The Curiosity Lecture series returns to the Festival with a line-up of our most thought-stirring speakers delivering one-time talks on topics of intrigue, interest and importance. Some 30 years after NWA burst out of Compton and the so-called hip hop wars unfolded between artists and police in the US, author and Sydney Morning Herald cultural editor Osman Faruqi delivers a timely talk on hip hop, censorship and creative expression in modern-day Australia. He discusses recent NSW Police moves to contact streaming platforms to remove songs they say could incite criminal activity and shines a light on parallels to the hip hop wars in 1990s America, the role of police bias and profiling, and concerns for free speech more broadly.
Supported by UNSW Sydney.
Osman Faruqi (Australian)
Osman Faruqi is the culture editor of The Sydney Morning and The Age. He is an award-winning journalist who has previously worked as an editor at the ABC and Schwartz Media.
