Students In Free Enterprise hosted the “Restoring The Culture Hip-Hop Summit,” and “Hip-Hop Awareness Showcase,” as part of the annual Hip-Hop Expo on April 14.
Showcasing more than 16 artists, this year’s hip-hop expo had what senior English major Anita Jones, referred to as an unexpected turnout, as students showed by the packs for the event.
Jones, the event’s coordinator, said, “The event has become very receptive to students on campus and because of the great turnout it will be a yearly event to continue to bridge the gap between the entertainment business industry and Prairie View A&M University.”
The event began with the “Restoring The Culture Hip-Hop Summit,” a question and answer forum in which students interacted with several up and coming artists, producers, and disk jockeys. Panelists included, T-Moe, Big Black, and Ike Jack of “Them Island Boyz.” Universal recording artist Son of Zoolife under 50 cent’s G-Unit label, Go DJ Dipp from Dallas, Texas, DJ Bananas from the University of Texas in Austin, and Nikki “Promo Princess,” the widow of the late DJ Screw,were also panalists.
Students asked a wide range of questions pertaining to the music industry, including the derogative images of women being displayed in music videos, how to market yourself as an up and coming artists, and ways to steer clear of signing a bad record deal.
Sophomore communication major Douglas Johnson said, “This event was helpful because it provided me with the opportunity to develop new networks and to get the ‘heads up’ on the industry from people who are already involved in it.”
After the summit ended, students immediately made their way to the Opal-Johnson Smith Auditorium to enjoy performances by the artists they had previously interacted with and many more. Appearances were made by the children of UGK’s Bun B, Lil B and Breniesha, better known as the “Prince and Princess,” of Trill Entertainment, who spent the majority of their time networking and promoting and with aspiring and up-and-coming artists.
Performances included Them Island Boyz’ single “Johny Bravo,” Zoolife’s “Walk Like a Model,” PVAMU’s own Chris Brown and Ms. Keke of Dallas, Texas who performed her single “1st Class Chick.”
Ms. Keke, who graduated with a degree in political science from University of Texas at Arlington, said, “If you don’t know your business, you don’t know anything. It’s all about the papers, the contracts, and solidifying your logistics in the beginning of your career.”
Kwik Entertainment’s Smoot from Houston, Texas, who performed his single “Go Hard or Go Home.” said, “I think it’s very important to know the business said, because oftentimes artists get mix-ups in their publishing, contracts, and copyrights to their material. I’m CEO of Kwik Entertainment, so I know all about the importance of doing things like registering records to detect spins on the radio, and this event was designed to enlighten students on these types of issues.”