American hip-hop group The Inv!s!bles on 'Gully Boy', Indian culture, and music

Hyderabad: Ahead of their performance in Hyderabad, American hip-hop collective The Inv!s!bles urged Indian hip-hop enthusiasts to adopt their own culture into their music instead of trying to be like Americans.

"Hip-hop originated in New York and it's perceived differently everywhere. Hip-hop is all about people making something out of nothing and maintaining their individuality," said Carl "DJ Invisible" Hollier, a member of the collective.

The US Consulate General in Hyderabad, in association with American Voices and Teamwork Arts, has arranged a hip-hop workshop for young musicians on Friday and a live performance by The Inv!s!bles on Saturday at the St. Francis College for Women.

The performance comes as the US Embassy and Consulates in India commemorate 75 years of US-India relations. This is part of the initiative "Bridging Cultures through Hip-Hop". It aims to share the positive messages of hip-hop – diversity, positive expression, and transcending social, cultural, and racial values in favour of inclusion.

The Inv!s!bles features internationally-acclaimed artists Carl "DJ Invisible" Hollier, lyricist Miz Korona, producer and beatboxer Richie "Robot" Steighner, emcee and rapper Khary Kimani Turner, and professional dancer and choreographer Hans Pierre. They will conduct the workshop on Friday and the concert on Saturday.

The members of the collective said that they loved the movie 'Gully Boy'. "We find it hard to believe that we are here in India. I look forward to seeing more young women coming up in the hip-hop industry," said Miz Korona. She said that as an openly lesbian woman, it was difficult for her to make a mark. "However, women are stepping up now. Earlier, there was no respect for women. Now it is not the case," she said.

"We love how amazing the Indian culture is. The dance moves, the specificity in films, music videos. I think when this tour is over, there will definitely be a hint of an 'Indian element' in our music," said Hans Pierre. He said that this is one of the first of many events after the two-year lockdown and he was flattered that the crowd in their first show in Chandigarh were from various age groups. "It was nice to see everyone, from teenagers to adults, enjoy our show," he said.

Both the workshop and the performance are free and open to audiences over 16 years of age. For complete tour details and registration for the upcoming workshop and performance, please visit: https://teamworkarts.com/american-voices-hip-hop.