News stories world-wide About music censorship About Freemuse Publications Study room Activities Links Press room

HIP-HOP Tunisia: The rapper Volcanis arrested on drug charges On 25 January 2012, security agents handcuffed and arrested the young rapper Volcanis in his home, allegedly "in a matter of law" and not for the content of his rap songs 30 January 2012 Egypt: Stopped performing “in a kind of limbo” The Egyptian band Sandouk Eldonia stopped playing their political songs after the revolution broke out. "Mubarak is now gone, but the same is our vision," they say 25 January 2012 Morocco: Rapper El Haked is finally set free After spending more than four months in jail, rapper Mouad El Haked is finally a free man. His supporters claim that the assault charges were a setup to muzzle the popular singer 12 January 2012 Colombia: Rappers fighting for peace This is the story about young hip-hoppers spreading a message of hope and peace while living within an armed conflict. 10 January 2012 Senegal: Freedom of speech record under fire Senegal's enviable freedom of expression is under threat. Musicians are being harassed and recieve death threats for expressing their opinions through their music. 22 December 2011 Morocco: Call for immediate release of rapper Several web sites has published a call for immediate release of rapper & pro-democracy activist Mouad « L7a9d » Belghouate. 22 December 2011 Morocco: Surprise hearing of Mouad El Haked After being held in custody for three months, the court in Casablanca opened the case of El Haked on 6 December – without informing his lawyers, or his family. Supporters are organizing solidarity manifestations. 16 December 2011 Morocco: El Haked is unlawfully kept in detention Moroccan rapper El Haked is still kept in detention, waiting for the judge to set a date for his trial. 05 December 2011 New Zealand: Controversial American hip-hop group's concert cancelled The Big Day Out festival removed the American rap group Odd Future from the festival's Auckland lineup due to objections from locals over the group's homophobic lyrics 15 November 2011 Norway: Rap duo threatened with violence The rap duo Prayaz from the Norwegian capital Oslo sing about violence against women, and they are themselves threatened with violence because of that, reported NRK 14 November 2011 Egypt: 'The Voice of the Street' in Cairo could not be silenced Despite censorship and harassment from the Egyptian military regime, the biggest ever line up of Arabic rappers made Friday 4 November 2011 'a night to remember' in Cairo 10 November 2011 Comrade Fatso Video interview with hip-hop artist and rapper Comrade Fatso from Zimbabwe 03 November 2011 El Général Video interview with hip-hop artist and musician El General from Tunisia 03 November 2011 Cuba: Two hip-hop musicians arrested Julito and El Primario, two Cuban hip-hop musicians who started the label Sin Censura Records (Without Censorship Records), were arrested at an anti-government protest 03 October 2011 Morocco: Rapper allegedly set up and arrested 24-year-old rapper Lhaqed (real name: Moad Belghouat) was set up by authorities and then arrested, wrote the journalist and political activist Ghassan Waïl 13 September 2011 Angola: Two rappers among group of protestors arrested Two rappers are among 25 youth activists who were put in detention for having called for democratic and economic reforms in anti-government protests on 3 September 2011 07 September 2011 Kazakhstan: Rapper forced to cancel concert for striking workers Takezhan Oteghaliev, famous rapper in Kazakhstan, was pressured into canceling a concert in support of striking oil workers in western Kazakhstan 05 September 2011 Mozambique: Hip-hop artist Azagaia arrested On 30 July 2011, rapper and musician Azagaia was arrested by the Police of Criminal Investigation. The arrest took place a few hours before a concert 18 August 2011 China: Controversial rap song banned and deleted from websites On 29 May 2011 a rap song dedicated to a Mongolian herder who was brutally killed was banned and removed from all Chinese Internet sites immediately after it was posted 10 August 2011 Senegal: Rapper arrested for criticising the president On 25 July 2011 Senegal’s police arrested the rapper Thiat to question him about his criticising of President Abdoulaye Wade. He was released on 26 July. 02 August 2011 Libya: Anonymity a growing trend among revolutionary singers Since the 17 February revolution began in Benghazi, new songs by unknown, young singers are being uploaded and distributed almost daily via the Internet 15 June 2011 Algeria: Death threats did not silence rapper Solo Montana In 2008, the young Algerian rapper Solo Montana stopped performing, left Algeria and took refuge in Canada after he had received death threats. Now he is back on stage 01 June 2011 Myanmar/Burma: Hip-hop star given amnesty after three years in prison Zayar Thaw, a prominent hip hop artist and member of the outlawed Generation Wave youth activist group, has been released after to and