Gatas Parlament
Encyclopedia
Gatas Parlament is a Norwegian
group of rap
artists. It consists of the brothers Aslak and Elling Borgersrud and DJ Don Martin. All three have strong left-leaning political views, and make their feelings on many things, including American
president George W. Bush
, a common motif in their lyrics.
Elling Borgersrud has stood for national election as a minor political candidate for the Red Electoral Alliance
.
Gatas Parlament started out in 1993, taking the name Kveldens Høydepunkt (Highlight of the Evening). Don Martin did not take to the name, however, and thus it was dropped. Later, they attended a public speech by Carl I. Hagen
, the chairman of the right-wing party Fremskrittspartiet, where they threw eggs and rotten fruit at Hagen. This caused Hagen to comment that gatens parlament ruled the country, and the three rappers stuck with the name (the riksmål-wording of gaten was dropped for gata, more fitting for their sociolect
).
Gatas Parlament's DJ Don Martin is also host of the radio program Goodshit Radio.
During 2007 Gatas Parlament launched a collaboration with Hopalong Knut, a ska
band from Trondheim
which uses trønder dialect. When the two groups perform together, they call themselves Samvirkelaget (the workers' cooperative).
and their website killhim.nu ("Kill him Now"), which claimed to collect money for a bounty on the head of George W. Bush
. The campaign caused the American embassy in Norway to react, and the website was subsequently shut down. However, the Norwegian police found that their campaign was satirical, and there was no basis for prosecution.
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
group of rap
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
artists. It consists of the brothers Aslak and Elling Borgersrud and DJ Don Martin. All three have strong left-leaning political views, and make their feelings on many things, including American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
president George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
, a common motif in their lyrics.
Elling Borgersrud has stood for national election as a minor political candidate for the Red Electoral Alliance
Red Electoral Alliance
Red Electoral Alliance was an alliance of left-wing groups formed into a Norwegian political party to promote revolutionary far-left ideals into the Norwegian parliament...
.
History
Gatas Parlament claim to be the first Norwegian rappers actually to rap in Norwegian, although they were preceded by Ståle Stiil, whose album Yo was released in 1992. The pioneers of Norwegian Rap, such as Warlocks or A-Team, rapped in English.Gatas Parlament started out in 1993, taking the name Kveldens Høydepunkt (Highlight of the Evening). Don Martin did not take to the name, however, and thus it was dropped. Later, they attended a public speech by Carl I. Hagen
Carl I. Hagen
Carl Ivar Hagen is a Norwegian politician and former Vice President of the Norwegian Parliament. He was the chairman of the Progress Party from 1978 until 2006, when Siv Jensen replaced him as chairman of the party...
, the chairman of the right-wing party Fremskrittspartiet, where they threw eggs and rotten fruit at Hagen. This caused Hagen to comment that gatens parlament ruled the country, and the three rappers stuck with the name (the riksmål-wording of gaten was dropped for gata, more fitting for their sociolect
Sociolect
In sociolinguistics, a sociolect or social dialect is a variety of language associated with a social group such as a socioeconomic class, an ethnic group, an age group, etc....
).
Gatas Parlament's DJ Don Martin is also host of the radio program Goodshit Radio.
During 2007 Gatas Parlament launched a collaboration with Hopalong Knut, a ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
band from Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
which uses trønder dialect. When the two groups perform together, they call themselves Samvirkelaget (the workers' cooperative).
Controversy
The band caused controversy in Norway with their video "Antiamerikansk Dans" (Anti-American Dance) together with the Swedish rap artist PromoePromoe
Promoe is a Swedish rapper, and member of Swedish hip hop group Looptroop Rockers, formed in Västerås, Sweden, 1992. He released his fourth album in 2009 entitled Kråksången, and later the same year followed up with the mixtape Bondfångeri...
and their website killhim.nu ("Kill him Now"), which claimed to collect money for a bounty on the head of George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
. The campaign caused the American embassy in Norway to react, and the website was subsequently shut down. However, the Norwegian police found that their campaign was satirical, and there was no basis for prosecution.
Albums
- Holdning Over UnderholdningHoldning Over UnderholdningHoldning Over Underholdning is an album released by the Norwegian hip hop group Gatas Parlament in 2001.- Track listing :# Holdning Over Underholdning# Ti Mot En# Nå Om Da'n# Fucked-Up På Laurdag# Østkantens Pøbelvelde...
(2001) - Bootlegs, B-sider & Bestiser (compilation) (2004)
- Fred, Frihet & Alt GratisFred, Frihet & Alt GratisFred, Frihet & Alt Gratis is an album released by the Norwegian hip hop group Gatas Parlament.- Track listing :...
(2004) - Kidsa Har Alltid Rett (2008)
- Apocalypso (2008)
- Dette Forandrer Alt (2011)
Street records
- Bottlegs, Bsider og Bestiser (2004)
- 93 til Infinity (2007)
- Gateplata (2011)
Singles
- Naturkraft (1997)
- Stem Gatas Parlament (1999)
- Nå om da'n (2001)
- Bombefly (2004)
- Anti-amerikansk dans (2004)
- Spis de rike (2004)
External links
- Band homepage
- Goodshit Radio Show hosted by band member Don Martin