It's very easy to lose one's historical perspective; to assume that the present state of the world is constantly at the End of History, to which no past experiences are relevant and from which any progression must be impossible due to "human nature" or the like.

It is perhaps this act of supreme arrogance that dooms us to repeat history so frequently down the generations, failing to learn from our mistakes.

But the patterns remain whether we like it not. Our actions define the future; it is impossible to escape the consequences of our behaviour in the present. This manifests itself in all aspects of human social life, from periodic uprisings against the oppressors in classism, to rebellion against illogical prejudisms when it comes to race and gender, and the coming of storms sewen by years of environmental negligence.

During the reigns of each of these tyrannies, for a time, it may appear that civilisation has reached it's final form and like it or lump it we're stuck with it's inevitable consequences.

However, as invisible as they might seem for a time, eventually enough people are drawn to reconciling our behaviour with the innate morality that binds our social relationships.

Periodically throughout history the exploitation of one demograph by another, be them discriminated by class, ethnicity, religion or political stance, is eventually met by the awesome power of revolution.

Decades may pass with little change in the philosophies of a population, but within years, a Reneissance, Enlightenment, Scientific Revolution, Civil Rights movement, worker rights movement, can utterly batter down the levvies of moral bankruptcy that enforce the usurption of wealth of one group by another.

The movements are more often than not essentially based upon very simple principles, and highlight just how incredibly powerful an idea can be in the development of our species culture. More powerful than towering redouts, charging cavalry, the smell of gunfire or the sound of black helicopters overhead.

The reason is simple; ideas have the ability to transcend the demographs. If it can be convinced that an act or policy is contrary to the basic morality that across the globe allhumanity seems to share, systems of oppression can have the guts pulled out of them from the inside and out. Behind every gunner there is a human being, and if that mind can be made to empathise with the struggle of others than that gun can be made to stop firing, but it does not work in reverse, minds cannot be changed with weaponry, only silenced.

However one has to admit that at present, we do indeed appear to be in the lull of these historical cycles; in general, the middle class are as yet unwilling to leave the radius of "moderate" philosophy, a sure sign that the current state of the world is immature for revolution.

However, empathy in the middle class for the poor and oppressed is nevertheless stronger than at any point in history. This suggests that when the middle class finally do reject their wealth support systems in favour of political justice, the ensuing changes may be much larger than we have seen in the past.

So where might these movements come from? Where are the seeds of the new world today? Well, here's a few of the most promising projects around the world that may become tomorrow's post-modern revolutions and renaissances.

Brazil: The Landless Workers


Image by: Latuff2 [Pictured: Police massacre of the LW at Eldorado dos Carajas]

Described by Noam Chomsky as the most important popular movement in the world today, the Landless Workers Movement of Brazil fights privatisation for the economic justice of the people. It is the beating heart of their dedicated and passionate revolutionaries that the beating heart of Marxism and Anarcho-syndaclism lives.

Members of Brazil's Landless Workers Movement (MST) have occupied 12 farms to try to pressure the government to speed up land reform.
More than 5,000 families from the MST have moved on to the farms in the north-eastern state of Pernambuco, one of Brazil's poorest.
The MST said the government had failed to live up to its election promises to have settled 400,000 families by 2007.

Brazil has one of the biggest wealth gaps in the world. Nearly half of all farmland is owned by just 1% of the population. The Landless Workers gain in strength by the day and have dedicated themselves to leveling this gap and bringing equality to the nation of Brazil.

The Landless Workers can be found online here.

Bolivia: Morales


Image by: Snackt

The peasant that came to represent the nation of Bolivia is not content with mere anti-American rhetoric, but becoming the holy grail of Latin American political resistance; a force that will not conceed to the capitalist conventions of global economics and who will fight for the justice and equality of his people.

Morales is the leader of Bolivia's cocalero movement – a loose federation of coca leaf-growing campesinos who are resisting the efforts of the United States government to eradicate coca in the province of Chapare in southeastern Bolivia. Morales is also leader of the Movement for Socialism political party (Movimiento al Socialismo, with the Spanish acronym MAS, meaning "more"), which was involved in the recent Gas Wars, along with many other groups, commonly referred to as 'social movements'. Morales was finally elected president during the 2005 election, after several crises due to the gas industry issues.

