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... Kneecap, three young men from Northern Ireland who rap in Irish, has risen to prominence in recent years, with controversy surrounding its shows and political statements.
The hip-hop trio was formed in 2017, composed of bandmembers Mo Chara, Mgla Bap and DJ Prva, who come from Belfast. The band is part of the generation known as the "ceasefire babies," who grew up in the aftermath of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement that formally ended the decades of violence in Northern Ireland known as the Troubles. The group's lyrics span everything from working class youth culture in Belfast, to Irish language rights, to a desire for Northern Ireland to join the Republic of Ireland.
Why the trio raps in Irish
Kneecap says that rapping in Irish, long marginalized under British rule in Northern Ireland, is a political choice. When NPR met the band at an Irish-language cultural center in west Belfast in 2023, bandmember Mo Chara explained, "It's impossible not to be political here [in Northern Ireland] if you're going to speak Irish. It's very hard not to be political growing up in Belfast."
The Irish language -- which the British banned from Northern Irish government and courts under a recently repealed 18th century law -- is now seeing a revival, especially among young people.
Northern Ireland has seen a steady rise in Irish speakers in recent years, and Irish was made an official language of the region in 2022, where about 12% of the population now speak it.
Kneecap has been credited for leading what some have called an "Irish language revolution."
As well as being a political choice, the band says rapping in Irish is also a creative one. Kneecap has pushed the boundaries of the language in rap, with Mo Chara telling NPR that Irish isn't "just about fiddles and shamrocks." ...
