THE STRAIGHT FACTS ABOUT X PLASTAZ FEATURE ARTICLES & REVIEWS - Msimu kwa Msimu EP (review at UKHH website, December 2003) - Rappin' for a reason (interview, NIZA website, Holland, summer 2001) - Tanzanian hip-hop (article in Billboard magazine, USA, October 2001) STYLE -African hiphop -Fusion of traditional Maasai and Haya vocal music with New York-style hiphop -Swahili lyrics about the life of common people in Tanzania. Special focus on women’s and child rights and the appreciation of traditional culture -Lively stage presence during which Yamat and the youngest two X Plastaz also perform solo tracks EXPERIENCE -East African hitsingles 'Bamiza' (no.1 in the national radio charts, 1997), 'Wachaga piga chata' (no.1, 1999), 'Haleluya/Shika Lako' (no.1 2001), ‘Ushanta’ and Aha (nr. 1 video charts, February 2003), ‘Msimu kwa Msimu’ (released December 2003) -European tours: Holland/Belgium/UK, 2001/2002,2003: Festival Mundial, Couleur Cafe, Live on the Low, The Shrine, Respect @ Millennium Dome, and various TV/radio broadcasts such as TV5, BBC, BEN TV) -Concert at Zanzibar Film Festival/Festival of the Countries of the Dhow, July 2002 -Participation in Dutch documentary on hiphop in Tanzania, 1999 INTERNATIONAL PRESS -Review UKHH.com, December 2003 -Feature in VIBE magazine, USA, 2003 -Interviews national tv, Holland, June 2001 (Jeugdjournaal), December 2002 -Various radio/tv interviews: BBC 1Xtra, Choice FM London, TV5 etc, June/July 2003 -Featured in an article in Y Magazine, South Africa, June/July 2003 -Interview Billboard Magazine, issue October 27, 2001 -Featured in an article in American mag Wax Poetics, May 2002 -Feature article in Dutch music mag OOR, August 2001 -Launch website www.xplastaz.com, May 2002 -Interview and 2 tracks on cd with Music Alive magazine (USA), issue November 2001 -Interview NIZA website, summer 2001 (read here) -Feature in Phat Magazine, Kenya, February 2002 -Interviews and articles in various Tanzanian newspapers, 2002 RELEASES -Album 'Maasai hip hop', scheduled release 2004 (Tanzania & Europe) -Compilation ‘Rough Guide to African Rap’, scheduled release February 2004 (UK/worldwide) -Compilation ‘Global Hip Hop’, scheduled release February 2004 (UK) -Compilation DSC, June 2002 (Holland/Sweden) -Compilation 'Washkaji wenye vipaji', Tanzania, May 2002 -Videos 'Ushanta' and ‘Aha’, October 2002 (Tanzanian television) -Promo cd-singles: Haleluya/Shika Lako, September 2001 ; Ushanta/Dunia Dudumizi, Sept. 2002 -Track on widely distributed Tanzanian compilation 'Chelea Pina', 1997 -2 tracks on cd with Music Alive magazine, USA, 2001