Rapper Akala at his Black History Month lecture : "The history which is taught to Black people

We all know that rappers rap their lyrics but we hardly ever come across rappers who rap poetry and Shakespeare plays. Akala originally known as Kingslee James Daley is one such rare artist who delivers power packed words through his articulate and passionate talks and raps quotes from Shakespeare plays. He demonstrates and explores the connections between Shakespeare and Hip-Hop, and the wider cultural debate around language and its power.

Music of Black Origin (MOBO) award-winning hip hop artist 'Akala' is a label owner and social entrepreneur who fuses rap/rock/electro-punk with fierce lyrical storytelling. If you surf his name on the net, you will come across various lectures and articles by him emphasizing on black culture. Akala graced Sheffield Hallam University with his thought-provoking talk on African culture which took place as part of the Black History Month. Black History Month is celebrated every year in October and aims to spread the awareness about the black culture and celebrate its contribution to society. Many students who attended his lecture were in praise of his dynamic personality. “As a person Akala is extremely insightful and someone who didn't just talk the talk but explained and delivered in the most eloquent way. From pre-colonial African History through to the Haitian Revolution, Akala revealed hidden gems from black history accompanied by performing in the style of rapping a cappella”, said organizer of the event and Education Officer of Sheffield Hallam Students' Union Hassan El Zafar, 23. Another student named Victor Eze, 24 who attended the lecture said: "I am from Nigeria and I have faced discrimination because of my skin and hair. It was a stunning event, absolutely unforgettable, and the best starting session of an event I have ever witnessed. Akala was great, powerful, uplifting and inspiring with his black history facts. This inspiring presentation addressed a rarely told history of the Black culture." I caught up with the man himself and asked him: "Why are you so passionate about the subject of Black History?" Akala answered: "The only thing people know about Blacks is that they were once slaves and a Civil war happened and everything became alright for them. That's not even a fraction of truth of their history. I would be lying if I said that my life was all rainbows. I think if I was white, I would have been somewhere better." I asked: "Why do you think it is important for the Black people to know their history?" and he replied: "We all know that to create a future, we must act in the present and learn from the past. If Black people are not aware of the past then how can they create a future? Our perception of Black people comes from watching movies but there is more to them. They are not just rappers or movie stars or criminals. For example very few Black people would know about Imhotep, the black Father of Medicine, and about the mathematical and astronomical achievements of the ancient Egyptians who were black." He also criticised the education system in black countries. He said: “Teachers don't teach at school. They just deliver the curriculum like robots. Teachers do not present facts but rather a distorted history of black civilization civilisation which leads to students having no sense of pride in their own culture." According to Akala there is a dire need for the black people to learn about their culture and heritage. He opened up a little about his personal hobbies when not making music and delivering lecture. He said: "I am an avid reader and quite literally have a big library. I also love to travel and have touched down almost everywhere in the world." He concluded by rapping few lines from his famous song Fire in the booth for me: "It´s only been sixty years since hung blacks and burnin´em, and that was so cool, they even gave the kids a day off school "go have a picnic, it´s fun to watch the little monkeys die" then people act a little dysfunctional and you wanna pretend you don´t know why!" If you missed Akala at Sheffield Hallam University and are eager to hear him, here is his month's lecture itinerary https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10154259322288102 Black History month events are taking place for the entire month of October and you can find more information on them by logging into http://www.hallamstudentsunion.com/ents/event/959/