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the Grio – Hip-hop artist mourns gentrification of black Seattle neighborhood

SEATTLE, Washington — It’s easy to see facts and figures charting Seattle, Washington’s real estate boom as a positive sign for the city’s economy.

But if you ask hip hop artist Draze, it merely charts the demise of his neighborhood, the Central District.

‘When I look at this place, I think it’s changing,” he said Tuesday. “In some regards, it’s over. It’s dead.”

Draze recently released a music video called “The Hood Ain’t The Same” about gentrification in the Central District and the end of Seattle’s African-American neighborhood.

“We have a responsibility to preserve it if we really want diversity,” explained Draze outside a long-abandoned African-American owned business, “We’re into diversity. We like the concept. But what is diversity if I don’t exist.”

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The Skanner Newspaper – ‘The Hood Ain’t the Same:’ Draze Brings Seattle Together on Gentrification

Draze, also known as Dumisani Maraire Jr., has an unequalled lineage in the Pacific Northwest: Born in Seattle, he is the son of Dumisani Maraire (1944-1999), the marimba superstar from Zimbabwe who became a University of Washington ethnomusicologist while igniting a musical movement throughout Oregon, Washington and beyond.

His mother, Lora Lue Chiorah, is a multi-talented educator, musician and dancer. His sister Chiwoniso Maraire (1976-2013) was the celebrated mbira artist and singer-songwriter behind the celebrated “Rebel Woman” and “Ancient Voices” recordings — she was called the “Zimbabwe Mbira Queen.” His brother, Tendai “Baba” Maraire, currently tours the globe as half of the Sub Pop experimental hip hop group Shabazz Palaces. Draze’s 12-year-old daughter Nya-J is already making a name for herself with original hip hop music performances and music videos.

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