LANDIM + TWA + GHOYA + HARLEY KSD + YOUNGTHUGZ + DANSLARUE + SANDRO MM + DJ FUMAXA PROGVID The history of Creole rap in Portugal is almost as old as rap in Portuguese — although it’s hard to trace a path that began on the streets, in freestyle circles, with beats made by mouth and hands. Names like TWA, Nigga Poison, and Da Blazz were some of the first to leave a deeper mark on its history. Both in and outside of Cape Verde, Creole rap has been gaining more and more ground in the Lusophone hip hop scene. While rapping in Creole was once seen as a barrier to success, the increasing number of views on YouTube and social media followers now proves otherwise. Over time, always more underground than Portuguese rap, Creole rap has quietly grown in both quantity and quality, largely due to the rise of a second generation of Cape Verdean immigrants. In recent years, the widespread use of social media and music videos has driven faster growth for this genre within the national hip hop scene. Despite the effects of the economic crisis — which forced many to become immigrants again, seeking better lives in places like London, Paris, or Luxembourg — Creole rap doesn’t have fixed geographic boundaries. It has overcome physical barriers, creating its own communities and niches wherever it exists. This ongoing story, which will continue to be written on November 22 at NAADA 3.0, is a continuous narrative of inspiration, breaking barriers, and collaboration, passed down from generation to generation, from artist to artist.