HANG, Scotland’s first ever hip-hop and grime conference, has announced the latest additions to its inaugural all-day educational and live music event, set for Saturday 31st July.
New speakers include producer of The Rap Show with Tiffany Calver and The Grime Show with Sir Spyro at BBC Radio 1/1Xtra Kieran Soraghan and cultural innovator Mobolaji Agoro of Glasgow-based music platform Up2Stndrd and Forij arts collective.
The announcement also signals a new partnership between the conference and Association of Independent Music (AIM), the not-for-profit trade body representing the UK’s independent music sector and HANG. In a new addition to HANG’s online schedule, AIM will discuss whether to achieve success artists have to leave Scotland for London.
Chaired by the AIM’s Entrepreneur & Outreach Manager and featuring top names like Andy Musgrave of Supernature (the management company behind AJ Tracey), Eve Fairley-Chickwe from AWAL and unsigned Scottish star LOTOS, it’s set to be an unmissable panel. Ben Wynter explains: “Everyone at AIM is proud to partner with HANG on such an excellent conference. Having spent time in Scotland I have been able to soak up some of the exciting and diverse hip hop talent that exists in the nation. I have also had the pleasure of engaging some of Scotland’s hip hop community whilst discussing barriers and hurdles that they face by being so far from the hub of the music industry in London. As such, it is vitally important for AIM to partner with HANG to assist in creating a more equal and equitable industry for all, regardless of geographical location or any other barrier that may be faced.
Last month we launched our Associate Membership. This new membership tier means that the knowledge and resources that we house will be available to creators, managers, and labels for free as we double down on our commitment to create a fairer industry and embark on our quest to humanise the music industry. We hope that this partnership will lead to long term visibility and success for Scottish hip hop talent as well as a deeper bond between AIM and the Scottish hip hop community.”
Other conference additions include the announcement of rising Aberdeen grime emcee Chef and Scottish-Mauritian artist Clarrisa Woods who succeeded in gaining a showcase spot after last month’s artist callout. They will perform exclusive sets alongside Scottish Album Of The Year 2020 winner Nova, SAMA winner India Ros3, Ayrshire rapper Bemz and Mistah Bohze of Glasgow’s label Southside Deluxe.
Another exciting piece of news is the announcement of new hip-hop bursaries, supported by Creative Scotland. Artists working in hip-hop will soon be able to apply for new funding to develop their practice and test out new ideas. Delivered by Sunny G Radio in partnership with UP2STNDRD and 644 Studios, these new Creative Scotland funds will open for application during HANG on Sat 31 July.
Keep up to date with developments via Sunny G Radio website
Steg G from Sunny G Radio said: “HANG is a great opportunity to showcase and show out the huge range of exciting and diverse hip hop talent we have, and celebrate over 30 years of hip hop being created in Scotland. I’m really excited to be part of the team helping to provide the first ever hip hop funds in Scotland. I’m pleased at how accessible the whole process is, as it’s so important to encourage and support new and emerging Scottish hip hop artists to access resources and support. This is an amazing opportunity to help artists to move their creative projects forward.”
Creative Scotland is holding an information session for anyone interested in applying to the fund on Monday 2 August, 15:00-16:30.
HANG takes place at SWG3 on Saturday 31st July. Presented by the team behind the Scottish Alternative Music Awards and supported by Creative Scotland, Day passes for the online activities are free, and tickets to attend the socially-distanced evening showcase are £5 plus booking fee.
Get your tickets here.
