DRCongo Reps from Even the Tiniest Towns

The town of Marly-Gomont has French Congolese rapper Kamini to thank for putting it on the map. Last summer the artist uploaded his basement-budget video, "Marly-Gomont", onto the internet. By September his video had thousands of views. By mid-October he had a two-album deal with RCA. In December 2006 Time profiled Kamini as part of its Person of the Year articles on Internet-based content creators.

At a time when many hip hop stars are rapping about luxury cars, scantily-clad women, and diamond-studded everythings; Kamini took a different approach. He rhymed about what he knew -- growing up as one of a handful of blacks in a small town and dealing with its pressures, struggles, lessons and ultimately its laughs. "I couldn't rap about 'bitches' and 'hos' and do that whole gangsta thing," he says, "because it's not true. It's not my life."

Big up to Kamini for keeping it real all the way to a record deal. Check the rhyme here.