Hip-Hop Stands Up!

In the wake of the killing of George Floyd the World has finally begun to hear the cries for justice that Hip-Hop has been screaming since its inception.

After being down in the streets witnessing the police use tear gas, pepper-spray, rubber bulets, pepperballs, flash-gang grenades, and batons on our citizens in response to the words "Black Lives Matter" we as emissaries of Portland Hip-Hop knew it was time to step up and use the power of music to articulate our demands and boost morale after over a week straight of marching.

So we borrowed a bunch of equipment and On June 12th, 2020 PDX Hip-Hop For Justice was born. 

With powerful speeches and performances from the likes of Mic Crenshaw, Talilo Marfil, Blacktacular, C3 The Guru, Julius Powell, JMack, Yung Gates, Mac, and Herc we captivated an audience, re-energized protesters and got a bunch of people out to protest who hadn't made it down yet.

Our only issue was equipment. Our borrowed monitors laying on the ground were muffled by the legs of the crowd, our attempts to push the speakers to that large of a crowd created power issues (as we were running from a car battery) and made protesters have to cram in closer to hear us (a big concern with Covid-19 looming).  

We recognize that in order to affect real change this movement will be a marathon and not a sprint. We have identified what it is we'll need to give this uniquely Black art form the respect it deserves and make the large number of artists who have expressed interest in throwing down with us sound their best. 

With your help we were able to obtain:

One small portable PA system - a small mixing board, a power source, two microphones a folding table and a pop-up tent, a laptop, a midi controller and food and drinks for protesters. 

For our last event, we coordinated with Portland City Commissioner JoAnn Hardesty as well as community and faith leaders from throughout the region to resoundingly denounce the Federal Occupation of Portland. Alas, the presence of so many community leaders did not deter the Feds at all and we were tear-gassed along with the Commissioner's rented sound that we had to tear down and drive out amidst walls of smoke and gas. (Hey, at least they waited until Cool Nutz's performance was over)

Going forward, we will be partnering with other activists and community leaders to use  the momentum we have gathered to continue to amplify the voices of people of color. To do so, we need to be thinking about the safety of the artists and protesters that are in harms way. Any incoming donations will be used for safety gear and medical supplies. We've seen too many people brutalized over the length of this protest to not be taking this seriously.  

We actively fight for change EVERY DAY so when this particular crisis has passed we, commit to using Hip-Hop to fight for justice any time there is a need. 

Anything you can do to help would be greatly appreciated.

LET'S GET FREE!

Transparency stuff:

Hip-Hop Stands Up was and idea by Ashanti Hall aka Blacktacular (Hip-Hop Head, Junglist, Promotions Coordinator, Event Host, Housing Advocate and Activist), Angela Foster (Warm Spring/Klamath Falls Native, Freelance Hair & Make-up Artist, Designer, and Advocate/ Activist) and Nick Wohlmut (Nick Fury of the Hip-Hop Supergroup Bad Habitat)

Musical submissions and proposals for in-kind donations can be sent to [email redacted] 

Thank you so much for helping us STAND UP!