By Team Gom Sa Bopa
Team Gom Sa Bopa held the first Cypher Street Rap Battles and Panel Discussion of 2025 on January 4th and would like to thank everyone for their participation and support in making it a success.
This year, Gom Sa Bopa plans on taking a more proactive approach and doing things differently, starting our event with a panel discussion discussing the challenges and opportunities of the arts and entertainment sector. Our panel discussion focused on “Enhancing Artists’ Engagement on Social Issues”.
Firstly, on behalf of our team, panellists, and audience, we want to send our condolences to the National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC) and the family of the late Sainey Ceesay, who was an advocate and a staff member of the NCAC. May her gentle soul rest in eternal peace.
We are indebted to our panellists, who took their time to prepare and attend the vibrant discussion that teased out some important aspects that require improvement in our arts and entertainment sector. Some of the few points emanating from the panel discussion highlighted:
- The need for an arts and entertainment venue for Artists to be able to showcase their talent at reasonable prices, as indicated in the National Development Plan (2018-2021),
- The need for more support for upcoming artists, such as the Cypher Street Rap Battles Competition,
- The need for the Gambia Music Union to publicise their activities and for artists to register with the Union,
- The need for a revival of the Open Mic Festival and to reclaim the Arts and Entertainment Sector during the Tourism peak months,
These are just some of the few points from the panel discussion.
The Cypher Street Rap Battle featured the first open mic session where anybody had the opportunity to join the competition, which featured numerous entries that were approved and rejected by the overwhelmingly energetic crowd given their modest size.
A total of nine different artists made it through to the next round, which will feature even more vibrant battle rounds where artists will go toe to toe to qualify for the next round.
Our organisation took the opportunity to raise awareness and advocacy to address social issues to engage the young. This was done through the distribution of and through the panel and artist performances.
We want to take this opportunity to thank our amazing guest artists and the courageous up-and-coming artists who took to the stage to showcase their artistic talent for the enthusiastic crowd and those watching live from home. The energy at the show was palpitating and put the icing on the cake of what may be one of the most successful events we’ve organised.
We call on all stakeholders from the arts, entertainment, and tourism sectors, including the Gambian people, to join us on this journey to the final of the Cypher Street Rap Battles 2025 so we can make an even bigger and more positive impact in our sector and for our country.
The Cypher will always be remembered as a stomping ground for the discovery of incredible talent, which has gone on to be celebrated in The Gambia and abroad.
