Yugen Blakrok Tour Dates and Upcoming Concerts

Born and raised in Queenstown, in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, Yugen Blakrok first gained regional attention with her appearances (still as Blak Rok) on The Hiphocalypse Mixtapes - a movement based in Grahamstown around the mid-2000s. A commanding and defiant emcee, she quickly became known for her densely-lyrical style and conscious subject matter, earning her the respect of the underground rap scene. Seeking to broaden her skill set, she moved to Johannesburg in early 2007 and became part of the rap/poetry collective Recess Poetry for a short while before they disbanded. Refocusing on self and career, and re-emerging as Yugen Blakrok, she joined the acclaimed indie label Iapetus Records in late 2009, founded by producer/emcee Kanif the Jhatmaster. The two worked together to release her debut album Return of the Astro-Goth in 2013. Critically aclaimed, the strength of this project would earn her countrywide recognition and three nominations at the 2014 South African Hip Hop Awards, for the Best Newcomer, Best Female Artist and Best Lyricist categories. Working as an MC/DJ duo on stage, Yugen and Kanif played the SA live scene extensively, sharing stages with local and international acts all around the country. From festivals like Back To The City, Basha Uhuru and Oppikoppi, to historical Soweto underground hip-hop sessions Splash Jam and Slaghuis. By the time they opened for Sage Francis on the South African part of his world tour in 2015, the two had firmly rooted themselves in the underground and alternative. In 2016, they started their first tour abroad and over the following years, included numerous dates across Europe, both as headliner and also as opening act for the likes of MC Lyte, GZA, Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, Black Milk and Dynasty among many other hip-hop legends. Two years later, Yugen appeared alongside Vince Staples and Kendrick Lamar on the track "Opps" from the Black Panther film soundtrack. Released in February 2018, the album topped the Billboard 200 in the U.S. and was a hit on a global scale. The blockbuster film itself included "Opps" in an action scene. In 2019 she released her second album, Anima Mysterium, with French indie label IOT Records. The project, a fusion of hip-hop, trip-hop and blues (which also featured hip-hop pioneer Kool Keith) was very well-received and was accompanied by a 52-date European tour, establishing her as a commanding and defiant presence in the industry. That same year, she appeared on the popular COLORS channel, performing the track "Morbid Abakus" from the album. In 2020, she contributed the song "Metamorphosis" to the soundtrack of the groundbreaking video game Cyberpunk 2077. A year later, her song "Pedestal" was used in the VW Taigo campaign. Yugen and Kanif continued to tour until the end of 2022 when they began their hiatus: retreating to the mountains to work on Yugen's third album, due in the first half of 2025. The album, her first made outside of her home country, once again seeks to break free of style and conformity, and offers a new and strange sonic landscape for the listener to wander in and explore.