Turisti takes Finnish rap to a new level at Blockfest

Turisti became the most talked-about performer at the Blockfest hip-hop festival in Tampere, according to an analysis by Yle. His only festival performance of the year met the expectations of fans and others hungry for Finnish rap.

The 29-year-old artist’s show demonstrated that a Finnish rapper can create a performance that stands alongside international productions. The stage featured an aircraft, pyrotechnics and leading Finnish rap artists.

Turisti’s performance overshadowed appearances by international stars including Yeat, Future and Offset. The show made a lasting impression on the audience and may become a defining milestone in his career.

A carefully built superstar brand

Turisti, whose real name is Harlova Vukulu, has been Finland’s most-streamed artist on Spotify for the past two years. He has developed his brand systematically over several years.

His distinctive style and signature red colour were visible throughout the performance, including in small details. The international music magazine Rolling Stone has previously praised Turisti’s stage presence and compared him with Drake and Travis Scott.

In an interview with Vogue Scandinavia, Turisti said he wanted to look like a superstar. His individual clothing and hairstyles have been influenced by the United States, where artists need to stand out to succeed because music alone is not enough.

Top charting artists joined him on stage

An exceptional number of guest artists appeared during Turisti’s Blockfest performance: Ibe, Melo, Averagekidluke, Elastinen, Isac Elliot, Ares and Sexmane.

It is not a given that a rapper can bring together a large group of Finland’s most-streamed artists during a busy festival season, especially on a Saturday evening. Turisti brought six of the ten most-streamed artists in Finland from the previous year onto the stage.

The show lasted just over an hour and was a carefully planned whole that included music from Turisti’s Magic City album, due for release in October.

Turisti has shared the stage with other artists before. At this year’s Finnish Eurovision selection contest, UMK, he performed his song Kui paljon with Averagekidluke, Ares and Elastinen.

The analysis describes the guest appearances as a sign of respect and of Turisti’s exceptional standing. Performing with him is considered worthwhile, it says.

Misogyny controversy did not end his career

Turisti’s career has also included setbacks. In October 2022, he released the song Mietin ääneen with Lewi. The song was widely interpreted as misogynistic and was removed from streaming services following the controversy.

The fallout became a lesson in responsibility for Turisti, but it ultimately did not bring down the artist. Some of his music still uses traditionally gendered rap vocabulary, with women presented in roles such as servants, romantic partners or simplified sex objects, according to the analysis.

Turisti’s enormous success is permanently reshaping the boundaries of Finnish rap, the Finnish language, relationships between the genders and the expectations placed on successful artists.