Coming to Adelaide this July for the first time ever is hip hop festival Root Down.
As part of Umbrella: Winter City Sounds, Root Down will showcase some of Australia’s rising hip hop acts including Sampa The Great, Oisima, Abbey Howlett, Argus & The Liar and more.
Presented by Melt Frank and creative director Steve Pitkin, Root Down will be celebrating Adelaide’s hip hop roots both past and present. “It’s more of a unique hip hop festival. It’s really because Adelaide doesn't see a lot of hip hop festivals,” Steve says.
“I’ve seen the hip hop scene sort of come in ebbs and flows and I thought about a dedicated hip hop festival that is not just about what’s happening now but also dedicated to the history of hip hop.”
Telling the historical story of hip hop will not only be done through music but by also combining different platforms of the arts. “I like to make most of my events mixed media. I’ve got quite a few artists involved doing their own take on hip hop or their kind of imagery that could write the best picture… So we’ll have a lane way exhibition,” Steve says.
Root Down will operate like a street festival with artwork in the lane ways, music and dancing in the street and also interactive workshops throughout the day. “The Clockwork Crew are going to do some dance-routine demonstrations.
"We’re going to have the dancefloor on the ground in one of the alleyways where the crowd can get involved. It’s meant to be interactive and easy to attend,” Steve explains.
“We also wanted to do the same thing with vinyl and scratching workshops. We’ve got a small group: they don’t have a name, they’re just some guys that work together and do this kind of thing. They do an hour-long demonstration of break beats and they use drum kits, so it’s live drums and they also scratch a bit and play bass.”
Steve is hoping Root Down will transfer into an annual event. “I’m expecting Root Down to be something I bring back every year... because hip hop should be celebrated on a yearly basis.”
The Root Down Street Party takes place at Hyde St (Adelaide CBD) 30 July.
