Hip Hop ya don't stop...

Yes, Paris was phenomenal but today in Harlem sorta kinda topped the Eiffel Tower. I can't say that the experience itself compares. Being on top of the Eiffel Tower and having an "ET" moment in a cafe where a writer I admire wrote were both meaningful parts of my birthday celebration in terms of inspiring me artistically. Today, though was even more meaningful because hip hop has inspired my way of being, which connects to how I engage with my work as an artist. So, before I was writing, I was singing and dancing in my mother's womb. It's something really visceral about how hip hop inspires me. Since I'm only in NYC for a few days, I thought a quick way to take a tour of the birthplace of hip hop would be to go on a HUSH tour. The tour takes riders to the Bronx and Harlem and is led by a celebrity hip hop pioneer. Today's tour was led by Grandmaster Caz.

Me with Grandmaster Caz

I really enjoyed the way he broke down hip hop by using his personal experience. For Grandmaster Caz, the fifth element of hip hop is style. The way he explained it, I actually like that and agree. I never thought about "style" as an important element but when I stop and think about it swagger has always been a part of hip hop.  For an audience to buy into what you're doing, you have to bring it. Amateur night at the Apollo is a prime example of how bringing it on stage is key.

Being an educator, I've been partial to the camp suggesting that knowledge is the fifth element of hip hop. I think knowledge is a given though and orbits hip hop as a whole. That being said, I don't think the order of the elements really matters, as long as the DeeJay is considered "first" (which totally contradicts my argument, but the point is that the whole elements exists in a circle not a straight line, and that the circle exists because of the drum).

The birthplace of hip hop. In front of the building where DJ Kool Herc held first hip hop jam.

Besides sharing why style should be considered an essential element of hip hop, Grandmaster Caz took us to different sites in the Bronx and Harlem to share more about the other elements. We started with graffiti art. 

My favorite element explored today was the b-boying/b-girling element. We stopped at a park in the Bronx and had a demo lesson from a local b-boy.

After the tour, we stopped and had lunch at a soul food place in Harlem that actually had great veggie options. 

All in the all the HUSH tour was awesome. I was very happy to spend my day with the group and made a new friend from Italy. 

Me and Giulia

Later that night, I went to an open mic with one of my new friends from the meet up. I actually signed up to get on the mic! But we got there late, and I was too far down the list to actually stay and wait for my slot. 

Me and Khudia at Silvana's waiting on my name to be called.

The good thing is I was ready! With a book length amount of poems I've been working on to commemorate my birthday and the energy I got from going on the tour, I was all set to do an open mic in Harlem. Oh well, there's always Chicago, which I'm headed to tomorrow. (06/13/18)