A rap festival near the Arctic Ocean delights crowds under the midnight sun

UTSJOKI Finland AP It was well past midnight when Mihkku Laiti appeared on stage to perform at an open-air music festival in the Finnish village of Utsjoki north of the Arctic circle Despite the time Lapland s famous midnight sun was still up During the summer months the sun doesn t go down at all in Utsjoki which is less than kilometers miles from the Arctic Ocean In the glow of blue spotlights Laiti rapped while a crowd of more than listened particular of them trilling along and dancing Like the majority of Utsjoki s residents Laiti is a member of the S mi Europe s only recognized Indigenous people and he rapped in his native S mi language Laiti also known by his stage name Yungmiqu is the founder of the Loktafeasta rap festival He first discovered fame on the television show Talent Finland where he surprised the judges by rapping in the g kti the traditional dress of the S mi It is brightly colored and often characterized by plaits pewter embroidery and a high collar The festival brought Laiti s Indigenous values to the spotlight though chosen of his fans could not understand what he was saying That didn t seem to bother anyone at the Loktafeasta as the festival mixed performances from artists in both S mi language and Finnish Several drank beer and ate sausages and the crowd seemed to enjoy the summer festival atmosphere despite spells of rain When I rap about my custom I want to show how being S mi is like from my point of view Laiti explained The Associated Press Because there are multiple stereotypes about S mi people and I want to like normalize the basic stuff we do and not romanticize those things he mentioned He added that he has not worn the g kti for performances for about a year now to show people that it is doable to be S mi and wear whatever you want Europe s only recognized indigenous people The S mi traditionally live in Lapland which stretches from northern parts of Norway to Sweden and Finland to Russia However of the roughly S mi people living in Finland the majority now live outside their homeland The S mi people were oppressed for centuries by the powers that ruled and exploited their lands including bans of the use of their native tongues and efforts to suppress their values In the past decades there have been efforts to reestablish their rights including the right to use S mi languages which is now guaranteed in the Finnish constitution Currently the historically semi-nomadic S mi people have modern lifestyles The sparse who still tend reindeer do so with modern vehicles digital tools and regulated land use However there is an effort to preserve the S mi s cultural identity Distinctive S mi clothing was worn by numerous at Loktafeasta as is typical on special occasions Artists rap in Finnish and S mi language At the festival Laiti mostly needed his fans to be happy and enjoy the music I want people to feel enjoyment of program and I just want people to be happy that we have this kind of festival here in Utsjoki he disclosed with a smile Among the other acts was a duo comprised of self-confessed old school tango crooner Jaakko Laitinen and rapper Jouni J They also reside in Lapland and perform in Finnish I see a connection from the hip hop and the tinkering with words to the old Finnish like Kalevala freestyling folk poetry reported Laitinen referring to Finland s national epic about the Earth s creation So that obvious connection and the Finnish tango is part of our soul and heart he added A world away from the birthplace of rap music in the Bronx Although the duo s songs were a world away from the birthplace of rap music in the Bronx in New York City their performance brought happiness to Utsjoki s locals and visitors Music travels and music brings people together It s the magic of the international language of music Laitinen disclosed Source