In a world stricken by a pandemic, violence, and polarization, bringing people together is of the utmost importance. We need to focus on creating platforms that bring people together. Technology is one of many tools available to us. However, depending on how it’s used, it has the potential to add fuel to the fire, not just bring people closer together no matter their location.
One great example of a platform that brings people together is AMP Global, a client of DPBell & Associates. AMP Global is a group that creates communities around content. Using their app, people can build community and be rewarded for engagement. They’re also giving brands and media companies great insight into young audiences around the world. Their app engages audiences through three steps. First, users view artist-uploaded content in the app. Then, they earn points for watching and sharing content. After voting, top-rated fans and artists can win awards.
AMP Global is seeking to change the way content is managed and who gains from it. Traditionally, only a few people have “owned” the power of content, or benefited from its creation. AMP Global seeks to change this. They believe that content belongs to the people.
Their latest project is Take Back The Mic, which focuses on the launch of the first music competition format born in Africa and shared to the rest of the world. Fans have used the Take Back the Mic app to select semi-finalist artists from Rwanda, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria, and Mauritius.
The world is in desperate need of such a platform right now. COVID-19 has created several new barriers to travel and cultural exchange, and we’ve also seen a new focus on the systemic injustices that people of color must face. Hip Hop culture has a global impact, and now The Mic: Africa is bringing communities together to celebrate some of the genre’s most talented artists.
The Founder of AMP Global, Derrick N. Ashong, or DNA, believes that “Hip Hop culture IS global youth culture, and people around the world have embraced, transformed and made it their own.” People around the world have created a community around hip hop music. This community extends beyond country, race, and beliefs. This community gets to pick the best of Hip Hop throughout the Continent of Africa, joined by their love of music and desire for larger connection.
DNA also goes on to say that “We’ve seen a generational uprising demanding justice from the US to the UK; from Colombia to Nigeria, and Hip Hop culture has provided the soundtrack to this movement for change.”
In a world where people aren’t as able to freely connect as they once were, an online global community is more important than ever.