PAUL BOURDREL

http://paulbourdrel.com

KRIOLO! From New York to Cape Verde / A Hip-Hop album & documentary