King Kapisi

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King Kapisi
Birth name	Bill Urale
Born	Wellington,New Zealand
Origin	Wellington, New Zealand
Genre(s)	hip hop
Years active	1990s-present
Website	King Kapisi.com

King Kapisi is New Zealand-based Samoan hip hop artist Bill Urale. He was the first Polynesian hip hop artist to receive the prestigious APRA Silver Scroll Award for Songwriter of the Year for his single 'Reverse Resistance' in 1999. In 2002, he released his critically acclaimed debut album "Savage Thoughts", which won several awards. The songs on this album relate to youth growing up in urban environments, specifically to the Pacific people and their situation from his perspective. This music is about the celebration of the Pacific culture. King Kapisi believes his music to be deeply connected to the culture of the Pacific people and believes that the American - based Samoan hip hop groups have lost the love and pride of their culture and thus, the authenticity of their music. ^[1]

King Kapisi attempts to keep his music "real" by rapping about his Pacific heritage and the hip hop scene. He uses hip hop to promote the message of keeping "keeping it real" through your culture, learning your language, and knowing "where you are from." ^[2] Kapisi's lyrics and imagery have explored his complex post-Diaspora Pacific immigrant identity. He is a prime example of how New Zealand MC's are able to rap about their Diasporic identity in the text of their rap lyrics. Kapisi is now reaching out to the bigger global market. The transfer of Samoan hip hop identity to the US is something that already exists with artists who have settled and embraced their cultural heritage. ^[3]

He has his own clothing label, Overstayer Clothing.

[edit] Discography

Date	Title	Label	Charted	Country	Catalog Number
2001	Savage Thoughts		-	-
2003	2nd Round Testament		-	-
2005	Dominant Species	FMR	-	-	338765

[edit] References

^ The Space Music Feature: King Kapisi & the rise of Samoan Hip Hop
^ Zemke-White, Kirsten. 'How many dudes you know roll like this?': the re-presentation of hip hop tropes in New Zealand rap music' Issue 10. The Visualization of the Subaltern in World Music. On Musical Contestation Strategies (Part 1) http://www.imageandnarrative.be/worldmusica/kirstenzemkewhite.htm
^ Henderson, April K. “Dancing Between Islands: Hip Hop and the Samoan Diaspora.” In The Vinyl Ain’t Final: Hip Hop and the Globalization of Black Popular Culture, ed. by Dipannita Basu and Sidney J. Lemelle, 180-199. London; Ann Arbor, MI: Pluto Press, 200