| Rapped In Controversy: Why Has Raxstar Been Cut From Two Melas? | ||||
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Warning: the external video blogs linked to from this article contain some strong language. “Mela” means “to meet” and “to come together.” The purpose of the South Asian melas across the country every summer is to realize this on different levels, as audiences comprising a range of people attend the events to appreciate the diversity of Asian culture and to celebrate the work of its talented individuals. It is against this backdrop that the past week’s occurrences, involving Raxstar and other acts, have become so controversial. On 5th July, Raxstar announced via his Facebook:
Immediately, fans voiced their anger and disappointment over the decision to cut the rapper from the upcoming 24th July event, emphasizing that he deserves to be there. Fans also pointed out that there are indeed many youngsters who attend Slough Mela eagerly anticipating Raxstar’s performance, some of whom may not even bother going now. But there are other acts with a primarily young appeal still scheduled for Slough Mela. So, why was Raxstar cut? Arguably, this decision is an instance of musical elitism and “we can give them a bit, but not too much.” Rap and youth culture have always been looked down upon by the establishment. Rap is an art form that puts power in the hands of the people – it’s music for the people, by the people. Rap speaks especially to an underdog youth, and its artistry doesn’t lie in “conventional” skills, but in the skills of lyricism, flow and expression. The status quo doesn’t seem to get this and has a long history of misunderstanding and/or denigrating Rap. But all was seemingly not lost! Raxstar remained optimistic about his upcoming mela performances, including the now infamous 9th July Diversity Mela. Scheduled for 6.30pm at Diversity Mela, Raxstar arrived at the hosting Valentines Park in East London at 4.00pm. At the times of their performances, he, Arjun, RKZ, Faze and other artists were kept off stage. RKZ reported in a backstage vlog by Sid, “Every artist is waiting for their place. A lot of people were running late, a lot of sets were extended, so our set’s cut down.” Soon, the acts were told that they could perform one song each. Eventually, they weren’t permitted to perform at all.
One of the artists prevented from performing, RKZ reported on the developments in Sid’s video blog This incident is being considered an insult to the artists and fans alike, who had travelled and devoted their time, only to be fed unacceptable excuses by the event’s culpable organizers regarding other artists’ sets oddly being extended. Via Twitter, Raxstar, RKZ, and Arjun have since voiced their grievances. But why did this happen? The fans at Diversity Mela were clamouring for the artists who were eventually forced to leave without performing. One explanation could be that the establishment are simply out of touch. The poster for the event seems to evidence this, as they listed Raxstar as ‘Box Star’:
Despite being known for the song Name On The Poster, in which he literally spells out his name, those behind Diversity Mela managed to misspell Raxstar’s name on a poster. “Video ~ B-O-X-S-T-A-R, you should know my now that my name’s Box Star”: Fortunately, Sam Khan, rapper and peer of the other axed artists, earlier performed his set as scheduled at 3pm. But it seems as though there is a pecking order here, as if the organizers had simply determined, “Okay, we’ve had enough Rap and whatnot for one day, just bump the rest off.” Even if this isn’t the case, at the very least, this shows unforgivably poor organization, with a possible dash of politicking. Raxstar made clear his thoughts on the incident and what had occurred: "We travel all this way, and there are people that have come to see me perform, and the organizers won’t let me perform. There were two guys who tried to get me on stage – they talked to the [main] people – but no one's listening to them. These guys at the top, they get their mates on stage as soon as they get here. I’ve been here since 4.00pm. My slot was at 6.30pm.”
Turned away by organizers, Raxstar and RKZ leaving Diversity Mela Gauging from the responses on social networking sites, fans too are extremely indignant over the incident. From the plethora of comments online, the mood is neatly summed up by one which states; “What a total waste of the artists’ time and a complete let-down for their fans.” Mela season 2011 is only just underway. Melas are supposed to be about honouring and exhibiting all kinds of Asian culture and talent for all kinds of people, regardless of age, class, ethnicity, lifestyle or any other “division” you can think of. Melas should not be about poor management, bumping talented and deserving acts and actively disappointing the audience. People anticipate and value these annual events. They don’t want to tolerate lame excuses when organizers blatantly mismanage and spoil them. Don’t let Diversity Mela and the decision on Slough Mela become forerunners of your mela experiences to come. Act now. Register your complaints about Slough Mela abruptly dropping Raxstar from their line-up: Phone 01753 362 362 or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it And make your voice heard about the poor, unacceptable organization of Diversity Mela. Let the organizers know that their handling of the event simply wasn’t good enough, that you wanted to see the artists perform who weren’t allowed to and that, in coming years, you don’t want don’t want a repeat performance (from the organizers, anyway): Phone 07961 387 787 or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it For those of you who still wish to see Raxstar perform, you can catch him at the following melas, provided that the organizers retain at least a semblance of respect for Rap and, of course, keep things organized: Cardiff: 17th July Manchester: 23rd July Luton: 24th July Loughborough: 31st July Let’s make a change and get Slough Mela back on that list. More on this story: RKZ’s video blog:
By Govinda Lakha
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