Expect a wide range of lyrical styles and rhythmic beats from a group of Pacific Northwest hip-hop and rap artists as the Associated Students Productions will present a concert featuring Mostafa, Landon Wordswell, Sango, Sam Lachow and Raz Simone at 6 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 23, in the Viking Union Multi-Purpose Room. This marks the second show for Simone and Lachow at Western.
Jonah Falk, AS Pop Music Coordinator, placed an emphasis on the region’s hip-hop culture in selecting the lineup.
“We have artists from Bellingham, Oregon and Seattle — all with hip-hop aesthetic,” Falk said.
Falk believes the artistic chemistry and homegrown, familiar appeal of the performers will be a strong theme throughout the show.
“My favorite shows are always shows where the artists know each other on the lineup,” Falk said.
Falk booked most of the artists through their agencies, but made a different connection with Mostafa, a Bellingham native, and his tourmate Landon Wordswell. Mostafa has an appreciation for the area and said he’s excited to return to his roots and perform for his community.
Mostafa and Wordswell have known each other for six years and have performed with each other on multiple occasions.
“It’s always fun to be out here with family,” Mostafa said.
“The Bellingham music scene and the community in general has always been really supportive and open to hearing people’s perspectives,” Mostafa said. “They appreciate people who take time to put into their art and their craft.”
Mostafa aims to be a good storyteller through his rhyming and his interaction with the audience throughout a performance. His focus is to create energy within the crowd and wants to be able to connect with people on a “basic human level” through his music.
Wordswell, a 28-year-old rapper originally from the St. Louis area, has been creating music for 10 years. A list of his musical and creative inspirations include The Roots, Elzhi, Mos Def and Talib Kweli.
“It’s always fun to be out here with family.”
Mostafa
After moving to the Northwest six years ago, Wordswell made his way through various venues throughout Washington State, including a few shows in Bellingham at venues like The Shakedown.
Wordswell lets his raps be a product of his environment, and his themes are always changing to stay current with what is happening around him. In the end, he wants to connect the audience with his life narration and anecdotes as his music progresses through the years
Falk says you won’t leave the concert without experiencing something you can connect to.
“It’s coming at the Northwest up-and-coming [artists] from a bunch of different veins of music and hip-hop,” Falk said. “There’s gonna be something for everybody there.”
