The rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine, luxury cars and BMX pros came together in the Lucerne hinterland for a bizarre event. The event was sponsored by a Swiss car dealer. An eyewitness account.
Switzerland in August, a weekend full of cultural highlights. 75,000 fans celebrate the Büetzer Buebe at the Letzigrund Stadium in Zurich, and 15,000 hip-hop fans meet at the Royal Arena Festival in Orpund. And in the basement of an industrial building in Reiden, Lucerne, the scandalous rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine performs – in front of an exclusive group of hundreds.
Tekashi 6ix9ine is something like the «unguided missile» of American hip-hop. A disturbing figure, visually and aurally. His rap extends its claws and literally jumps in your face. He made his international breakthrough in 2017 with songs like “Gummo” and “Keke”. In videos, the New Yorker with a tattooed face and rainbow-colored hair can be seen among mounds of marijuana, surrounded by an armed mob complete with gang symbols. Everything points to underground.
The star in the supporting program
Tekashi 6ix9ine made his last appearance in Switzerland in July 2018 at Zurich’s “Q”. The club was full, the artist was more than “fashionably late”, his performance was overheated, the sound quality was sub-par. After twenty minutes the spook was over. Four years later he reappears in the Lucerne provinces – with orange and yellow pigtails, pink-soled rubber boots and jeweled teeth. In a garage in Reiden, he appears as the main attraction of the supporting program.
In Reiden, Lucerne, Tekashi 6ix9ine is still a rap star.
Refreshment is provided.
In Reiden, Lucerne, Tekashi 6ix9ine is still a celebrated rap star.
Free catering and refreshments will be provided.
Tekashi 6ix9ine – a big celebrity for a small audience.
Because at this deluxe event, which no flyer or poster draws attention to, it is primarily about sport: twelve of the best BMX flatland riders in the world compete against each other. People from all walks of life and nations have come together to marvel at the bike pros’ breathtaking tricks. But the picturesque bodies in the corner also attract attention.
“Please no photos of the cars,” says various notice boards. The owner Daniel Caccavo repeats it again and again for the photographer: “Just no pictures of the cars!” The collection consists of around a hundred luxury cars: Ferraris, Porsches, James Bond’s Aston Martin, a few Mercedes and even more Ferraris.
In fact, we’re in one of five garages around the world where Caccavo stores his company’s Insidercars stock. “Come with me!” he calls out during a pause. A few hundred meters away, in an extension of his office building, his real showpieces are spread over three floors: cars worth several million francs. Mostly also Ferraris, but rarer, more expensive, even more valuable.
After the short tour, the electric vehicle will take you back to the hip-hop and BMX event. Also back to Terry Adams, Lee Musselwhite, Yu Katagiri and Matthias Dandois, the best flatland BMX riders in the world. They seem quite taken with the unusual scenario: “Last week we competed in the south of France in front of 40,000 spectators,” says the American Terry Adams. “Here we are all by ourselves. The pressure is higher, the prize money is high, the music is great.”
Winner Matthias Dandois wins $10,000.
The two-wheelers provide movement, the four-wheelers for capital.
Together with partners and sponsors, the organizer pays a total of 35,000 dollars in prize money; he also pays for all expenses. Caccavo wants to set a monument to flatland sport. «For me, BMX is part of the hip-hop culture – and I want to celebrate that with our event. The drivers all listen to rap anyway. Nobody gets on a bike without music in their ears.»
Dance on the bike
Frenchman Matthias Dandois confirms this. Before the battle, he sits in a corner leaning against a black Ferrari and meditates. The 33-year-old is the eternal sunny boy of the scene, he is as successful in sport as he is in business: his cap adorns the brand of an energy drink, his t-shirt the name of a textile company and the palmares nine world championship titles.
Dandois is also the most determined in the Reiden garage. His dance on the bike is a flirt with infinity. He spins and spins and spins on a bike. At some point he clamps the bike between his legs so that he no longer needs his hands. He seems to have arrived in weightlessness – only the clock can stop him and a euphoric speaker who keeps talking about the “best event in the history of Flatland BMX”. In the end, Dandois prevailed against the young stars from Japan and received a check for 10,000 dollars.
Dance on the front wheel.
Dance at the mixer.
The nine-time world champion Matthias Dandois before the decisive run. And Terry Adams shows a dance on the front wheel, which the DJ underscores with hip-hop.
However, the biggest star present does not need a bike, a microphone is enough for him. Tekashi 6ix9ne is a living controversy: his fans see him as the voice of the street, sucking in the raw energy of his tracks. A large part of the hip-hop scene treats him as a “snitch”, a traitor. In 2018, he was accused of, among other things, sexual activity with a minor, illegal gun possession and involvement in an armed robbery. He faced a prison sentence of 47 years. After he betrayed his accomplices as a key witness, the sentence was reduced to two years.
But Caccavo belongs to the camp of the fans: «6ix9ine is the last real one. If you take Eminem, if you take Snoop Dogg, if you take 50 Cent – they all have this background. They came to rap out of desperation.” There was a trigger for 6ix9ine’s criminal career: “The father was shot somewhere in a liquor store when Tekashi was twelve years old.” That changed him. “Since then he has carried an anger in himself.”
persona non grata
Tekashi 6ix9ine is now persona non grata for most American media. They no longer want to offer the rapper, who keeps getting entangled with the milieu, a platform. In Reiden, however, he can be celebrated. Everyone wants a picture with him. He seems quite impressed by this occasion: “I’ve never experienced anything like it,” he says. However, his own appearance is rather short and is limited to three pieces, which he raps to playback. But the exit looks befitting: a Lamborghini with a one-digit number is waiting.
