MINNEAPOLIS — On Aug. 11, 1973, a brother and sister organized a back-to-school party in the Bronx. The brother, a DJ, used two turntables to play two copies of the same record, moving from one to the next. Many agree this is when hip hop was born.
Today, the style comes in the form of music, dance, clothing and more. It's a culture now 50 years old and all year, people worldwide are celebrating the anniversary.
Friday at the Loft Literary Center in downtown Minneapolis, a mix of old-school and new-age hip-hop practitioners including BdotCroc, DJ Kool Akiem, JDot Tight Eyez, St. Paul Slim and Timothy Wilson of Urban Lights Music shared their own earliest memories of hip-hop in a panel discussion.
For moderator Tish Jones, it was back in third grade when a teacher handed her a play.
"[It] was called Rap-Punzel," Jones said. "That was it. Rap-Punzel. It was Rapunzel with rap lyrics and I was sold."
Today, Jones is a respected poet and emcee. In 2006, she founded TruArtSpeaks, the organization hosting the panel discussion. They also held a dinner and dance party.
"We're celebrating the impact that this culture has had globally," Jones explained. "We're celebrating the possibilities and what is to come in the future."
Of focus was the Twin Cities music scene and how it compares to areas like the Bronx where it began.
"Yes, we are on the map," Jones said. "We've been on the map. We're even more on the map today. We have so many talented artists coming from this place."
She points to David Stalter Jr. as an example. The Minneapolis dancer qualified to represent the nation in an international battle in Paris happening later this month.
"David came to the last big hip-hop event that we threw," Jones said. "He strolled in, did his thing, and because folks aren't used to people who are on the top and doing amazing things also being deeply entrenched in community, I think there's this misunderstanding and this misconception that we ain't on. We are so on."
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