Remixing the Art of Social Change
Howard University
Armour J. Blackburn University Center
Saturday July 7, 2012
10am - 6pm
“The Remixing the Art of Social Change: Expanding the Cipher” is an international teach-in (conference) bringing together organizations, artists, and scholars that utilize hip-hop culture to promote social change and advance how hip-hop is used as a tool to promote that change. The teach-in has previously convened in Chicago and San Francisco and this will be the fifth time in Washington D.C.
This years Teach-In will feature a number of well known and important figures including rapper/producer David Banner. BET’s Jeff Johnson, Dr. Mark Anthony Neal: co-editor of the Hip-hop Studies Reader, and Joan Morgan: author of When Chicken Heads Come to Roost will also be presenting. Detroit’s hometown shero, recording artist and activist Invincible will also be speaking. The teach-in will also feature hip-hop pioneers Kool DJ Red Alert and D.C.’s own DJ Kool, along with hip-hop dance pioneer Popmaster Fabel. We will also feature new author Samuel Sidel, author of Hip-Hop Genius and one of the State Department's first Hip-Hop Ambassadors, Ms. Toni Blackman This event is made possible in part thanks to well known hip-hop Scholar, journalists, and activist Bikari Kitwana. We are also proud to be hosting the D.C. premier of “Graffiti Fine Art” by new filmmaker Jared Levy.
WBL will organize a variety of roundtables, panel discussions, film screenings, and workshops that build upon the efforts of the previous five teach-ins. Topics covered this year will include: The Company You Keep, “I Was There”, Context Matters, and Media Makes a Difference. To view a copy of the entire agenda, or to learn more about the event, please visit http://www.wblinc.org/teachin
This year’s Washington, D.C. teach-in will act as a kick-off event for the start of the 11th Annual Hip-Hop Theatre Festival, a widely recognized cornerstone of the Washington D.C. hip-hop performing arts & cultural community. Words Beats & Life’s International Teach-In will be host to some 300+ people, representing 50+ organizations from across the country and world.
SPONSORS: Words Beats & Life, DC Commission on the Arts & Humanities, Nathan Cummings Foundation, Rap Sessions and Southwest Airlines.
