By Nolan Strong
The Mayor of Newark, New Jersey will welcome a number of celebrities and Hip-Hop artists during the First Annual Newark Celebrity Golf Classic and Hip-Hop Business Summit, taking place this August.
The weekend kicks off with a "Welcome to Newark" dinner at the Weequahic Parks Golf Club, with remarks by Mayor Booker, followed by a white party at trendy spot The Spot on Commerce Street.
The weekend’s focus, however, will be The Hip-Hop Business Summit, entitled "Hood Economics," at Symphony, from 9:00 am- 2:00 PM.
A number of athletes, industry executives and local business leaders will meet to teach enterprising youth how to manage a business, how to diversify in business and the importance of receiving an education.
Confirmed guests include Pepa of Salt-N-Pepa, Lance Smith, Walter Briggs, Greg Anthony, actors Brian White and Michael Kenneth Smith, radio personality Ed Lover, publisher/author Karen Hunter and others.
A portion of the proceeds will be donated to charity, including New Youth Golf Inc, a non-profit organization that introduces the sport of golf to underprivileged and economically disadvantaged minority children in the greater Newark, New Jersey area.
In related news, the owner of the New Jersey Nets shot down reports that Mayor Booker and New Jersey Devils owner Jeffery Vanderbeek were in talks with a group of investors to buy the team and move it to Newark, New Jersey.
The sale would prevent the team from heading to Brooklyn, where Nets co-owner and developer Bruce Ratner is attempting to erect the Barclays Center in Brooklyn later this year for the team.
The arena, however, will not be constructed in time for the team’s 2009-2010 season, forcing the team to play at its current home in the Meadowlands.
Mayor Booker’s aim is to have The Nets play at The Prudential Center, which opened in October.
The Prudential Center is home to The New Jersey Devils, who also played at The Meadowlands prior to this season.