00:00This is the story of a fighter, a man taking punch after punch.
00:04In the video to his song, Atika, Senegalese rapper Nix tells his story.
00:09I was touring everywhere in French-speaking countries in Africa,
00:12even in Central Africa and everything was really great.
00:15But I had to face the reality of the industry that doesn't like really,
00:21it's not very structured.
00:23So at some point you have to do everything on your own and by yourself.
00:27So I learned, you know, I was lucky enough to start early.
00:36So I learned, you know, like we say, you learn the hard way.
00:41Nix is a celebrated musician and a winner of multiple Senegalese hip-hop awards.
00:46He tours across West Africa and Europe, but the commercial mainstream has never been his path.
00:57Instead, he builds his own projects.
00:59His latest is La Villa 13 in Dakar.
01:0213 is French for 13.
01:04The villa is also home to his studio where he's working on a new album.
01:08He aims to connect hip-hop with music from West and Central Africa.
01:12His latest music video was shot in the land of his ancestors, the mystical region of Casamance.
01:27So in this music video, I mean, I'm now into problems.
01:31Something happened to me and I don't know where I am.
01:34I'm fighting like ghosts on the beach.
01:39And it was cool because we're showing also the culture, you know, in Casamance.
01:50Yes, welcome to the villa.
01:53La Villa 13 is also a space for fashion by African designers.
01:58This coat.
02:00From you, who is mine, you know.
02:03I love it.
02:05Fashion is part of even hip-hop culture.
02:09Because hip-hop culture came with, you know, the way you dress and everything.
02:14The jeans, the sneakers, the way you wear shirts, hats and everything.
02:19It's light, you know.
02:21So it could be a proper coat for Senegal, you know.
02:25I love it.
02:30Nyx knows how to command attention.
02:32Proud, mysterious, contemplative.
02:35A mix that has caught the eye of Chanel.
02:38The French luxury brand booked him for fashion shows in Tokyo and Paris,
02:42even naming him a brand ambassador.
02:44A journey that started in Dakar.
02:47So to see Chanel come in here and do this show,
02:50and also create this vernissage with all those Senegalese that work on those arts
02:57and those, like, fabrics and the way they do it also,
03:00it was a good connection to show.
03:08The next stop at La Villa 13 puts art to skin.
03:17You know, look at everything.
03:22Art piece.
03:25Nyx believes in community, in people who inspire each other.
03:30La Villa 13 offers space for many art forms, including a gallery for paintings and sculpture.
03:42To me, to have a space where we can always, like, create and be together and help each other, you
03:48know.
03:50That's the goal.
03:51Never quit.
03:52Always create.
03:53Always be, you know, part of the story of your country.
03:59Nyx takes stories of Senegal into the world, including Berlin.
04:03At the IFA Gallery, the Diaspora Wonderland exhibition presents fashion as a means of liberation.
04:09It features his short film, Virgo, about a man in search of love and connection.
04:14You know, I tell stories through my music, through fashion, film, art, everything.
04:22I'm just, and to me, it's important to always have a story behind every art piece.
04:33Nyx.
04:34Rapper, cultural entrepreneur, actor, and film director from Dakar, Senegal.
04:40A man who continually rediscovers the art of storytelling.
04:44Rapper, Lucasfilm bop Seite evoke.
04:48successful theater from the 아마 andiverens.
04:53Then shops are the rest of the sacred life.
Comments