Photo Courtesy of nmaahc.si.edu
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) is hosting its first Hip-Hop Block Party.
The free community event celebrates the first anniversary of its release in the Smithsonian Anthology of Hip-Hop and Rap. The anthology collection recounts hip-hop’s growth and impact across the country and worldwide.
The museum event will be held on August 13, 2022, from 11 am to 11 pm, just a few days after “Hip Hop Celebration Day.”
On July 29, 2021, the United States Senate made history by passing the resolution recognizing August 11 as National “Hip Hop Celebration Day” in the United States.
August 11, 1973, marks the day DJ Kool Herc (Clive Campbell) and his sister Cindy Campbell hosted a back-to-school party in Bronx, New York. Historians believe they helped birth the hip-hop genre and its culture.
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The all-day event will be hosted by Vic Jagger of Majic 102.3 with performances and appearances from The Alphabet Rockers, DJ Heat featuring O-Slice, Phuzz, YungManny, Mumu Fresh, J. Period, The Halluci Nation, D. Smoke, and DJ Spinderella.
Dwandalyn Reece, Associate Director for Curatorial Affairs at NMAAHC, said, “The origins of hip-hop and rap rest in community where people gathered together in basements, on street corners, neighborhood dance parties, and community shows to tell the stories of the people and places that brought it to life in a language all its own.”
Reece continued, “It is only fitting that NMAAHC celebrates the one-year anniversary of the
Smithsonian Anthology of Hip-Hop and Rap with a block party in our front yard. Like a true block party, we invite all ages to come together to enjoy activities and performances in honor of the museum’s greatest homage to the music and culture of hip-hop.”If you’re in the DMV area, get your free tickets from the website.