New York City partnered with the Universal Hip Hop Museum to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Hip Hop.
Mayor Eric Adams and several Hip Hop legends spoke about the celebration at a press conference on Monday (November 14). Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright revealed the city will team with the Universal Hip Hop Museum for a variety of events in 2023.
“The city is proud to really announce our formal partnership with the Universal Hip Hop Museum, which is going to be dedicated to preserving and telling that history for generations,” Wright said. “And we are partnering with the museum to really have a host of events and activities during 2023 – the 50th anniversary of Hip Hop.”
Universal Hip Hop Museum chairman Rocky Bucano added, “I’m just so proud that the City of New York and the state of New York have given their support to the Universal Hip Hop Museum. We will open in 2024, and it will be the greatest celebration in 2023 to really demonstrate how Hip Hop has touched every part of today’s society.”
Roxanne Shanté was one of the Hip Hop pioneers who attended the presser at City Hall. She discussed her excitement for the upcoming festivities in New York.
“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,” she 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.”
Grandmaster Flash was another legendary figure in attendance at City Hall. He reflected on Hip Hop’s longevity during his time at the podium.
“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 … It’s a blessing to be here to see this.”
Flash concluded, “We did this for absolutely nothing. And now [Hip Hop] is unarguably the biggest music on planet Earth, and I want to say thank God we here.”
Watch the entire press conference below.