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Rapper Dee-1 has seen his fair share of people trying to make it through hard times. As a native of New Orleans, he saw firsthand how Hurricane Katrina changed his community forever in just a matter of hours. As a former educator, he knows the importance of teaching at-risk, young people how to build a foundation for a successful future. And, as a Black man in America, he knows that the odds are stacked high against his community and the students he tried to reach.

In 2012, Dee-1 and others like him are committing their names and voices to help mobilize urban young people to exercise one of their most precious rights – the right to VOTE. On the eve of #Barack Talk, a State of the Union watch party and discussion event in Washington, D.C., panelist Dee-1 recorded this video message to help spread the word about why casting your ballot still matters:

About #BarackTalk:

On Tuesday, January 24, AllHipHop.com will partner with national non-profit organization, The League Of Young Voters Education Fund and Rock The Vote for the second annual #BarackTalk, a State of the Union round table discussion and watch party. The event will broadcast live from Busboys and Poets, one of our capitol’s cultural hotspots, at 5^th and K in Washington, D.C. at 7:30 p.m. EST.

#BarackTalk will kick off with a series of panel discussions about the biggest issues facing Millennial before the 2012 presidential election. The party begins when President Barack Obama starts his fourth State of the Union address, and will conclude with analysis and discussion by some of the best and brightest minds in entertainment and politics.

Panelists include Goldie Taylor, leading news correspondent at TheGrio.com (MSNBC); Chuck Creekmur, influential urban entertainment journalist and co-founder of AllHipHop.com; Andreas Hale of TheWellVersed.com; rappers Dee-1 and Rhymefest; Shaheem Reid, Editor-At-Large of XXL; and Michael Skolnick, Political Director of GlobalGrind.com.