Scenes from the first edition of Multiculture, an event where some of the freshest voices of Tamil rap will find a stage on July 19
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Are you ready to see a 12-year-old rapper spit fire on stage? You should be. At the second edition of Multiculture on July 19, an amalgamation of sub-genres will come together at the hallowed halls of the puritanical Victoria Public Hall to teach Chennai a thing or two about rap.Among the young men on stage will be Aydin Flow, a school-going rapper, who Ofro, the founder of Atticulture and the organiser of the event, met at a cypher at Anna Nagar Tower Park several months ago. Other artistes include Kelithee, 808Krsna, Hippie Writer, Kaadi, Vaasi, Urban Tozha, and Tamizh Aadhavan — all of whom Ofro met through his Discord community and park meet-ups.“People from all over Tamil Nadu are coming and we have been bombarded with ticket requests. The ultimate showdown, an event where some of Tamil rap’s freshest voices will be on stage, has already sold out,” informs Ofro, adding that there is a whole community of young rap voices from all parts of the State South of Chennai. “The slang, expressions, and meter of the rap is fundamentally different, meaning that there is an array of talent to look at,” he says.Ofro was an early entrant in the rap space. Back in 2019 when he and Tamil rap star Arivu collaborated on their first ever independent project, the two took to Chetpet Eco Park and began performing their music for random visitors. “Back then, there was no real ecosystem to distribute our music or even claim a voice. The park was where we found our first listeners and another set of talent, including Asal Kolaar. The reason why people are clamouring for tickets is because they understand the kind of success that people like Arivu, Asal Kolaar, and Kelithee have seen. Considering that there will be reps (representatives) from other record labels, it is likely to be useful for a lot of the talent that comes on,” he says.