a half years in prison 19 May 2011 USA/Cuba: Impossible Music Session 4 - Not appearing: Escuadrón Patriota The 'Impossible Music Session' no 4 takes place on Friday 10 June 2011 at 8:00 PM in Pfizer Auditorium in Brooklyn, New York, USA 18 May 2011 Hip-hop er soundtrack til ungdomoprør Hip-hop spiller en central rolle i oprørene i Tunesien, Egypten, Algeriet og Libyen, fordi rapsangene skaber en vigtig platform for kommunikation 12 May 2011 Sweden: Hip-hop performances cancelled because of controversial lyrics The hip-hop group Labyrint from Uppsala was stopped from performing in Växjö and Värnamo after a notice from police authorities saying their lyrics glorify drugs 09 May 2011 Middle East: Hip-hop is a soundtrack to the North African revolt Hip-hop plays a central role in the revolts in Tunisia, Egypt, Algeria and Libya. Rap songs create an important platform for communication creating moral support 20 April 2011 Sudan: Young hip-hop artist detained in 12 days and beaten In February, a young Sudanese hip-hop artist, Ahmad, was detained for 12 days that included beatings by police, reported McClatchy Newspapers 20 April 2011 Angola: 17 young rap musicians arrested A group of 17 young rap musicians in Luanda’s city centre who were reading poems and distributing pamphlets were held in custody by the criminal investigation police 13 March 2011 Senegal: Group of rappers arrested The rap group Keur Gui from Kaolack was arrested for organising a “protest road show”. They were released four hours later 11 March 2011 Egypt and the Middle East: The musicians are taking incredible risks “Music has become a potent weapon in the struggles for freedom across the Arab world, but let’s bear in mind that the situation could change for the worse,” writes Mark LeVine 03 March 2011 Egypt and Tunisia: The artistic revolution in the Middle East An article about music censorship and the role of music in the Middle Eastern struggle for democracy was published in The Observer on 27 February 2011 28 February 2011 Generation Wave Audio interview with Generation Wave - a group of Burmese hip-hop artists and activists - about freedom of expression and censorship among musicians in their country 11 February 2011 Tunisia: Released rapper free to perform Hamada Ben-Amor, the artist who gave voice to the anger that spilled into protests that toppled Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, is now courted by music houses 26 January 2011 Tunisia: Rapper allegedly arrested and released Freemuse has sent a letter to the Tunisian Ministry of Culture requesting information about the reported arrest of the Tunisian rapper Hamada Ben-Amor 10 January 2011 Hungary: Radio station receives censorship notice for broadcasting rap song Hungary's newly established media authority has opened an inquiry into a small private radio station, Tilos, for broadcasting the song ‘Warning, it's on’ by US rapper Ice-T 05 January 2011 Darg Team Video interview with the Palestinian hip-hop group Darg Team about freedom of expression and their experiences with music censorship in Gaza 17 November 2010 Palestine: Rapper in Gaza struggles to make voices heard Sponsors, studio owners and party organisers shun Mothafar Assar's Street Band Rappers due to Hamas disapproval, reported The Guardian 22 October 2010 Azagaia Video interview with Azagaia - a Mozambican hip-hop artist, rapper and sociologist - about freedom of expression and self-censorship among musicians in his country 25 August 2010 United Arab Emirates: Censored rap duo ready with new album The first and only album of the Emirati hip-hop duo Desert Heat which came out in 2008, was banned in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, reported AFP 12 August 2010 Guinea-Bissau / USA: Rap artists threatened, appear on live video in New York Via a live video feed Baloberos Crew from Guinea-Bissau will give a virtual performance in New York on 30 June 2010: Impossible Music Session 2 09 June 2010 Iran: Authorities warn about punishments for playing banned music in taxis If taxi drivers play banned music in their taxis, it could lead to cancellation of their taxi permit and confiscation of their cars, warned a government official 31 May 2010 USA: Army rapper discharged after nine months imprisonment The imprisoned soldier, Iraq war veteran and hip-hip artist Marc Hall avoided a scheduled General Court Martial in Iraq for producing an angry anti-‘Stop-loss’ rap song 27 May 2010 Cuba: Censored rap group thrives on YouTube While songs of Los Aldeanos are banned on Cuban radio stations, YouTube has instead become their channel for expressing themselves 19 May 2010 Iran: 80 young people arrested at illegal concert Iranian police detained 80 young men and women for "lustful pleasure-seeking" activities at an illegal concert, Tehran's chief prosecutor was quoted as saying 10 May 2010 Iran: Music from 'below the radar' distributed on free CD A compilation of underground Iranian music, compiled by the music centre Bar-Ax, was published as a free bonus-CD