Ohio University's Hip Hop Congress is celebrating the culture of hip-hop this week with its weeklong Hip Hop Awareness Week.
Rap is something you do; hip hop is something you live.
The group follows this quote by hip-hop legend Krs One as it shares the hip-hop culture with students and area residents, said Gabriel Gonzalez, OU's Hip Hop Congress president.
This week's activities include a variety of informative events about the hip-hop culture in Athens.
These events will help to bring about a better understanding of the four elements of the culture -DJing, MCing, graphic art and break dancing -in an area where hip-hop is not as well known.
OU's Hip Hop Congress began last year to enhance the arts and promote social justice through hip-hop, Gonzalez said. The group's goal is to educate and inform the public about the real meaning of hip-hop, not the rich and famous hip-hop lifestyles depicted on television.
The Congress also helps to differentiate between the hip-hop culture and rap.
First of all
we have to look at hip-hop as a whole culture and rap as something that comes out of it said Akil Houston, OU Hip Hop Congress adviser and an African American studies professor.
Gonzalez, a sophomore and photojournalism major, grew up in Cleveland, attended an art school and was exposed to the hip-hop culture.
(Hip-hop is) pretty much [that] you come from a place where you try to make something from nothing through art and spoken word
he said.
The Hip Hop Congress is one of the few OU student organizations to take advantage of its connections in the area and use the Congress to connect people, Houston said.
Hip Hop Congress is a national organization dedicated to sharing and exploring the hip-hop culture. The Congress has separate chapters in 12 states including centers at universities, high schools and community centers. OU and Walnut Hills High School in Cincinnati are the two Ohio chapters.
Shamako Noble, cultural activities chairman for the national Hip Hop Congress, said the national Congress began in 2001 in San Diego, when he teamed with two colleagues to create an organization to network artists.
Noble works with different artists throughout the Congress and with area organizations to spread information about the hip-hop culture. He helps chapters fuse hip-hop and classroom studies.
The more you know
the more you realize there are different styles
Noble said.
The hip-hop culture is continuing to grow and change, and Noble said people should keep their eyes and ears open for the evolution of the culture.
The Hip Hop Congress meets at 8 p.m. every Wednesday in the Lindley Hall Conference Room.
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Caitlin Price
