(AllHipHop News) Washington D.C. rapper Wale has announced a fundraiser to benefit Wyclef Jean’s Yele Haiti non-profit organization. Wale will be joined by D.C. artists like Tabi Bonney, D.C. Don Juan, Phil Ade, XO, Kingpen Slim, K-Beta, Que (formerly of Day 26) and other surprise guests tonight (January 18) at the 9:30 Club. The event, which will be hosted by College Hill South Beach’s Chris Cole, is being organized by DMV Helps Haiti. All proceeds from the event will be donated to the Haiti Earthquake Relief effort. Doors to the DMV Helps Haiti Benefit Concert open at 6:00 PM. Tickets start at $20 and all proceeds will be donated to Yele Haiti.
Haiti’s Hip-Hop community is mourning the loss of Evenson “Shacan Lord” Francis, an important figure in the country’s scene. According to reports, Shacan Lord was killed when his recording studio collapsed on him during the 7.0 earthquake, which completely destroyed Port-Au-Prince last Tuesday (January 12). Shacan Lord, 31, was a member of the popular rap group Gasoline Clan. His fellow rap group members gave him a private burial, an extraordinary feat, considering the destruction of the city and the chaos that has fallen upon the country. “We couldn’t bury him like the others,” Shacan Lord’s producer, Roosevelt Francois told the AFP. “We wanted to do something special for him.”
Pioneering rap star Africa Bambaataa has joined the board of directors of Mojofiti, a language technology company. Mojofiti is currently developing la range of language-enabled technology solutions and platforms designed to promote collaboration and communication across the globe. “As we further develop our plans to expand Mojofiti on a global basis, we are focused on ensuring the leadership of our company is comprised of global thinkers and people who can make an impact on an international scale,” said Dennis Wakabayashi, founder of Mojofiti. “Afrika’s worldly views and incredible career spent reaching people across borders with new cultural expressions and messages of peace makes him an ideal fit for our board of directors. Afrika is truly an inspiration to us all, and we look forward to working with him and the members of the UZN [Universal Zulu Nation] to achieve our common goals.”