It seems increasingly unlikely that Morales will revert to the populaist centralism that the European socialist parties suffered in the late 20th Century, saying that "The worst enemy of humanity is capitalism. That is what provokes uprisings like our own, a rebellion against a system, against a neoliberal model, which is the representation of a savage capitalism. If the entire world doesn't acknowledge this reality, that the national states are not providing even minimally for health, education and nourishment, then each day the most fundamental human rights are being violated."

It is taking time for Morales' government to find it's feet with the ever complex and poverty stricken Bolivia, and it cannot be denied that certain radical tax policies haven't gone entirely according to plan, but the sincerity is there, and more important, the dedication of Morales to delivering what, and only what, the actual working population of the country needs and desires.

The Bolivian Government website can be found online here.

Nepal: The Communist Party of Nepal & The Pro-Democracy Movement


Image by: Prodigy84

The Nepalese movement for democracy's days looked numbered as protests against the absolute rule of King Gyanendra were brutally surpressed by riot police. Yet the strength of popular organisation shon through, and in the face of a violent monarchy the ranks of democracy supporters grew and grew until equality won it's first victory, forcing the King to reinstate parlaiment.

The Nepalese democratic movement is now stronger than ever, driven spirit of the nation's people. Led by the Communist Party of Nepal, the movement may see an end to arcaic feudalism in the shadow of the Himalaya, and has already won a ceasefire from the militant Maoist guerrillas.

A history of Communism in Nepal can be found online here.

Nicaragua: The Sandinistas


Image by: Mejia

After the revolution in 1979, the Sandinistas, armed revolutionaries who liberated Nicaragua from the brutal dictator Samoza, were brutally torn apart by US Army mining, US trade embargos and US-sponsored counter-revolutionary forces. Since, Nicaragua has become another Haiti, having seen the second largest presence of US forces in the hemisphere, and concordantly being the second poorest.

But the Sandinistas are back; moral amongst the population of Nicaragua is rising as success of resistance abroad raises their hopes for final freedom from American imperialism. The leftist are now campaigning for election into parlaiment, and promise ties with Venezuela and Bolivia whilst forging equal rights in a country that has been plagued by conflict and poverty for so long.

After years recuperating their losses, the FSLN was re-elected in 2006. Under President Ortega the government has begun a "Zero Hunger Policy" which aims to reduce poverty in the rural areas. Despite the relatively conservative state of Nicaragua as a catholic society, great progress is again being made.

The official webpage of the FSLN can be found online here.

International: The Environmental Movement


Image by: boywhodraws

The detrioration of the biosphere at the hands of pollution and waste is perhaps the most offensive attack on human life in all of history. The continuation of the use of fossil fuels as a mass energy source is nothing less than a form of tax on future generations, which may go so far as to rob a habitable environment from our species altogether in the future.

Everyone on earth has a responsibility to aid the transition to sustainable energy sources, but perhaps the most reluctant, and undeniably the most important players, are the corporations.

So long as fossil fuels remain a financially viable means of energy production and the global economy attains primarily to quarter-capitalist interests, oil, gas and coal will be burnt year after year, speeding our planet toward an apocalyptic burnout a century or less from now.

Not only that, but wars will continue to be fought by nations to whom corporate expansion and success hold the strongest grips on government.

That is why both the environmental and pro-democracy movements around the world have a united cause in establishing a future habitat for our species, and who day by day work to increase awareness and tackle environmental abuse on all fronts.

India: A Specter is Haunting the Sub-continent


Image by: hadjiisthefatindian

The Marxist Communist Party of India has seen unprecedented victiories against the ruling party in recent months, as both rural and urban constituencies turn against the influx of capitalism exploitation. For a country that so took the philosophies of Gandhi to heart, is it surprising that the population should resist economic exploitation and inequality?

Well, when you consider the untold of wealth that capitalism could bring to India (at the expense of it's poor and the poor abroad), what is shows is a nation home to some of the most compassionate communities in the world today.

