THE DIGITAL LIVING MUSEUM OF THE CULTURE

WE ARE HIP HOP

From a rec-room party on Sedgwick Avenue, August 11, 1973 to every corner of the planet. Walk the wings. Meet the architects. Study the art. From 1973 to Forever.

LOVEPEACEDANCEUNITY ART & FASHIONHIP HOP WELLNESSWEALTH STRATEGIESHIGHER LEARNING
LIVE FROM THE FEEDwhat the culture is talking about right now
Busta Rhymes holding his Clio award, shot by Photos by Publik
EXCLUSIVE

Busta Rhymes Honored at the Clios

Clios on Culture 2026 — Busta takes the award, Flavor Flav takes the mic, Kool DJ Red Alert takes the decks. Shot for the culture by Photos by Publik.

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EVENTS

Hip Hop Takes Over NY Comic Con

Now through Oct 11 at the Javits Center — Mass Appeal × Whatnot: Nas, Ghostface Killah, Ms. Lauryn Hill & Wyclef (30 years of The Score), Busta, Slick Rick, Anderson .Paak.

THE SCHEDULE →
EVENTS

Rock The Bells Festival — Nov 29, Newark

LL COOL J, Method Man & Redman, Lil' Kim, SWV + a D-Nice–curated set with The Lox. Hip-Hop History Month closes out at Prudential Center.

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April Walker — The Godmother of Streetwear
CULTURE

April Walker — The Godmother of Streetwear

Walker Wear dressed Biggie, Tupac, Run-DMC, and Queen Latifah. Streetwear didn't start as a trend — it started as culture, and she helped build the blueprint.

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HISTORY

Technics: The Wheels of Steel

The direct-drive turntable that became an instrument — from Shuichi Obata's engineering to Herc, Flash, and Theodore.

WATCH IN THE APP →
CULTURE

Spotlight: DJ Hard Hittin Harry

Four decades on the wheels — Shade 45 to Haitian All-Starz Radio, a bridge between the culture and the diaspora.

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Rakim — A Different Kind
MUSIC

Rakim — "A Different Kind"

"I'm Tesla in a new Tesla — I'm ahead of my time." The God MC, decades deep and still ahead of schedule.

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NEWS

SUNO × BMG — AI Meets the Music Business

The terms of AI music are being negotiated in real time — and this deal is the template.

READ →
📸 Photo Contributions & Credit: Stella Magloire · Donald "Soulb" Trail · Irma Mchedlishvilli · Photos by Publik
WING 01

OURSTORY

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

August 11, 1973. Clive Campbell — Kool Herc — and his sister Cindy throw a back-to-school party in the rec room of 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx. Two copies of the same record. The break, extended forever. A culture is born.

But the story runs deeper: from the griots of West Africa through bebop, Jocko Henderson's rhyming radio, Muhammad Ali's poetry, and The Last Poets — to Zulu Nation, Rock Steady Crew, and the Lyricist Lounge. The app walks the whole timeline.

WALK THE TIMELINE IN THE APP →
The culture in motion
WING 02

THE ELEMENTS

FIVE ARTS, ONE CULTURE
🎤 The MCFrom park-jam call-and-response to the Freestyle Pantheon — 11 masters of the off-the-dome art, honored, never ranked.
🎧 The DJThe architects of the break — Herc, Flash, Theodore — and the wheels of steel that built it all.
🕺 B-Boy / B-GirlRock Steady Crew foundations, the cyphers, the clubs — Latin Quarter, The Tunnel, SOB's.
🎨 Graffiti ArtPilgrimage sites, walking routes, and Murals of the Legends across all five boroughs.
🫁 BeatboxThe fifth element — the human instrument, from Doug E. Fresh to the world stage.
WING 03

PHOTOGRAPHY

THE LENS LEGENDS
Special Ed — fist to the sky, by Photos by Publik
SPECIAL ED · SHOT BY PUBLIK

The culture was documented in real time by masters of the frame — and the wing honors them in order of seniority:

Ernie PaniccioliJamel ShabazzJoe ConzoJohnny NunezStella MagloirePam AmparoPhotos by Publik+ more

Twelve photographers. Thousands of moments. The proof that we were here.

VISIT THE GALLERY →
WING 04

THE BOOKSHELF

WRITTEN BY THE CULTURE
"Sweat the technique — half memoir, half masterclass from the standard every lyricist measures against."RAKIM — SWEAT THE TECHNIQUE

Russell Simmons, LL COOL J, KRS-One, Angie Martinez, Popa Wu, Paradise Gray, Tek of Smif-N-Wessun, Jay-Z — the canon, curated, with direct links to take every title home.

As an Amazon Associate, We Are Hip Hop earns from qualifying purchases.

BROWSE THE SHELF →
Legacy of Lyrics — Tek
WING 05

HIGHER LEARNING

THE CULTURE TEACHING ITS OWN
S.E.A.LSpecial Ed Arts & Literacy — Dr. Edward "Special Ed" Archer's Brooklyn classrooms, Fridays at St. John's.
NOTESRakim's program — the God MC as educator, passing the science of the pen.
M.A.A.T.HChip Fu's Music Appreciation, Art, Time & Healing — from Brooklyn daycares to Belgium.
Hip Hop WellnessMind, body, and financial literacy for the culture — the eighth pillar in practice.
TAKE A SEAT IN CLASS →

🔮 ASK THE ORACLE

Inside the app lives an AI guide trained on the culture — history, lyrics, knowledge, wellness. Ask it anything.

"Who extended the first break?" "What changed in rhyme patterns in '86?" "Where do I start with the Golden Era?"
MEET THE ORACLE →
🏛️ PRESERVE THE CULTURE

Support The Hip Hop Museum — Bronx, NY

The first museum dedicated entirely to Hip Hop — protecting 50+ years of our legacy.

❤️ SUPPORT THE MUSEUM
🌉 STAND WITH THE CULTURE

Rename the Queensboro Bridge the Nasir Jones Queens Bridge

If the culture built the borough's soundtrack, let the skyline say its name.

✍🏾 SIGN THE PETITION

📱 TAKE THE MUSEUM WITH YOU

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