AKA Back to the City performance off
The much anticipated AKA Back to the City reunion after a somewhat testy time away from the event will no longer happen. AKA last played there in 2011 and has not been back due to certain disagreements.
But 2016 was going to be different and the rapper says he reached out to the organisers to return this year.
But he has now made it quite clear in a lengthy explanation on Twitter as to why the AKA Back to the City gig will not happen.
The long story short is that AKA says he agreed to the gig – which he says does not pay particularly well – on condition he received the same headline billing as the international artists on the lineup.
AKA maintains – and quite rightly so – that his performance is world class and as good as any international’s show, plus he has the following in South Africa – and indeed Africa – to prove it.
This AKA Back to the City debacle highlights a genuine problem the South African music industry faces by not propping up its own artists fairly and significantly. But of course one could also argue that there are several other top South African rappers on the lineup too!
We’re sure there will be detractors who may say AKA is being full of himself but if one reads his Twitter note below, he does make some really good points and props to him for pushing himself as an artist.
He also acknowledges the other artists on the lineup but makes no apology for wanting to be billed as a headliner. The internationals include J-Live, Skyzoo, Camp Lo and Elzhi.
Sadly this is the 10th year celebration of Back to the City so it would have been fitting indeed to have one of SA’s biggest Hip Hop stars perform and if all of AKA’s facts in his note are correct, it’s a real shame.
Here’s the AKA Back to the City tweet we’re talking about. So far there’s been no response from the organisers.
Unfortunately I will no longer be performing at #Back2TheCity. See statement below. pic.twitter.com/3kJ1QFj3Jq
— AKA (@akaworldwide) April 11, 2016