"Previously what happened was that the communists had a very strong rural base so they used to keep winning in the villages," explains 25-year-old IT consultant Ruhin Chatterjee, one among millions of young middle-class voters who support the communists. "But in the cities they never won. This latest election has seen a change in that."

If Indian Communism can avoid being dragged into Maoist and Stalinist examples of state-capitalism, we may well see the beginnings of post-modern democratic economics in India before long.

Mexico: The Zapatistas


Image by: SarahBob

Following recent uprises in Mexican villages against state police enforcing neo-liberalism on local economics, the EZLN has sprung into action. Now, just weeks before the Mexican elections, the country is seeing a revitalisation of resistance to capitalist imperialism from the US and it's own government.

The Zapatistas have begun fighting for the release of political prisoners taken at the uprisings, and are championing the struggle against neo-liberalism for those that have lost faith in the three candidates standing for election.
Marcos voiced his support for peasant farmers who clashed with police last week in a riot that killed a teenager.

He said the current climate was like that in 1994, when the Zapatistas led a brief armed indigenous uprising in the southern state of Chiapas. Today the Zapatistas are more active than ever and had yet to suffer a major defeat at the hands of the Mexican army since their victory in 1994; many believe that the future may hold similar success, particularly given the failure of center-left candidate Lopez Obrador to prevent right wing victory in the national election that is sure to threaten brutal neo-liberal policies on the countries poor.

The official webpage of the EZLN can be found online here.

Burma/Myanmar: The Saffron Army


Image by: Winthan

The most current of this run down are the recent anti-Junta protests in Burma/Myanmar.

Burma/Myanmar is a nation down in south east asia, bordering on Thailand, Laos and China on the east, Bangladesh and India on the west. A former British colony, it obtained independence in 1948. It spent a brief amount of time as a typical southeast asian "democratic republic", but in the early 60's the government was overthrown in a coup by the now ruling military Junta dictatorship, who maintain strict censorship, brutally punish political dissent and employ reckless economic policies to leech wealth off of the countries poor for their ruling elite.

When the Junta upped the price of gas in August, it was the last straw for many. Since, the huge Bhuddist community has mobilised and monks have taken to the street in huge numbers, peacefully demanding radical changes to the nation's internal policies.

Up to ten thousand monks, dubbed The Saffron Army for the colour of their robes in the previous week marched through the streets of Rangoon, standing stoic against torrential rain, tear gas and the rifle buts of the riot police, as like-minded civilians joined them. Then, just three days ago, the Junta initiated a massive crackdown on the protesters, firing lives rounds into crowds and storming monasteries at night, whilst barring foreign press and shutting down internal net connections.

Official death toll stands at around 10 but world leaders and the Burmese public believe that the actual number of those killed is much, much higher.

The democracy movement in Burma is perhaps one of the most inspiring examples of resistance in the world today, as it employs complete non-violence on the part of the protesters. They sacrifice their bodies for the freedom and safety of the Burmese people, and also for the moral liberation of the tyrannical military Junta.

Their message is clear; inequality is a disease on human life, so long as it exists, nobody anywhere is truly free, not even those who commit it.

Continuing my new souped up journal with another props-to-shit-I-love feature, this entry is dedicated to the literary genre of cyberpunk.

Opinions vary on what exactly you can consider cyberpunk, but despite the often similar stylistic trends cyberpunk films, novels, games etc. share, I prefer to stick to the core concept and the philosophical questions that that concept provokes, and so what I consider to be cyberpunk others might consider pretty broad, but anyway.

What is the core concept? Simply put, cyberpunk is the story of high tech and low life. Often futuristic settings where the trend of technology seeping into every aspect of our lives we see today has been amplified to the extreme, cyberpunk tells the story of those at the bottom of the class ladder in pre-apocalyptic dystopias.

A lot of people love it just for the style, the attitude and the edginess that comes with that kind of setting, but what I love about cyberpunk is that it's one of the most daring genres when it comes to criticising our current world by predicting the devastation our current flaws will have on our future societies. Cyberpunk is the class war of the future, drawing on our species past to the predict the future in order to change the way we think and behave in the present.

