2008 Peace Building Festival - Wash DC

Last week I participated in a series of events in Washington DC -- The First Annual Hip Hop and Peacebuilding Festival.

-- Here are some write ups..

"Hip Hop artists, representing five nations including Haiti, France, Tanzania, Uganda and the United States, have joined forces to increase awareness of political and social turmoil throughout the world. The goal is to promote peace and understanding through the use of words and beats; organizers hope to spread their message globally."

http://listentomusicnews.com/blog/hip-hop-peace-building-festival/2008/04/17/

“The core of hip hop lies within the beat, the beat is what you can feel, and it is the element that connects”, says Stacy Willyard Festival Director.

It was great to discover the Hip Hop and Peacebuilding event that will be happening this week in Washington D.C. Stacy Willyard, a graduate student a George Mason’s Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution spearheaded the organization of the first annual Hip Hop & Peacebuilding Frestival. The six day festival brings together an international coalition of artists and peacemakers and looks to define the role hip hop can play in empowering youth to obtain a future of peace. Looks like a great and diverse program.
http://www.campus-adr.net/weblog.php?id=P798


Friday evening there was a FREESTYLE workshop...one drummer and a bunch of hungry emcees..it was dope. The crowd participated, handing items to the artists and seeing improv hip hop at its best. Because I was rhyming, I could not take many pics...sorry.


Mental Stamina - from Rosetta Stoned


What up Lance -- the resident drummer for the evening. My man was on point!!!
Emcees and facilitators having a discussion outside of the Atlas Theater.
After the freestyle, there was a B-Boy performance and narrative about how Hip Hop was used by the Zulu Nation to help resolve conflicts between gangs in NYC during the 70s.

















Dance performance -- featuring members of the CAB crew.

After the performances we headed back to a friends apartment to relax a bit.




What a beautiful night.


Saturday - back to the atlas Theater for a work shop aimed at addressing internal conflict and using personal experiences to motivate change in others.

And then....... The jam session. Artists from DC, NYC, Uganda, Canada, Senegal, and Zimbabwe.
There was a point when everybody synchronized on a hook and the energy was magic.


In the pic below, check out Stacy on the drums!!
Grey Matter and Mental Stamina

Emess from MD, Senegal, Canada by way of Uganda, and DC


It was a work shop and a party!!!




Reppin Senegal

Reppin Zimbabwe

What up Ardamus


PEACE
PEACE

The first of its kind, DC's Hip Hop & Peacebuilding Festival will bring hip hop artists together with conflict resolution experts, community leaders, educators and activists to examine what is working in Hip Hop and how together we can do more to empower and transform communities by uniting the hip hop generation. DC artists will perform alongside artists from Uganda, Haiti, Tanzania, and Senegal & Palestine bridging the divide to achieve global impact. This event is a gift to the community in celebration of the energy and heart of hip hop and its potential to achieve positive social change in the world.
http://www.pr-inside.com/first-annual-washington-dc-hip-hop-r541335.htm