HIP HOP HOORAY!

Hip hop publication HYPE Magazine is celebrating its 50th issue in true style. It’s the magazine’s biggest bumper edition yet at 96 pages. We have been featured in various media all around the world and have provided a platform for hip hop in southern Africa, and extended our reach to the upper parts of the continent. Eight years on we are the no 1 hip hop magazine in SA!

The birthday issue has been trending on twitter since its release and overheated (or can we say overHYPED) on FB, blogs, websites and local media. The issue contains various lists, for example the 50 best mixtapes, 50 best SA MCs, 50 epic moments in hip hop, 50 most important songs and 50 greatest albums of all time. The top 50 SA rappers list is a huge talking point. One, because it’s never been done before and two, because every rapper believes they are the best, so our criteria and rating system were questioned. HYPE has been documenting the culture for eight years and we’re seen as an authoritative voice for hip hop, so the task of compiling the top 50 lists were not taken lightly. The lists celebrate various artists who have impacted the culture. And we believe we have done what we set out to do.
Continuing the celebration, we have included a first ever ‘Women in Hip Hop’ supplement, which is a huge milestone, including the first ever all-female HYPE CD to celebrate women’s month. “The female voice in the culture is largely overshadowed by significant male impact and as a result women are the minority in hip hop from an artist’s point of view. So this supplement was a way to give the power to women to celebrate their achievements and successes,” says HYPE editor Simone Harris. Trendsetting indeed!
We would like to invite the community to help us trend again on this issue, with a focus on Woman in Hip Hop. This is a first for South African media. Help us to spread the word on this ground-breaking supplement in which we give a voice to women who are largely overshadowed when it comes to hip hop.
HYPE was launched in 2004. Panorama Publications CEO, Urs Honegger, says: “Since its inception we have strived to take this young culture to new heights, documenting and capturing all its magical moments. With a vibrant website as an extension of HYPE, 15,000 facebook followers and 8,000 on twitter, our sole purpose is to remain THE first choice for hip hop fans near and far. And with every issue of HYPE there is a free CD. The CD is on its 46th volume and still going strong!”  

The mag is for anyone who is a hip hop fan, regardless of age, nationality, demographics or race. We have readers as young as seven. Recently we got a comment that someone’s grandmother was reading HYPE. The average age is between 18 and 35. We have inspired and influenced thousands of people to get into the culture or aspire to become artists themselves. We have built many careers over the years and have given platforms for people to perform all around the country through our HYPE Live session tours.

In 2009 and 2010 we had the first ever HYPE Awards. The awards were hugely successfully and took on a life of its own. Look out for announcements on the next HYPE Awards soon.  

Issued by Panorama Publications on behalf of HYPE.
For further information contact:
Media:        Amanda Potgieter on amanda@panorama.co.za or 082 495 5904
Editorial:    Simone Harris on simone@panorama.co.za or 082 505 1110
Advertising:     Debbie Bishop-Williams on deborah@panorama.co.za or 072 467 5416