In no particular order, here are my favorite cyberpunk movies, novels, games and whatever else:



I - Nineteen Eighty-Four
by George Orwell (Novel)
<sup>[Image: 1984 by errez]

"War is Peace; Freedom is Slavery; Ignorance is Strength"
- The Party slogan</sup>

In 1949 George Owell published what would become the most popular and influential dystopian novel of all time, Nineteen Eighty-Four. Although written before the term cyberpunk existed, this masterpiece is one of the founding steps in the creation of the genre, and I have no problem calling it a work of cyberpunk fiction.

Set in a future London in year 1984, after catastrophic wars the nations of the world agglomerated into three mighty superpowers. In the ruins of the British capital, Winston Smith works as a middle ranking party member for the totalitarian regime that has gripped Oceania, their superpower, where every day he drags himself to work from a dingy estate to the Ministry of Truth, an arm of the government with absolute control of the media, where he scrubs historical records of negative mentions of the party.

The high tech comes in the form of the all seeing surveillance equipment around Smith's world, the low life is everyone left in the world who live as ignorant slaves to the government.

Smith trudges through life, unable to find any philosophical point in opposition to the current status quo on which to pivot and comprehend any objection to the government. That is, until he meets Julia, a young mechanic, with whom he falls in love. The awakening of his humanity brings with it not only the ability to love, but to hate, and for the first time in his life he sees the regime around him clearly, and sets himself the task of allying with the rumored underground resistance that seeks to overthrow it.



II - Gattaca
written and directed by Andrew Niccol (Film)
<sup>[Image: Gattaca by myp55]

"I was never more certain of how far away I was from my goal than when I was standing right beside it."
- Vincent</sup>

A, T, C, G. Adenin, tymin, cytosin and guanin, the four DNA bases with which the entire genetic code of every species on earth is written. Gattaca Aerospace Corporation is the elite space exploration facility of Earth in the "not too distant future" where only those with infallible genes will be selected for the opportunity to explore the universe.

In 1997 released Gattaca, a film in which he both wrote and directed, starring Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman and Jude Law who all deliver excellent performances.

Gattaca tells the story of an earth where nature is deemed infinitely more important than nature, where the life of a child is determined before birth by anaylsing it's genetic code and determining what job, education and class it is deemed fit for, and where the dreams of individuals are cast aside in the name of increased chance of success.

Vincent is prescribed a life in the working class from the moment he leaves the womb. Myopic and suffering congenital heart disease, his career is decided for him and his life expected never to reach the age of 31.The only way in which he could ever achieve his life long ambition to see the stars, is to become someone else.

Jerome's genes were deemed outstanding, from the moment of his birth, he was prophesied a life of success and achievement, until the grief of losing a swimming race despite his genetic superiority led him to attempt suicide. Left alive but paraplegic, he would never be able to pursue the heights he had been predicted.

Vincent befriends Jerome and the two conspire to mask every identifying feature of Vincent with Jerome's, from the pattern of his iris to the blood underneath the skin of his fingers, analysed by a machine on the way into the Gattaca building.

Gattaca pits a man with his opportunities stripped from him before he could even prove himself, against a dystopian world where human life has been reduced to scientific task and society kept in order by forensics, genetic fingerprinting and surveillance. Nature would have suggested that Vincent shouldn't even reach his 31st birthday, and Jerome would have set the world on fire, but as the film concludes, Jerome is left back on earth while Vincent, 32 years of age, leaves the orbit of earth to explore the solar system.



III - Deus Ex
designed by Warren Spector & Harvey Smith (Game)
<sup>[Image: JC Denton by egoyette]

"The unplanned organism is a question asked by nature and answered by death. You are a different kind of question, with a different kind of answer."
- Morpheus A.I.</sup>

At the turn of the millennium Warren Spector and Harvey Smith released their cyberpunk brainchild for the PC. Now one of the most respected and important video games ever created, Deus Ex brought not all enjoyable gameplay, but a rich, futuristic dystopian Earth wracked by disease, poverty and gang crime, and enticed the player into the web of lies spun by it's various powers with profound and prophetic philosophy.

