Karachi witnessed its first taste of French rap-impro as freestyle duo Lobo EL and Cotchei performed at Alliance Française de Karachi (AFK) at its Clifton campus.
The event was organised with the support of the Embassy of France in Pakistan and attracted a packed audience for an evening of unscripted rap, breakdance and cultural interaction.
Rap-impro is a form of competitive freestyle rap in which performers create and deliver lyrics live without relying on written material. Lobo EL, the 2019 World Champion of rap-impro, and Cotchei are recognised in France’s freestyle scene for creating complete songs spontaneously on stage.
Emmanuel Breurec, Director of Alliance Française de Karachi, opened the event and introduced MC Taishi, founder of Our Culture and Pakistan’s National Breaking Champion, alongside the French performers.
“This was an exchange of cultures,” Breurec said. “We wanted to show Karachi a side of French culture beyond the classroom, something raw, live, and unscripted.”
The French duo connected with the audience by using basic Urdu phrases before launching into a freestyle thanking AFK for the opportunity.
They also turned the performance into an interactive exchange. The artists called out “limoon”, the Urdu word for lemon, while the audience responded with “adrak”, meaning ginger.
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Lobo EL and Cotchei performed original material and invited local rappers to participate in an open-mic session. The event concluded with a breakdance performance by Taishi, drawing cheers from the audience.
Lobo EL also gifted one of his albums to an audience member as a keepsake, adding a personal touch to an evening centred on artistic and cultural exchange.
