Tag: Harlem

I’m still completely amazed and lost for words about the hip hop film festival that took place in Harlem at the National Black Theatre yesterday. So many people were there, so many things I’ve heard and learned and so much has happened to the point where it’s almost a blur and a rush. It felt like I blinked my eyes once and I was there and blink again, I was back at home in the Bronx. It felt like a Cinderella story except a hip hop version where I was home all the time with ambitions and crazy big dreams of doing things for the hip hop community and when I finally got that chance too, I was decked out in the flyest b-boy, 80’s hip hop gear and then BOOM, I’m back home, it never happened. The part about the location sounds like I’m just repeating myself after doing interviews with people yesterday too. LOL! So I get there and automatically fell in love with the place because of it’s hip hop aura, vibe and spirit. It was almost like being backstage at the years biggest hip hop awards and I was V.I.P. I continue to scope out the place and get used to it more and I was completely scared and nervous but I played it off. The very first person I interviewed was the lovely Ms. Dedra Tate. I don’t really remember everyone’s position there at the film festival because everything happened so fast but she knew it was my first time, she knew I was a little nervous and she made me feel really comfortable. I also interviewed another nice lady whose name I forgot and then Ms. Lisa Cortes, she’s the woman behind movies like “Precious.” She also made me feel comfortable and she even gave me advice about how to interview people. I felt loved, I felt like everyone was planting these seeds in me that would eventually make me as big as them someday. I felt important to be in a space about my true love, HIP HOP. Then there are the panels. The panels are when they discuss all types of projects like movies and documentaries and the people who were involved tell us the people who are there what they’re experiences was like and how did their ideas come about to making these things happen. People like filmmakers, actors, Ralph McDaniels, Do It All Du from the legendary hip hop group Lords of the Underground, and even Monifah was there as a surprise for one panel. Out of all the people I met, I was mostly excited about Monifah and Ralph McDaniels because I grew on Monifah’s music, especially her first two albums, the classic “Moods… Moments” in 1996 and her sophomore album in 1998, “Mo’hogany.” I just remember my mom playing her songs “You”, “You Don’t Have to Love Me”, and my all time favorite “It’s Alright” but I always bothered my sister with the song “Peaches & Cream” from her underrated 2000 album “Home.” Before I could meet Ralph McDaniels for the second time, he was already gone. I wasn’t upset about it because I knew for sure I was gonna come across this man again sometime. I almost forgot to mention that I met the lovely MC Debbie D from the “Beat Street” movie, one of my all time favorite movies. After being underneath that freezing cold air conditioner all day, had a good bite to eat at Applebee’s and then went back home. I originally went to meet the legendary Roxanne Shanté but I went home, I was tired. To have an experience like this makes me even more and more appreciative about hip hop and it also made me open my eyes to the fact that hip hop comes in many different forms, not that I didn’t know that already but still. There’s conscious rap, party/happy rap, trap rap, there’s ratchet stuff too and I realize that even though certain types of rap music is not for me, it’s something that others appreciate and we can’t talk down on others for liking what they like. After all, hip hop is about having fun but it’s also a political statement, a Scarface movie and a ratchet thing too.

Written by Jay- Dogs