A deadly epidemic of a mysterious disease known as the "Grey Death" has spread like wildfire amongst the worlds urban poor. The governments of the world largely ignore this suffering and focus on civil control and elite police units as solutions to growing unrest and terrorism.

Into this world of genetic enhancement and robotic implants steps JC Denton, raised from birth as a supercop for the anti-terror wing of the UN, UNATCO.

Exploring the murky underworld, JC is initially tasked with eliminating state targets, until chance meetings put him wise of a deeper conspiracy behind the wars and diseases of the world. The grey Death turns out to be a deliberate biological attack on the public in order to incite fear, and then control by controlling the supply of the vaccine.

Deeper and deeper into the conspiracy Denton goes, uncovering a hidden power struggle at the top between secret societies, power-mad entrepreneurs, greedy megacorporations and totalitarian nations.

Artificial intelligence, genetic manipulation, crime, drugs, stealth, conspiracy and the threat of apocalypse make Deus Ex the ultimate in cyberpunk on the gaming medium. It's deep philosophical context put the rest of the industry to shame even today.



IV - A Scanner Darkly
by Philip K Dick (Novel & Film)
<sup>[Image caputred by demigod387]

"I saw death rising from the earth, from the ground itself, in one blue field."
- Fred</sup>

Philip K Dick is one of the undeniable kings of cyberpunk literature. Written in 1977 A Scanner Darkly details a world in which the government has sold out to private business and the majority of the US public have descended into hard drug addiction, particularly to the mysterious Substance D.

Loosely inspired by the troubled times Dick himself went through during drug addiction, A Scanner Darkly is a deeply sincere novel, also dedicated Dick's many friends who ended up dead, brain damaged or in a state of permanent psychosis.

A Scanner Darkly tells the story of Fred, an undercover narcotics investigator living in a two-bit run down house in the degenerated suburbs of California. There he lives with a group of mates and his drug dealing girlfriend, adopting the altered of Bob Arktor where he attempts to discover the sources of he girlfriends narcotics in order to bust a supplier somewhere up the line.

However, in maintaining his cover, Fred becomes addicted to Substance D, one of the side-effects being a disruption in your ability to perceive yourself and the world around you. Eventually becoming unaware which of his alter egos is the true one, his addiction spirals out of control until the drug begins causing massive brain damage.

At this point, his girlfriend Donna takes him to New Path, a shady corporation providing the ultimate cold turkey experience for Substance D addicts. Donna leaves him in their care where he is slowly brought back to good physical, but not mental health.

The story concludes with Fred given the opportunity to leave his clinic and work outdoors, on one of their "farms". Arriving at the farm, the permanently bewildered Fred is told he will remain her harvesting a special crop for the New Path corporation, told he can only return to the city at Thanksgiving.

Fred bends down and with his fingers picks a small sample of the crop, a little blue flower - "a present from my friends" he says, "at Thanksgiving". The little blue flower being the plant from which the active ingredient in Substance D is obtained...



V - Bioshock
designed by Ken Levine (Game)
<sup>[Image: Bioshock Threadless Entry by RisingZan]

"All good things of this Earth flow into the City."
- Inscribed on the entrance of Rapture</sup>

Bioshock is more strictly steampunk than cyberpunk, however, it employs many of the same philosophical elements pitting a seemingly ordinary man against the powers that be in a technologically advanced underwater dystopia. However, due to the areas where does overlap with cyberpunk, I thought I'd include it, as it's just so fucking awesome.

Bioshock was released for the PC and 360 this August and is currently the most highly rated game of the year, already one of the most highly rated games ever made, and like Deus Ex, puts the entire industry to shame with it's phenomenal art design and rich, intricate, philosophical plot.

You are Jack, flying over the Atlantic ocean when you black out to the sounds of screaming. You awaken in the middle of the ocean in the black of night, the burning wreckage of your plain all around you. The only lang in sight is a peculiar lighthouse sticking out of the water a few meters away.

Jack swims over, and upon entering the doors to the lighthouse seals his fate with that of Rapture, the underwater city build by eccentric entrepreneur Jack Ryan to house a society based on profit without morality.

