Vivo Per Questo – Power to the Words – Canada Tour

In the series Cecil H. and Ida Green Visiting Professor

Vivo Per Questo – Power to the Words – Canada Tour
Amir Issaa, Rapper, Record Producer and Activist
Coach House, Green College, UBC, and livestreamed Tuesday, February 7, 5-6:30 pm, with reception to follow

This event has been organized in partnership with the Department of French, Hispanic and Italian Studies, UBC In recognition of Black History Month, Green College and The French Hispanic and Italian Studies Department are pleased to host a multi-day event with Afro-Italian hip-hop artist and activist Amir Issaa. Amir will perform a live concert at Green College on Tuesday, February 7th at 5 pm. The concert will include a Q&A with the artist, and it will be followed by a reception where attendees will have a chance to chat informally with our guest. Amir Issaa will also lead students in ITAL courses in the creation of a collaborative rap song, and on February 8th at 3 pm, he will present his books Vivo per questo/I Live For This and Educazione Rap/Rap Education in the French Hispanic and Italian Studies Department.

Amir Issaa was born in Rome in 1978 from an Italian mother and an Egyptian father. His passion for hip-hop culture dates back to the 1990s, and has become a medium to ease the emotional distress caused by his difficult childhood, and to help other kids improve their own situation. Together with his activity as a rapper, Amir has collaborated with several not-for-profit associations throughout his career. Amir has recorded seven albums and several EPs. In 2011, together with the Italian band The Caesars, Amir worked on the soundtrack for Francesco Bruni’s movie Scialla!. Amir is the founder and artistic director of Potere alle parole (Power To The Words – beats and rhymes against discriminations), a writing laboratory with the purpose of unpacking stereotypes and prejudices that lead to discrimination, created in collaboration with UNAR (National Anti-Racism Union) and the not-for-profit association Il Razzismo è una brutta storia (Racism is a Nasty Business). The workshop took place in public schools, and it involved rap artists such as Ghemon, Kiave, Madbuddy and Mistaman. In June 2017, Amir published his memoir, Vivo per questo/I Live For This (Chiarelettere Edizioni), and in 2021, he published his second book Educazione Rap/Rap Education (ADD Editore).