HIP-HOP: Local nonprofit the Lost Childhoods uses hip-hop against youth violence
Last week local rapper G.o.D. Jewels released “The Lost Childhoods,” a stark tune about growing up surrounded by violence. The track is part of an in-progress compilation mixtape—which also includes music from Dave Coresh, Prince Jericho, and the Boy Illinois—created in collaboration with a nonprofit called the Lost Childhoods, based in Englewood and Woodlawn. The mixtape, The Lost Childhoods: Never Forget Derrion Albert, drops Mon 9/24.
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Mkwezalamba is referring specifically to Chicago rap, which has surged into the national spotlight this year largely thanks to the east-side drill scene and its celebrity face, teenage phenom Chief Keef. The drill sound—a local variant of the popular strain of southern hip-hop called trap—combines dark, aggressive, often brutally minimalist beats with lyrics that can be just as bleak. Young MCs growing up in some of Chicago’s most notorious neighborhoods tend to make music that reflects or even embraces the gunplay that surrounds them.
Mkwezalamba hopes to offer a different perspective with The Lost Childhoods. The project is about engaging positively with communities and spreading awareness of youth violence—and its release date is the third anniversary of the death of Derrion Albert, the honor student beaten to death near Fenger Academy. Albert’s murder attracted widespread attention, but only briefly; Mkwezalamba is determined to keep his memory alive. The mixtape’s track list isn’t settled yet, so if you want to submit material, e-mail music@thelostchildhoods.org.
—Peter Margasak
—Tal Rosenberg