with April-May 2010 issue of the music magazine Songlines 05 May 2010 Myanmar/Burma: Music a vehicle for significant dissent Nine out of 12 songs on Thxa Soe's most recent album were banned by Burma's censorship board. Interview with Thxa Soe in the British newspaper The Guardian 26 April 2010 Myanmar/Burma: Hip hop musician's third year in prison Burma's popular hip-hop artist Zayar Thaw serves his third year under detention in a prison at Kawthaung 07 April 2010 Brazil: Mayor bans rap music During the carnival period anyone caught listening to Brazilian funk or rap in Sao Lourenco will have to turn it off or face arrest and up to six months in prison 14 February 2010 Iran: 12 'satanist' musicians reportedly arrested in Orumiyeh An Iranian newspaper reported that 12 musicians accused of promoting satanism have been arrested in northwest Iran 02 November 2009 USA: City council discusses ban on hip-hop A councilman in Fort Myers, Florida, is seeking to have hip-hop music banned at the Harborside Events Center and other venues in Fort Myers 05 October 2009 Cuba: Rapper momentarily taken into custody Rapper El Aldeano of the popular Cuban rap group Los Aldeanos was detained at 11:00 am on 28 September 2009. He was released later the same day 30 September 2009 Malaysia: Muslims barred from hip-hop concert A concert in Malaysia on 25 September 2009 by the American hip-hop group Black Eyed Peas is only open to non-Muslims, by order from authorities 07 September 2009 Colombia: Young hip-hop singer killed The 20-year-old singer Pacheco of the hip-hop group C4 was shot by gunmen in August 2009 01 September 2009 France: Censorship row over festival's ban on rapper When the rapper Orelsan was taken off the poster of a major French music festival in the last minute, he became centre of a national debate over censorship 20 July 2009 Iraq: First rap concerts in Baghdad “They say that this is something that is banned by religion. But I do what I want to do,” an Iraqi rapper states in a report from one of Baghdad’s first rap concerts 20 July 2009 Myanmar/Burma: Hip-hop artist released from prison On 6 January 2009, the Burmese military junta authorities released popular hip-hop singer Yan Yan Chan, who was arrested in April 2008 12 January 2009 Myanmar/Burma: Hip-hop performer sentenced to six years in prison Hip-hop star Zayar Thaw was sentenced to six years imprisonment by a Rangoon court on 20 November 2008 for his involvement in anti-regime protests 21 November 2008 Iran: Rap singer believed to be arrested The alleged arrest of rapper and singer Tataloo is debated in online Persian rap forums. Rumours says that Tataloo has received a three-year jail sentence 21 November 2008 France: Rap musician acquitted of 'defamation' charges On 23 September 2008, rap musician Hamé of leading French underground rap groups, La Rumeur, was acquitted after a long, legal battle against president Nicolas Sarkozy 25 September 2008 Europe / USA: Pressure on Muslim women to stay out of music When a woman tries to break into the growing scene for Islamic hip-hop in United Kingdom she is often intimidated, or even threatened, reported the New Statesman 18 August 2008 Myanmar/Burma: Introduction to Burma's dangerous hip-hop scene An animated video by Scott Bateman and Edith Mirante. 12 August 2008 France: Rap musician under legal fire for 'defamation' For the last six years one of France's leading underground rap groups, La Rumeur, has been locked in a legal battle against current French president Nicolas Sarkozy. 26 June 2008 South Africa: Rap song banned for incitement to violence The song 'Get Out' by Zimbabwean-born hip-hop artist Zubz was banned on the South African Broadcasting Corporation, SABC. 07 May 2008 Mozambique: City authorities called rapper in for questioning The rap artist Azagaia was summoned before prosecutors to explain the allegedly violent lyrics of a song he has written about the February 2008 riots in Maputo 06 May 2008 Myanmar/Burma: Musicians are being arrested Two members of the controversial - and popular - Burmese hip-hop group Acid have been arrested, along with the lead guitarist in Shwe Thansin group 30 April 2008 Nigeria: Actor jailed for releasing an uncensored music video The actor Adam A. Zango was imprisoned for producing and releasing an uncensored hip-hop video. The incident was a result of restrictions within the kannywood film industry 09 April 2008 Zimbabwe: Rapper advised to change album title Maskiri, a rapper with an explicit and cutting tongue, has been forced to change the title of his upcoming album in order for him to get airplay from the state broadcaster 25 January 2008 Iran: Official campaign against rap music Iranian police have been instructed to close rap studios in an official nationwide campaign to stamp out "obscene" rap music, reported Agence France Presse and BBC News 04 December 2007 Tanzania: Hip-hop musicians threatened by religious group 'Stern and prompt measures' will be taken against any musician who use the name of Jesus Christ in song