CAMPAIGN OVERVIEW

These days when the average person in America hears the term “hip-hop,” he/she thinks of conspicuous consumption, drug use, and women as sex objects. People within the hip-hop community reject these stereotypes. The founders of the National Museum of Hip-Hop (NMoH) understand hip-hop as the pre-eminent global cultural explosion of the last thirty years; a multifaceted movement that has brought new sound, sense, color, and hope to a worldwide generation of young people.

Accordingly, NMoH is conceived with a dual purpose. The first is to preserve and showcase hip-hop culture in all of its stunning variety. The second is to spearhead positive change within the hip-hop community.

The Museum facility has not yet been constructed. However, the lack of four walls and a ceiling should not and does not prevent the institution from fulfilling its civic obligations. The Museum’s work in the community will begin now. Ultimately, the Museum will do its work worldwide. However, the first campaign is more modest and targets the greater New York City area. Our first campaign is called “RU Hip-Hop.”

The premise behind “RU Hip-Hop” is a challenge to the hip-hop community to show that they are “truly” hip-hop—hip-hop in its truest form which is composed of the following: 1) an expression of the struggles of street life through various art forms (ie: the 4 elements), 2) A voice for the voiceless, and 3) using the elements to inspire positivity within the inner city.

The campaign is designed to build awareness of the major problems that are destroying communities. NMoH will do this in partnership with a variety of local partners. The process will entail a three-month-long trip on the RU HIP-HOP bus, provided by Designer Limousines, which will travel to seven designated areas around New York City.

Each area is plagued by an issue that deeply affects its community. We call these plagues the “Seven Deadly Venom’s of Hip-Hop Culture”. The RU HIP-HOP campaign is charged with continuously battling these issues.

Read the entire program, please click to download the summary (PDF, 80 kb)