The Council to represent at Trinity International Hip Hop Festival
The Kingston and New York-based Hip Hop collective The Council is slated to perform at the 14th Annual Trinity International Hip Hop Festival in Hartford, Connecticut, from March 28 – 31, 2019. The four-member group, comprising Five Steez, Nomad Carlos, The Sickest Drama and Inztinkz, will grace the stage for a 30-minute set at the festival’s main show on Saturday, March 30, at Trinity College.
In addition to performing, The Council will also present at Trinity College on Friday, March 29, their panel titled ‘First Coast: The Jamaican and wider Caribbean involvement in Hip Hop’. The Council will discuss the role of the Jamaican sound system culture in the development of Hip Hop, DJ Kool Herc and the larger Caribbean contribution to the culture up to today.
Hip Hop acts from around the world and the United States will converge at the Trinity International Hip Hop Festival where The Council will be the sole representatives from Jamaica and the Caribbean. It was a similar situation in 2018 when Five Steez of The Council became the first Jamaican act to appear at the festival in its then 13-year history.
“It was an amazing experience performing last year and connecting with everyone there,” says Five Steez. “I’m happy I’m able to repeat it and even more grateful that the entire crew was selected because we’ll be able to have a stronger impact.”
The Trinity International Hip Hop Festival has been held annually at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, since 2006 and has featured the likes of K’Naan, Talib Kweli, MC Lyte and Rakim.
“It’s an honour to be recognised for the work we’ve put in over the years and to be able to share the same stage as legends and our peers around the globe,” says Inztinkz, producer and rapper in The Council.
The Council has been championing the Hip Hop culture in Jamaica by independently releasing music as solo artists and staging events together for years. In 2012, The Council created the city’s premier event for the genre, Pay Attention, before shifting its energy towards a crew album in 2015 when the four members took on the name The Council. In 2017, the group released its debut album Nothing Else Matters, with features from underground rap cult favourite Tha God Fahim and Reggae lyricist Kabaka Pyramid.