lyrics, warned a religious spokesperson to the newspaper Majira 01 October 2007 Iran: 'Rap-e-Fars' – Persian rap and the Iranian rap scene Although the Persian rap, 'Rap-e-Fars', is illegal in Iran it is very popular among Iranian teenagers. An article about the underground Iranian rap scene 17 September 2007 USA: Gangsta rap condemned by local police The police in Colorado Springs publicly condemned the music genre gangsta rap in a news release after a killing in July 2007, writes The New York Times 05 September 2007 USA: Music tv channel bleeps the word ‘suicidal’ The American rapper Sean Kingston was afraid to feel suicidally heartbroken. But MTV and some radio stations have chosen less dramatic versions of the summer hit. 28 August 2007 Malaysia: Student faces imprisonment for "seditious" rap Malaysian authorities to act against student over "seditious" national anthem rap on YouTube, reports Southeast Asian Press Alliance 13 August 2007 Iran: About 230 people arrested during a ‘satanistic’ music event As part of an annual summer crackdown on “immoral behavior” about 230 people were arrested during a police raid on an underground rap and rock concert 07 August 2007 Iran: Gradual changes through modern technology The daily pan-Arabic newspaper Ashark al Awsat reports that changes are introduced gradually among the citizens of Iran – despite official bans and censorship. 04 July 2007 Rabah Donquishoot Video interview with Rabah Donquishoot from the Algerian rap group MBS about the situation in 2006 concerning music censorship in Algeria 14 May 2007 Senegal: Rappers' quest for change During the last seven years, there has been a frightening rise in the number of censorship attempts on musicians, outspoken activists and journalists in Senegal 02 March 2007 Lebanon: Hip hop band's censored album debut The Beirut-based rap duo Ashekman has come up against censorship several times in its young career, reports The Daily Star, as they are about to publish their debut album 02 March 2007 South Korea: Censors attempted to silence hip hop group Because they talk about social issues the South Korean Ministry of Culture and Tourism has tried to censor their songs, tells the top-selling Korean hip hop group Epik High 01 March 2007 USA: Grammy awards to blacklist songs containing the n-word New York's City Council has asked The Recording Academy, home of the Grammys, not to nominate musicians for Grammy awards if they use the word 'nigger' in their lyrics 01 March 2007 Sweden: rap band taken to court for 'hate speech' Two members of a rap band from the south of Sweden are taken to court accused of ‘hate speech’ after a concert in Landskrona in 2006 25 January 2007 Fadal Dey Video interview with Fadal Dey about the situation in 2006 concerning music censorship in Côte d'Ivoire and West Africa 16 January 2007 Syria: 'Silenced voices' In Syria, music is a mirror which shows the soul of the listener. A few young musicians perceive a magic language of sound which can touch the heart and make new thoughts spark. And this is exacly where their problems start... 07 November 2006 China: Concert by American rapper Jay-Z censored Chinese censors stopped a concert by American rapper Jay-Z 16 October 2006 Canada: 'Gangsta rap' seeked banned A Toronto activist has filed a complaint against Canadian music store chain HMV selling 'gangsta rap' that glorifies the mistreatment of women 27 September 2006 Senegal: Self-censorship among rappers Backdated tax bills, harassment and death threats drives some rap artists in Senegal to tone down their socially-conscious lyrics, reports Rose Skelton from Dakar 01 September 2006 USA: Rapper banned from New York radio station After being shot in the buttocks outside of the radio station Hot 97 in New York on 26 April 2006, Brooklyn rapper Gravy's music has been banned from the station's airwaves 11 May 2006 Palestine: Angry Islamists break up hip-hop concert with Kalashnikovs Stone-hurling and stick-swinging teenage Hamas supporters chased the rap group P. R., Palestinian Rappers, off the stage 06 October 2005 The music industry from the perspective of women About the music industry from the perspective of women, based on interviews with Myriam, a Senegalese rapper from the group ALIF and the singer Ajah Sy 27 May 2005 Senegal seminar 2005 video English Didier Awadi, Myriam and Ajah on self-censorship, taboos, and the importance of constructive criticism. Video excerpts from Kristina Funkeson's interviews with the artists during the seminar on Music and Freedom of expression in West-Africa, held in Senegal 2005. 