Think the U.S. has a lock on hip hop-inspired street art? Think again! Fans of old school rappers Tupac and Biggie Smalls have left their mark on the streets of Amman, Jordan.
I came across this hastily scrawled tribute to America’s “rap kings” during my visit to the Middle East in April.
The hip hop shout-out is surrounded by other graffiti, some in Arabic, on a cobblestone-paved street in Jordan’s capital.
Unlike the street art in Cairo, Egypt, this work does not appear to have a political message. However, all of the graffiti wasn’t lighthearted. A street philosopher scrawled the line, “Casp!! God?!” across the wall of a gated building.
I was surprised to find this graffiti in an upscale part of Amman, located near Al-Rainbow and Fawzi Al-Ma’Louf streets. It sits near the entrance to the Wild Jordan restaurant and gift shop.
Wild Jordan is part of Jordan’s Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN), and is responsible for developing eco-tourism businesses in national parks.
I didn’t see much evidence of hip hop culture in this small Middle Eastern nation, but I enjoyed seeing the familiar names– Tupac, Easy E, and B.I.G.– on a street 5,756 miles from home!
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This is the latest in a series of reports on the “Restoring the Journey” trip that brought US tourism leaders to Egypt and Jordan to investigate travel safety. I accompanied the delegation, which was sponsored by local tourism ministries.
Follow Downtown Traveler on Twitter, Facebook and Flickr for photos and videos of the trip, and look for the hashtag #SafeME on Twitter.
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It’s interesting to see how far American music has reached. Even on the other side of the world, some people express themselves the same way (graffiti).
True… it was surreal seeing a Tupac shout out halfway around the world.
Nice piece on the street art in Jordon Leslie. I wonder what the locals make of it there? Do they think its vandalism, or “art”?
I think there’s artistic drawings of street art, and street art with a message in the form of art. Personally I like the latter!
I think graffiti is always polarizing… some people hate it, especially if it’s words and abstract (like this) instead of a more representational mural. I suppose they don’t hate this too much, since it looked like it had been up a while 😉
It’s cool that you’re noticed the Graffiti in Amman! 🙂
Well, to give you a better understanding of the Hip Hop culture here in Amman, there are actually many graffiti artists, they mostly make tags with their names, but lately they’re using it more to deliver a message, like “Amman is us” and things related to their freedom, and the thing that I love most about it is that they’re using Arabic to do the graffiti. In the other hand, people are not used to it yet and mostly think of it as if it’s silly, but it’s just new for them, so hopefully soon they will just notice the beauty of it.
You can find work of some artists in this group http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=114949366964&v=wall
There was this project by UNRWA to make all the outer walls of their schools in graffiti, and it was made by the students or graduates of these schools, which was a very nice idea of them.
We actually have a not bad underground Hip Hop scene, which is rising fast lately. I am a Rapper/Music Producer myself for around 11 years now, and only lately people started to accept what we do, which is not bad, and we have many great Rappers and Music Producers here in Jordan, such as Ostaz Samm who is probably the most know Arabic Rapper in the middle east after being in the simi-finals of Arabs Got Talent. We have Damar, who is one of the illest music producers in the middle east, working with Immortal Entertainment and collaboration with international artists. So I think that the Hip Hop scene in Amman is becoming great, and I wish if I had known you when you were in Amman to show you around.
Salam.
Wow- had no idea there was such a strong hip hop scene in Jordan! Thanks for sharing your experience. A return trip to Jordan is high on my list. I’ll be sure to reach out the next time I visit!
I recently saw on PBS that Tupac was seen recently in Jordan. Perhaps this explains the art.
Cool- didn’t know Tupac secretely left NZ for Jordan. He’s living quite the life after his supposed death 😉
I heard there is a lot of cool graffiti in Israel as well. I’m dying to get to that part of the world!
I bet! I’d love to go back and visit more of the Middle East. So many amazing destinations…
Who knew there was graffiti like this in Amman? Not what I would have expected but even this art gives you some insight into culture – or makes you even more curious!
It definitely piqued my curiosity… I’d love to experience the Amman hip hop scene for a night 🙂
You are the queen of finding street art and commentary.
Thanks! Do you have a lot of creative street art in Santa Fe?
Never thought of graffiti in Amman but then again you get it anywhere, where an individual wishes to express themselves. Best street graffiti I have seen is in Melbourne, Australia.
Thanks Amar for the comment! Isn’t it fun exploring street art when you travel? Will keep an eye out the next time I’m in Melbourne.
thanks for sharing!…I stayed in Amman for some time last year and can confirm that street art is an global thing 😉 http://www.flickr.com/photos/jofo2010/sets/72157624112565509/
Graffiti? Art? Most of that stuff is just a tag… I wouldn’t call that graffiti or art. Lines on wall. 😉
For me, what was interesting about the graffiti was the subject matter– US hip-hop artists– not the artistic merit. Tupac certainly has a wide reach!
Arabic Graffiti officially arrives in Jordan:
12. September – Amman, Jordan
Arabic Graffiti Book Release & Vernissage 6:30pm – 8:30pm With Ahmad Sabbagh & Typism featured in the book as Blouzaat Collective
13. September – 03.October.2011 Amman, Jordan Exhibition – Cattle Republic presents “Melt the Sugarcoat”
By Ahmad Sabbagh & Typism
Zara Gallery, Grand Hyatt Amman
Mezzanine Floor
http://www.zaragallery.org