Descending into the city, your only means of survival is fellow renegade Atlas, an Irish citizen of the now gone-to-hell Rapture who wants to seemingly wants to escape as badly as you do. He leads you through the various precincts of Rapture, whose society has degenerated following the reckless genetic enhancements the public grew addicted to in order to stay one step ahead of their neighbor, finally succumbing to a failed class war against Ryan who now holds desperately clings to his former power.

Based heavily on Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged, Bioshock criticses her ideal world of limit-free capitalism without moral restrictions by painting a world in which the dog-eat-dog mentality has caused the breakdown of families into psychotic murders, and the brainwashing of children into mindless slaves that scour the city for wealth.

I'm not an expert on games, but Bioshock is the most original, spectacular and moving I've ever played. It deserves all the enormous acclaim it's recieving and will go down in history as another step in the medium towards an art form.



VI - Ghost in the Shell
created by Masamune Shirow (Franchise)
<sup>[Image: Ghost in the Shell 2 fanart by Nissun]

"We weep for a bird's cry, but not for a fish's blood. Blessed are those with a voice. If the dolls also had voices, they would have screamed, "I didn't want to become human.""
- Major Motoko Kusanagi</sup>

Created by Masamune Shirow, Ghost in the Shell is a future version of Earth in which the physical aspects of humanity have been interlinked with electronics to the extent that only that the only purely human part of the body left in many is the "Ghost" - the neurons and tissues in the brain that go to create the human consciousness and spirit.

Ghost in the Shell is a franchise in the manga tradition that now spans TV, cinema and comics, being hailed as one of the world's greatest works of modern cyberpunk.

I speak having seen only the films and a little of the series, but the GinS universe is now so huge I doubt anyone could experience it all. Everything from memory manipulation to entire body transplants, cyborgs gone insane and the hacking of the soul goes on in the murky world Shirow paints.

The format is predominantly the investigation of crimes seemingly committed by entities without free will that are programmed never to harm humans. Major Kusanagi and Batou, cybernetically augmented detectives in Sector 9, an organisation for the fighting of technological crime, seek the truth behind these mysterious events and find that behind them there is always a human mind, or "Ghost", manipulating the machines for their own emotional or political gain.

That is, until the event of the Ghost in the Shell film, in which Major Kusanagi is contacted by an unknown entity over the "net" that links all electronically enhanced minds in the world, while investigating a shady underground hacker known as the Puppet Master.

The entity is revealed to be the Puppet Master himself, or should I say itself, for this time, there has been no human mind behind the strange behavior of the machines involved, but a completely sapient artificial intelligence, the first of it's kind.

Being hunted by the government, it escapes on the net as a purely non-physical lifeform, and downloads itself to a cyborg miles away in Hong Kong where it is hit by a lorry during a stormy night. The Major is called in to examine the remains, where it proceeds to demand diplomatic immunity from the UN and the rights of a human being for itself.


Man, all that only took me three or four days of casually writing to finish That's how much I love cyberpunk. I think it's a great genre, I'm not the biggest expert by any means, but from what I have experienced it is both entertaining, moving and profound, and I think y'all should check it out too if you already haven't.

It is important we a as a species confront the present, for every action committed here today will have consequences on the future,; both our future, our children's future, and the future of everyone who will come before us. One thing is certain, with human life changing at an ever increasing rate, the future holds for us that which we can barely imagine, all we can do is hold on to our humanity through it all, and that is cyberpunk.

Peace!

Being a mixed-European white guy born into a middle class family in England, I often find myself confronted by expressions of surprise when people discover that I'm a diehard fan of hip hop. Actually, fan isn't the word, I'm a disciple, I practically raised myself on this music. Growing up in the environment I did, kids would wear their musical preferences like tribal masks, and the mask of the middle class was deemed indie rock or metal - but I gravitated to hip hop, oblivious to irrelevant racial or social stereotypes, because it offered a sincerity, a working class perspective, and a spirit of rebellion and resistance I couldn't find in any other genre I'd found.

Hip hop, along with cinema, has been a parent of mine, it's got a place at the very centre of my heart. I take it for all it is, the good and the bad, because to me it is the ultimate artistic expression of life in the modern world.

