The pyramid on the Noordlaan, a symbol of the neighborhood's foundation, celebrates 125 years of coal mining and 80 years of Italian migration this year. For Nobile, this place is more than a monument; it's a site of personal history, where he broke his wrist as a child, where a photo for a Genk hip-hop festival was taken in 2000, and which served as a halfway point to his grandmother's house.
He also recalls the 'Vieze Mannen' football field, where he played with neighborhood boys while the sprinklers were on, leading to muddy but joyful moments. The name 'vieze mannen' (dirty men) is said to originate from these times.
The street where it all began also includes Casa Papa Giovanni, a place for parties, dancing, and good food, and ACLI, where his parents were the first operators. Nobile had to walk from the 2nd to the 1st 'cité' for school, representing a very different world.
What many don't know is that the house by the church on the Noordlaan once housed Italian nuns dressed entirely in black and white, a whole community that is now gone, but whose presence Nobile still remembers.
Gianluca Nobile (°1982) was active as a hip-hop artist since the 90s and co-founded several Genk hip-hop groups. In recent years, he has shifted his creativity towards photography.
