Visit Sedgemoor Union for all your aural needs...
The UN saw a different sort of summit last week 21 May when rap godfathers Chuck D, KRS One and Grandmaster Flash featured in lengthy debates on hip hop at the UN Hip Hop Peace Gathering which discussed everything from rap\'s international image, US radio playlist policies and the effect rapping about reality has on the fantasy of its listeners. The Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said that Popular musicians were the true ambassadors of globalization. The conference was part of the Third United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries in Brussels.
Rubens Ricupero also said that the contribution globalization brought to the cross-fertilization of human cultures was invaluable, and that music showed how globalization was not just about the unification of markets -- it was about the unification, on a planetary dimension, of the space for human communication. There was also a Hip Hop For Consciousness Concert in Los Angeles Saturday May 12th, which featured spots from Mos Def, Talib Kweli and Jurassic 5. The organisers, Taqwa Development Group said, \"Hip Hop consistently reflects the most brutal realities within urban youth culture. Sometimes through providing poignant interpretations of desolate urban existence while at other moments galvanizing the energy of the youth to thrust controversial social ills into the mainstream media.\"
Taqwa Development Group (TDG) is a non-profit organization committed to universal improvement of the human condition. It aims to raise the standard of the current public discourse regarding social, economic and environmental issues. TDG has embarked upon various projects ranging from community development to legislative advocacy.
Minister Conrad Muhammad\'s organization CHHANGE (Conscious Hip-Hop Activism for Global Empowerment) held a meeting in Harlem Wednesday May 9 to discuss negative hip-hop images, it was attended -and supported by the likes of KRS-One. Meanwhile San Francisco held a Hip Hop For Rebellion Concert, and last week (May 14 - May 21) was also Hip Hop Appreciation Week, during which Def Jam and Phat Farm boss Russell Simmons revealed plans to hold a similar event in New York from June 12 - 13. It will feature contributions from Dr Dre, Master P, Damon Dash, Common, Q-Tip, KRS-One, Puffy and The Nation Of Islam\'s Louis Farrakhan. Simmons said, \"The purpose of this summit is to address various issues affecting the very survival of the integral spirit of hip-hop music. We are taking a pro-active approach to deal with the serious issues that are facing the hip-hop industry.\"