Here, in no particular order, are some of who I consider to be some of most important artistic figures in my life, and to the world of hip hop, using a deviantArt portrait that captures each of them best.


Lamont Coleman - BIG L - (Harlem):

One of the original gangsta rappers, born into a neglected Harlem in 1974, surrounded by crime and degeneration, he channeled his frustrations into gritty, frank storytelling raps. A lyrical genius, often vulgar, but never insincere, Big L helped pioneer the up-front, take-it-or-leave-it truthfulness attitude that rap music is now renowned for. However, a product of his environment, he was nevertheless intwined with the grudge society around him, and in 1999 was shot dead just a few blocks from his home in Harlem.

This portrait by muffinman388 is beautifully drawn and shaded, and I think conveys L's frank attitude.


Guru & DJ Premier - GANG STARR - (Brooklyn/Boston):

One of the most accomplished groups in rap history, founded in 1987 by MC Guru and DJ Premier, Gang Starr practically defined the modern NYC sound. Both now successful artists independently, their greatest mark on hip hop is undoubtedly in their run as the infamous group. They had hip hop fame for the taking, but turned from the celebrity life when it threatened to compromise their principles, born of a real life in the ghetto.

"And you'd be happy as hell to get a record deal
Maybe your soul you'd sell to have mass appeal"

This portrait by turn2002 perfectly captures their New York noir style in an elegant vector.


Mélanie Georgiades - DIAM'S - (Cyprus):

Born in Cyprus, Diam's moved to France as a young child, where she grew up in the neighborhoods of Essonne. She is now one of the most influential artists in the history of French rap, France being the second largest hip hop market in the world. Confrontational one minute, tender the next, Diam's exists in no single niche, she perfectly reflects life of modern French youth in her rap, the good, the bad and the ugly.

This beautiful sketch by Dubijanteloca captures exactly Diam's delicious dichotomy in her public identity: Diam's, the Urban Lady.


Nelust Wyclef Jean - WYCLEF - (Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti)

Not content with being one third of one of hip hops most critically acclaimed and adored rap groups, The Fugees, Wyclef went on to churn out groundbreaking album after album, full of gritty East Coast rap, Caribbean hip hop in Haitian Creole, or smooth R&B megahits like Gone Till November or 9/11.

Accomplished in almost every aspect of hip hop vocals, Wyclef is a legend in the industry and his urban conscience has spoken to millions.

This washed out wallpaper by claygast captures the Caribbean iconography perfectly.


Lauryn Hill - LAURYN HILL - (New Jersey)

Born in NJ, 1975, Lauryn ended up in the same class as Wyclef and Pras at school and formed the legendary Fugees. Widely considered the jewel in the crown of that group, she fast became one of the most respected female rappers in the industry. After a long absence following the groups dissolution, in 1998 she returned solo with what was to become one of the most important records in contemporary R&B - The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. One of the most highly rated albums of the 1990's, the world is on the edge of it's seat waiting for her follow up.

This oil portrait of the gorgeous girl is one of the most fabulous deviations I've seen on this site. Zimbolimbo really did Lauryn justice.


Tsidi Ibrahim - JEAN GRAE - (Cape Town):

The daughter of South African jazz musicians, at a young age Jean moved from Cape Town to study at NYU, before graduating and joining the hip hop group Natural Resource. Now one of the edgiest, most passionate and sincere rappers I have ever encountered, Jean Grae marries razor sharp political conscience and urban sensibilities perfectly. Now signed to Kweli's Blacksmith Records, expect great things from the Bantu Philosopher in the future.

I love this modern, minimalist wallpaper by ekud, featuring the gorgeous Jean herself in a great pose.


Dante Terrell Smith - MOS DEF - (Brooklyn):

There's no doubt about it, Mos Def is one of the greatest living rappers. It must be the concerete of Brooklyn streets that runs through his veins, because this man lives and breathes his home town. One of the most talented spitters I've ever heard, Mos isn't just about sounds, he's also a conscious and politically aware rapper, using his music to educate and motivate the hip hop youth.

If you haven't already heard his collaboration album with long time friend Talib Kweli, Blackstar, go find it, it's among the great records of modern hip hop.

algare's minimalistic vector shows just how iconic the man is even when reduced to single tones.


