A fertile ground for street warriors and budding poets alike, Portuguese hip-hop thrives on its rich roots, encompassing stories from Porto and the Chelas part of Lisbon, as well as the vital voices importing influences from the former colonies. With ear-grabbing releases such as 2006’s stellar Pratica(mente), Sam The Kid sealed his place as a driving force on the scene, building on his love affair with boom-bap through inspired collaborations and diverse stylings. Meanwhile, socially minded wordsmith Valete and genre-hopping duo Expensive Soul affirmed that hip-hop tuga can possess both political drive and stylistic versatility.