Listen to work produced:

Hip Hop/Spoken Word Pilot Project

It is estimated that around half a million Arabs live in the UK. London has attracted the majority who have settled here largely from Egypt, Morocco, Palestine, Yemen, Lebanon, the Gulf States and Iraq. The Borough of Westminster has the highest density of Arabic speakers in the capital.

As part of their GCSE work, Dash Arts has guided Year 9 English students at Westminster Academy through an exploration of the classical tradition of Arab poetry and encouraged them to create their own work in response. The Mu'allaqat is a collection of pre-Islamic poetry, composed in and around the Arabian desert during 6 AD. Students have considered what The Mu'allaqat reveals about the values, culture and heritage of the Arab identity and thought about modern-day parallels to The Mu'allaqat. The project challenged stereotypes and offered an opportunity for students to reflect on their own lives and create original work inspired by The Mu'allaqat and
a professional hip hop artist.

This project is feeding into the forthcoming Dash Arts Arabic Series and is a pilot for future developments with other artists and venues. It is our intention to include the young people's work within the Series with the aim of exchanging ideas and inspiration between participants and professional artists.

Participants in this pilot worked with Mohammed Yahya
www.myspace.com/mohammedyahya

Funded by The Samuel Sebba Trust and Inter Faith Youth Trust