Over the last thirty years, Limoilou has seen the birth of an impressive number of rappers who loudly proclaim their belonging to the neighborhood. Without pretending to be an expert on the subject, I wanted to take the pulse of the rap scene in Limoilou today. By speaking with rappers and different players in the hip-hop world, I became interested in the evolution of the rap scene since the 90s, the issues that concern artists, what motivates them to write and what which connects them to the neighborhood. I therefore propose, in this series of three articles, a portrait which, far from being exhaustive, will, I hope, shed light on a culture at the heart of the identity and development of the Limoilou district.
“I’m not from Limoilou, I’m from Saint-Pie X”
This is generally what young people answer when asked about their belonging to the neighborhood, indicates William Beaulieu, community worker for L'Évasion Saint-Pie young people from the neighborhood are invited to participate. A small home studio is also made available to them to record and share their creations.
A rap enthusiast himself, William quickly realized the importance of hip-hop culture in the neighborhood. At Saint-Pie X, rap is omnipresent, he admits. The older ones listen to it and do it, and they introduce the younger ones to this culture. “Rap is part of the collective imagination of the neighborhood. »
In his early days as an employee for L'Évasion, William acted as a park worker. During his first summer in the neighborhood, he formed bonds with young people by discussing rap with them.
“I met young people who were doing cyphers[1] in the parks around a phone with a type beat YouTube[2] in the middle of the table, he remembers. Even today, these young people come to record here. »
Saint-Pie X has 446 housing units administered by the Quebec Municipal Housing Office (OMHQ). Located to the north of the Maizerets district, the low-rent housing complex forms a small community on an area of approximately 1 square kilometer. 1,300 people live there, 40% of whom are under 18 years old. A large part of the population of Saint-Pie
Several young rappers who grew up and live in the neighborhood have established themselves in the hip-hop scene in recent years. Let's think of Jayjay, 15 years old, who released the album X this summer under the record company 7ième Ciel or even to Melvin, another young rapper from the neighborhood, who launched Hostile Environment, Vol.1 a little earlier this fall.
Come together and express yourself
During the first writing workshops, William explains that he took the time to get to know the young participants better by questioning them about their musical tastes, their knowledge of rap and hip-hop culture. He then built a sort of theoretical framework and returned to the history and roots of hip-hop.
“What particularly interested young people was the fact that hip-hop was born among groups pushed to the margins, excluded and ghettoized in the United States in the 70s. In a certain way, they recognized in this reality,” estimates the community worker.
Notions like lexical fields or the theory of flowas well as the themes and approaches to be addressed were then presented to the young people, in order to help them construct and structure their texts.
Writing workshops open up to all kinds of discussions, explains William. “I invite them to ask questions about themselves: what kind of person they want to be, what pushes them to get up in the morning, how they identify with their neighborhood, etc. »
Debunking some myths
For William, one of the biggest pitfalls of creating in rap would be to pretend to have an experience that is foreign to us. To put forward a false image, often that of the “gangster”, and to leave aside what really affects us.
“You won't be able to progress very long in rap if what you write doesn't reach you. »
When talking with young people, he encourages them to talk about their group of friends, the people who are important to them and the issues that are important to them. “Rap can shed light on problematic situations. Without necessarily being militant or activist, just by expressing what you see and how it affects you. »
When sincere and mastered, rap becomes a tool to open up and express ideas that are otherwise difficult to formulate.
“You'd talk to a kid on the street corner and he wouldn't tell you half of what he says in his rap. »
[1] Cypher : Poetic elocution slammed or rapped, sometimes improvised.
[2] X + type beat : Hip-hop instrumental music in the style of X.
Definitions taken from Chiller Dictionary
Charette-Pépin, Jérôme. The chiller's dictionary. The Robert, 2024.