Kelis Rogers - KELIS - (Manhatten):

Best known for her crowd pleasing singles Trick me, and the megahit Milkshake, Kelis is both a canny pop performer and one of the great living contemporary R&B voices, taking influence from past artists like Prince and Sly & The Family Stalone, Kelis is capable of bringing all the areas of hip hop together in her sumptuous albums.

Protrait by henderson, beautifully crafted on Canson using pencil and spray paint.


Kanye West - KANYE WEST - (Chicago):

More popular today than ever, Kanye has gone from strength to strength after finally landing a deal with Rockafella all those years ago. His first two albums managed to bridge the gap between independant style and mainstream hip hop like perhaps no albums since in recent in recent years, the continually innovative West is one of the most valuable artists we have, expanding the reach of the genre, pioneering new fusions with other genres, and bringing the conscious edge of underground rap to the mainstream.

This stylish vector by kamzar is a great minimalist recreation, protraying Kanye also as the fashion icon he is fast becoming to a generation.


Erica Abi Wright - ERYKAH BADU - (Dallas):

Badu... loved by some, adored by many, she is the commanding R&B voice of Chaka Khan with the urban attitude and political edge of the independent East Coast rap scene. The woman is simply a goddess, sincere in every word she utters, passionate about that which she sings, she is truly a gift to hip hop, and more influential than many realise, having paved a way for so many contemporary R&B singers in the independent tradition since her ascension.

This gorgeous protrait by skam4 surpasses the original photo with a delicious use of colour and minimalism.


Rodney Smith - ROOTS MANUVA - (London):

The only fellow Brit on this list, Manuva is one of my favourite artists of all time. Commanding international respect, he blends rap, hip hop, dub and traces of drum and base into his musical style, layered with his iconic Souf Landan accent. Daring, conscious and too real to give a fuck about mainstream success, this man is a living effigy of hip hop spirit.

This fantastic vector by djunkeDKRS nails his style perfectly, from the clean lines to the shades of green colour scheme.


Talib Kweli Greene - TALIB KWELI - (Brooklyn):

In my opinion the greatest living rapper. Born in Brooklyn, he rose to fame with best friend Mos, and made history with the hip hop milestone Blackstar. Since, he has released numerous solo albums, each phenomenal works of gritty, conscious hip hop perfection. Kweli is a hip hop god, the greatest living lyricist on the East Coast of the US, arguably one of the finest spitters in the game today.

I love the pose and colour scheme of this portrait from Etchelar.



And finally...


Mary Jane Blige - MARY J BLIGE - (The Bronx):

6 Grammies? Pfft. 28 million records wordlwide? Whatever. MJB isn't the Queen of Hip Hop Soul for album sales or press appreciation, not even nearly. From day one Mary J Blige has built herself a place in the all time list of greatest and most important artists in the history of hip hop through one thing alone: sincerity.

Sure, she has one of the most beautiful, powerful voices in R&B today, but the heights of adoration and respect she has achieved are only possibly through really laying yourself bare in front of your audience, and not for mere exhibitionism, but through a sincere desire to help youth around the world better deal with the troubles in their life by associating with a woman who has been through it all and emerged on the other side a beautiful, accomplished and strong woman.

This coloured sketch of MJB from her No More Drama cover on a school book page by FloofehShoyru is my favorite portrait of the whole lot here. More than that, that page is the very definition, the very soul of hip hop. Drawn when she was just 10/11, it shows how powerful and important this glorious movement has become, and the way it can inspire the world's youth.

FloofehShoyru should be proud, it's a beautiful sketch, and most importantly, like Mary J herself, it was created with that most important of human qualities: sincerity.




There are so many other artists I could have included, but I appreciate all the above dearly for the music they have given me growing up. I look forward to a life time spent enjoying hip hop, and hopefully the opportunities to give something back to the communities around the world from which it originated, and for which it is now the most important form of youth expression.

I hope this lil' blog also helps to increase the exposure of the wonderful deviants whose portraits I thumbnailed above; they're all fabulous!


G'night brothers and sisters. For the hip hop nation!