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Hip-Hop turns 50 in 2023 so the legends who helped make the genre what it is today came forward with plans for an epic celebration.
On Monday, November 14, numerous rap veterans like Grandmaster Flash, Roxanne Shanté, Slick Rick, Master Gee of Sugar Hill and others gathered at City Hall in New York City to reveal the plans for Hip-Hop's 50th anniversary. The legends stood next to the city's mayor Eric Adams as they shared the gist of what the city and the Universal Hip-Hop Museum have in store for next year. When Shante took to the podium, she announced that there will be at least 50 events planned in honor of Hip-Hop's birthday.
“When they first approached me and told me, ‘Listen, what we’re going to do is we are going to do 50 events, 50 days celebrating 50 years of Hip Hop,’ I was like, ‘That’s a lot of 50s,’ Shanté said. “But I am honored to be able to participate knowing that seeing the spin that has been taken with New York City and knowing that we’re getting ready to celebrate something like Hip Hop here in New York City, where it was. A lot of people want to debate whether it was created here or not, but where we have perfected it. Don’t you agree?”
The events will be coordinated between the city and the first-ever Hip-Hop museum in the Bronx, which is scheduled to open its doors in 2024. There aren't many details about each event at this time, but more information will arrive as the New Year draws closer.
“I’ve been called a legend a lot of times,” he said. “Legends die young. A lot of times legends don’t get a chance to see what they’ve done in full fruition. And I’m talking to all the Hip Hoppers there and all the hip hoppers around the world, I want to say thank you. Because when I did this, this thing could have been a hell no.”
The celebration for Hip-Hop's 50th anniversary has already begun with Mass Appeal's Hip Hop 50 EP series. Nas' record label recently launched its first of many EP's curated by revered Hip-Hop producers like DJ Premier, Swizz Beatz and plenty more. The first installment dropped back in August and featured new music produced by Preemo featuring Slick Rick, Lil Wayne, Rapsody, Remy Ma, Joey Bada$$, Run The Jewels, Nas and more.