Those who say that Hip Hop is no longer down for the cause haven’t checked out the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement (MXGM) or the annual Black August Hip Hop Project.
Mos Def and Talib Kweli will headline this year’s show for the tenth consecutive year. dead prez will also perform.
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For Talib and Mos, support for the show doesn’t require much thought.
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“We’ve been big supporters of Black August since it first started, because we understand that music– particularly hip hop music– is the one element that binds people around the world,”Kweli says of the pair’s involvement. “To be able to play a part in educating young people, show them the importance of speaking up and making a difference, while also raise money for social and racial justice is a no-brainer.”
Those in the New York area can catch the show August 26 at the Nokia Theater. The show begins at 8 pm.
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The focus of this year’s show is dedicated to “Hands Off Assata”, a public awareness campaign about the unlawful imprisonment and solitary confinement of 1970’s freedom fighter, Assata Shakur.
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Also highlight “Free Your Hood”, the anti police brutality campaign of MXGM, which documents and speaks out against racial profiling by the police within communities of color.
This year marks the biggest show to date and also signifies the increasing number of young Hip Hop fans worldwide who are politically active.
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“What started in 1997 as a local collaboration between organizations to use hip hop as a tool to raise political awareness, has evolved into a major fundraising benefit that has taken us around the world,” says Monifa Bandele, MXGM national co-coordinator. “This tenth annual concert marks a tremendous milestone, because it not only represents a decade of progress in the fight for social justice, but also accounts for a support base of politically active young people that is now global… and growing.”
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Over the last ten years, the show has touched several countries including the U.S., Cuba and South Africa. It has also drawn some of the biggest names in Hip Hop and R&B including The Roots, Common, Erykah Badu, Mos Def, Talib Kweli and dead prez.
MXGM is a non-profit organization which strives to facilitate exchanges between international communities by promoting awareness about the social and political issues that affect young people in their communities. Every year, the concert raises money in support of political prisoners in the U.S. unjustly incarcerated for their efforts to end racial and economic oppression.
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For more information on MXGM or “Hands Off Assata”, check out http://www.mxgm.org/web/ or http://www.handsoffassata.org/.
