Biography
Prophets of Da City stand among South Africa’s leading rap and hip-hop collectives, distinguished by their high-energy shows, fusion of African rhythms with hip-hop beats, and lyrics that confront political realities. Their style was characterized by westnet.com as “a devastating mix of old-skool meets new school rhythms and enough tongue-twisting rhymes to keep your head in a spin.”
The group’s core comprises Cape Town rap veterans Ready D, Shaheen, and Ramone. Ready D, raised in the impoverished District Six neighborhood of Cape Town, was relocated at age ten with thousands of other families to the high-crime Cape Flats area. His proficiency in breakdancing steered him away from crime and substance abuse; at fifteen he joined the athletic troupe the Ballistic Rockers. A visit to Liverpool, England, where he encountered prominent local DJs, prompted him to acquire turntables after returning home, after which he captured the South African National DJ Championship on three occasions.
Shaheen, born in Cape Town and the son of jazz musician Issy Ariefdien, spent his early years in Cape Flats yet journeyed widely alongside his father. The rapping of the Sugarhill Gang motivated him to take the stage at the music venue The Base, where he maintained a parallel commitment to political activism through his school’s students representative council.
Ishmael, the sole member not born in Cape Town, originates from Rustenberg in the former Eastern Transvaal. He was raised by his grandmother while his father labored in northern South Africa’s coal mines, left school early to work as a gas station attendant, and later established himself as a singer, rapper, and raga vocalist in Johannesburg nightclubs. In 1992 freestyle dancer Ramone discovered him and recruited him into Prophets of Da City for a sixty-date anti-drug tour of schools.
Ramone endured severe hardship before aligning with the group; after fleeing home at eleven, his dancing ability rescued him from criminal involvement. He secured victories in local contests and claimed the national freestyle championship twice. During the mid-’80s Ready D invited him to join the Ballistic Rockers.
The youngest member, Mark, abandoned his studies to become a street cleaner and had previously performed with breakdancers the Dream Team prior to entering Prophets of Da City.
The group’s core comprises Cape Town rap veterans Ready D, Shaheen, and Ramone. Ready D, raised in the impoverished District Six neighborhood of Cape Town, was relocated at age ten with thousands of other families to the high-crime Cape Flats area. His proficiency in breakdancing steered him away from crime and substance abuse; at fifteen he joined the athletic troupe the Ballistic Rockers. A visit to Liverpool, England, where he encountered prominent local DJs, prompted him to acquire turntables after returning home, after which he captured the South African National DJ Championship on three occasions.
Shaheen, born in Cape Town and the son of jazz musician Issy Ariefdien, spent his early years in Cape Flats yet journeyed widely alongside his father. The rapping of the Sugarhill Gang motivated him to take the stage at the music venue The Base, where he maintained a parallel commitment to political activism through his school’s students representative council.
Ishmael, the sole member not born in Cape Town, originates from Rustenberg in the former Eastern Transvaal. He was raised by his grandmother while his father labored in northern South Africa’s coal mines, left school early to work as a gas station attendant, and later established himself as a singer, rapper, and raga vocalist in Johannesburg nightclubs. In 1992 freestyle dancer Ramone discovered him and recruited him into Prophets of Da City for a sixty-date anti-drug tour of schools.
Ramone endured severe hardship before aligning with the group; after fleeing home at eleven, his dancing ability rescued him from criminal involvement. He secured victories in local contests and claimed the national freestyle championship twice. During the mid-’80s Ready D invited him to join the Ballistic Rockers.
The youngest member, Mark, abandoned his studies to become a street cleaner and had previously performed with breakdancers the Dream Team prior to entering Prophets of Da City.
Albums
