Style 43

EODub (End Of the Weak) was founded in 2000 as one of the few weekly platforms in NYC where hungry MCs could showcase and hone their talent. What started as a small Open Mic in the back of a restaurant has grown into the longest-running weekly hip-hop show in NYC and an International Hip-Hop movement. EODub now has chapters all over the world including: France, Germany, Argentina, Brazil, Spain and the UK.

Amy Hume reports back from the first ever MC Challenge in Africa…

“My quest to East Africa was much too short, too exciting and almost, too successful. I went to explore the Hip Hop music scene of Uganda and discovered people hungry to develop their industry. I worked alongside artists and promoters from Canada, Los Angeles, and London, my allies and partners, who were/are there to promote music and the arts in the East African (Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda) community. Early in my adventures, my friend Peter took me to his village in Rakai District, where the first HIV/AIDS cases were reported. His family had educational posters plastered to the concrete walls, so it was comforting to know the awareness is present. After snapping Polaroids of the kids dancing and playing about, I was presented with one of many, many feasts..”

“At some point during the 6-hour bus ride south from Kampala (towards Rwanda) to Rakai, I was invaded by small spiders that crawled up my legs for, oh, about 2 hours. I just laughed and brushed them off, as I developed a tolerance for insects while in Uganda. The first morning I woke up to a spider on my wall, and instead of killing it, as I would in the States, I told it to leave me alone, so it did. The only incident I couldn’t face was the massive cockroach running across my bed, but I screamed for Mugaga, one of my housemates and nature-lover, who promptly caught it and tossed it to the neighbors. In the first week, I saw a dead man in a ditch, his legs intertwined with his twisted bicycle. It would come to be foreshadowing, as I ended up in a ditch in a boda boda (motorcycle) accident the day before my original departure, although it was not fatal. A mutatu, taxi van, drove into us, forcing us into the concrete ditch. There was an instant crowd around us, watching, with me saying “I’m ok, I’m ok,” and a man insisting, ”You have blood coming out everywhere, you are not ok!” We were cleaned up in the clinic across the street, while the boda’s tire was fixed. After about an hour, the three of us jumped back on the bike and headed home. The beach of Lake Victoria was our destination, but we never made it. My right arm and ankle are healing well, my elbow not quite fully functional, but it has only been a week. The driver and other passenger came away with cuts and scrapes, and came to me every day after to help them clean the wounds. It was no doubt a bonding experience for my friends, Medi the boxer, Tonny the boda driver, and I. Watching two grown men wince with pain from iodine on fresh wounds created enough laughter to heal any injury.”

“Whenever I was taken to a family home, I was promptly served a feast of chicken, beef, or pork, mashed plantains, rice, posho (maize), cabbage salad, Irish potatoes, kale greens, and g-nut, a peanut sauce. I had fresh avocado with an egg burrito of sorts called Rolex, nearly every day, and homemade ice cream, or delicious cakes from a friend’s restaurant. The amount of Nile Special beer I ingested is supporting a small village, but the local spirit, Waragi “UG”, was too much like paint thinner for me to enjoy, as the locals do. Christmas was spent with my friends Peter, Patrick and Francis at Patrick’s family’s home. They stuffed me full of food then proceeded to stuff me full of Nile beer until the wee hours of the morning. When I returned home late that night, I fell ill, with what I thought was food poisoning. However, the persistent fever and excruciating pain in every bone in my body proved it was malaria, from a mosquito bite. I laid around in misery for a day, but had to shake it off, as I had to make it to the Hip Hop Summit. I photographed for hours, resting when I could, fighting the fever and aching joints. I took the preventative medicine when I got home that night and it helped knock out the painful virus. I had a fever and pain for a few more days, but bounced back with more fury than before.”

“Babaluku Smith, the founding father of the Bavubuka Foundation and Luga Flow movement (rapping in Luganda) is a truly kind soul, driven to help empower the youth of Uganda. Through interviews of the kids that come to the Bavubuka House for emcee lessons, they all cited Baba as their inspiration to be an emcee. They said unlike other Ugandan Hip Hop artists, Babaluku’s music has a message. Many families do not support their kids being musicians, but with a leader like Baba they have faith in themselves. My purpose in bringing the theory of End Of The Weak was received well, as many emcees came through to be a part of the MC Challenge. A 16-year-old MC from the Bavubuka House won the freestyle challenge and could prove to be a major player in the international hip hop community. My friend and one of my many partners in crime, Stef from the UK, hosted the challenge and is working on taking over a hip hop night in Kampala to get a regular EOW MC Challenge established. Babaluku and Krazy Native have set the foundation for the UG Hip Hop music scene and the MC Challenge will help it evolve. I spent time with two groups of break dancers, who were eager to perform for my camera. They learn from US dance collectives like Rock Steady Crew, but add a dash of native flavor. I was highly impressed by the dedication of these kids and their desire to learn more.”

“Late one evening, after leaving Club Rouge, a nice club and my regular haunt, I photographed a car accident, which promptly brought police attention to this muzungu and her camera. With my friend Roshan driving, Tobi and I passengers, we were escorted down the street by a truck full of about 10 police officers to a quiet area not far from the accident. The interrogating officer, Edwin, asked the typical questions of who we are, why are we there… Tobi explained we work with children, so he warned us about photographing freely and let us go. I was never concerned about going to jail, but more of how much I would have to pay to get out of it. Luck would have it, Edwin thanked us for helping kids and sent us on our way. There are many things to say about politics and religion in Uganda, but that is a book in itself. The political climate is stable and people live freely. I met a handful of kids who lost their parents when the current president Museveni took over Idi Amin’s regime, but there was not any obvious animosity. Most people agree that Uganda flourished most during Amin’s reign, but based on what I saw and how I lived, the people continue to flourish. Many people complained that jobs are difficult to find, but that is an international struggle. Christians and Muslims co-exist peacefully, which I discovered through spending time with both sides. The born-again Christians are just as crazy as they are anywhere, standing on the street corners yelling about their savior. Splashing in the Nile River, riding boda bodas through sugarcane fields, eating fresh pineapple, avocado and jack fruit, swimming in Lake Victoria, photographing the filming of a video shoot from the back of a boda, shooting a boxing tournament, and hanging out on a rooftop overlooking Kampala city are just a few highlights of my adventure. The friends I made became my family and the work I started is unfinished, so my return to Uganda at the end of the year will be even more successful and inspiring. As Tobin from LA said, I have laid my path now I must fulfill my purpose.”

Words and photos by Amy Hume. Big thanks to her, Snuff & EOW!