09 May 2005 Ghana: Hiplife under attack Ghanaian business executive asks the National Communication Authority of Ghana to ban "profane music" on the radios 12 April 2005 Kenya: Are musicians composing "dirty" songs just to please listeners? Editorial from The Nation on explicit lyrics: “Many people have accused the media of contributing to moral decadence by glorifying music with raunchy lyrics and giving minimal airtime to those with positive messages” 12 November 2004 'Kill Bush' rappers rapped by US Gatans Parlament - a Norwegian rap group that criticised US President Bush by setting up a website whose name means "Kill him now" is in trouble with US authorities. Gatans Parlament, or Street Parliament, has defended the exercise as a satire 04 November 2004 Middle East: Hip-Hop on the frontline The rap form allows a powerful voice for political invective, and is being used on both sides of the Israel-Palestine conflict. But for Arab countries and the Middle East, the influence and performance of hip-hop lights a few fuses 02 November 2004 La Rumeur: accused of inciting violence The French group from the Paris outskirts helped to redefine the hip hop scene in France.... but faced crippling legal court cases as a consequence 11 October 2004 Reggae stars dropped because of 'homophobic' lyrics A collection of articles and background information on Hate Music and the current debate, where Elephant Man and Vybz Kartel, the two controversial reggae acts accused of inciting violence against homosexuals, have been dropped from the UK Mobo Awards show 08 September 2004 Albums with ‘objectionable material’ removed from Kansas libraries The Kansas attorney general has withheld more than 1,600 compact discs from distribution to state libraries because officials determined the albums promote violence or illegal activity, records show 10 August 2004 Rapper Jadakiss Blames Bush for Sept. 11 "Why" - the new single by US rapper Jadakiss, with the words "why did Bush knock down the towers?" - has gotten him the most mainstream attention, and criticism, of his career. MTV and several radio stations are playing the edited version 16 July 2004 Hip-Hop Cops: US put Hip-Hop under surveillance A collection of articles on the latest developments in a nationwide effort to place every aspect of hip-hop culture under state surveillance 08 July 2004 D.R. Congo: Ban on rap music In June 2004, the Committee of Censorship in the Democratic Republic of Congo censored all Congolese rap groups and foreign music. The reason given for banning rap is that it is 'obscene and violent, and causes the youth to behave badly' 21 June 2004 Hip-Hop as a Political Tool Five steps to using hip hop within a political framework and to developing a viable political constituency in the hip-hop generation 08 June 2004 Angola: When the people's silence speaks A rare, detailed description of the present situation for a number of underground hip-hop artists in Angola. The article features an interview with the 22-year-old rapper MCK 01 March 2004 "Anti-police" rap CD targeted in Arizona 03 February 2004 Explicit Lyrics & Parental Advisory Tipper Gore, the PMRC, and the infamous black-and-white logo: Background material and news articles 01 February 2004 French minister warns 'hate' rap bands over lyrics The band Sniper has outraged deputies in the governing UMP party with "La France," a foul-mouthed anti-society rant that taps the deep sense of alienation of disaffected French youths 05 November 2003 Chuck D/Public Enemy Censorship, MTV and political music in the US. Video interview with Chuck D from Public Enemy 16 July 2003 Dr Martin Cloonan: About Hate Music Politicians and police have accused rap music of encouraging gun violence, while musicians say deeper social problems are to blame 04 February 2003 Killer "acted out" Eminem song A teenager who acted out the brutal lyrics of a song by controversial rapper Eminem has been jailed for life 28 January 2003 USA: What if they gave a culture war and nobody came? Extensive article on the history of music censorship in the U.S., detailing the occasions when judicial and legislative authorities have focused attention on popular music as expression 28 January 2003 Clear Channel: September 11 & Corporate Censorship Corporate censor no. 1, or just the market leader? A collection of articles on Clear Channel - including the debate on the infamous list of 'potentially offensive songs', which Clear Channel suggested its 1.300 radio stations not to play following the September 11 terrorist attacks in the US 01 December 2002 Militant Mind State "Money Censors" The two rappers Spread Love (Omar) and M2 (Jaryd) from Militant Mind State (US) interviewed by Daniel Brown/Freemuse at Roskilde Festival, July 2001 12 September 2001 USA: Feminist critique censored for indecency Sarah Jones’ song ‘Your revolution’ was censored for indecency. Ironically, Jones’s song is in fact feminist critique and a statement against indecency 30 June 2001 Wal-Mart: Market censors and market mechanisms Background information on the biggest retailer in the US. Some Wal-Mart retailers refuse to carry CDs with the Parental Advisory Sticker, a few also go so far as to boycott artists if there is a 'dirty' word, a 'controversial' cover, or 'explicit' lyrics 01 February 2001 Hip-hop, black Islamic nationalism and the quest of Afro-American empowerment Paper from the 1st World Conference on Music and Censorship, Copenhagen 20-22 November, 1998 01 January 2001