Yugen Blakrok

Born in Queenstown, South Africa, Yugen Blakrok emerged in the mid-2000s via The Hiphocalypse Mixtapes (as Blak Rok). A commanding emcee with dense lyricism, she moved to Johannesburg in 2007, briefly joining Recess Poetry before refocusing on her career. Signing with Iapetus Records in 2009, she collaborated with Kanif the Jhatmaster on Return of the Astro-Goth (2013), earning three SA Hip Hop Award nominations. Touring extensively, they opened for Sage Francis in 2015 before launching an international tour in 2016, performing across Europe with MC Lyte, GZA, Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, and more. In 2018, Yugen appeared on Opps with Vince Staples and Kendrick Lamar for the Black Panther soundtrack. Her second album, Anima Mysterium (2019, I.O.T Records), fused hip-hop, trip-hop, and blues, featuring Kool Keith and a 52-date European tour. That same year, she performed Morbid Abakus on COLORS. She later contributed Metamorphosis to Cyberpunk 2077 (2020) and Pedestal to VW Taigo's campaign (2021). After touring until late 2022, Yugen and Kanif retreated to craft her third album 'The Illusion of Being', due in May 2025—her first made outside South Africa, promising a bold, exploratory sound.