Hip Hop Artists Band Together to Bring About Social Change
It’s bright, brash and energetic, and it’s coming into its own in poetic AND political circles. In Boston, Mayor Thomas Menino hosted a roundtable on hip hop after a major hip hop event was canceled in December in the wake of the shooting deaths of four Dorchester youth. 
Organizers of the event feared further violence sparked by artists mourning the loss of four young lives in a city that has seen more than its share of violence. In response to the cancellation of the show, Boston hip hop artists challenged the mayor to give them a chance, offering to step up to the plate and be part of a solution to ease violence and bring music, literature and poetry back to the schools.
Says one hip hop poet of his art ‘Rap and hip hop spring from the same place, but they have a different feel. Rap is angry. It tears to the heart. Hip hop feels good. It brings us together.’
More about hip hop:
From: www.gotpoetry.com events calendar
International Festival of Arts & Ideas:
What is Arts & Ideas?
The International Festival of Arts & Ideas exploded onto the New Haven scene in 1996, presenting a diverse and innovative showcase of world-class local, national and international artists, thinkers and leaders. Visit our site at www.artidea.org.
Hip-Hop at the 2006 Festival:
The Festival celebrates urban culture in 2006 with the Urban Hip-Hop Mini Festival. This “festival within a festival” begins with a celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Peabody Museum of Natural History’s Social and Environmental Justice Poetry Slam with an event featuring the top poets who have participated in the slam over the last ten years and launching the commemorative DVD: Poems on the Road to Justice. The Urban Hip-Hop Mini Festival closes with Elements, a multidisciplinary performance presented in collaboration with the New York Hip Hop Theater Festival and directed and hosted by award-winning actor, rapper and playwright Will Power.
How Can I be Involved?
The Urban Hip-Hop Mini Festival will feature Elements, a two-act showcase of Connecticut”s finest hip-hop dancers and poets, and theater artist Aaron Jafferis’ play Shakespeare: The Remix. Connecticut hip-hop artists are invited to submit materials for the showcase, which will be directed by award-winning actor, rapper and playwright, Will Power. A pioneer in the field of hip-hop theater, Will has starred in the film “Dry Long So” and his one-man play “Flow.” He is also the author of THE SEVEN, now running Off Broadway. (http://www.willpower.tv/ )
The Details:
This is an open call for hip-hop dance companies, dancers, slam poets, and spoken word artists to submit materials for consideration. This is a fantastic opportunity to work with Will Power, one of hip-hop’s leading artists.
Interested Applicants:
• Email rsherman-at-artidea.org for more information
Auditions for Will Power:
•Auditions will take place on May 8th in New Haven. Email rsherman-at-artidea.org or call (203) 498-3723 to sign up.
Finalists:
•Poets and dancers will receive a modest honorarium.
•Technical and dress rehearsals will take place June 21-23.
•Performances will take place June 23 and June 24 @ 7 PM.
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Julian Yanover the 4 May , 2006 at 08:54 am
4 de May de 2006 a las 9:10 am
[...] and a quote from an unnamed poet/hip hop artist in the next post.. [...]
30 de May de 2006 a las 9:00 am
[...] Last month, we wrote about the Boston HipHop community pulling together to help bring peace and bring about social change. In the wake of four shooting deaths, the local poets and hip hop artists called upon the mayor of Boston to meet with them and help them help the city. It’s not unusual for poets to step up to the plate when there’s a need, and this week, there’s yet another example of a young poet and hip hop artist who is doing more than spinning rhymes with his words. [...]