This event was originally planned for last night, but Def had to postpone until today at 3:00.
Mos Def will be at Buffalo State College TODAY! to take part in a public discussion with campus and community members regarding hip hop's impact on the lives of individuals, particularly youth.
Billed as a message to young people pertaining to their role in community development, something tells us that this is going to be a push to join, not divide, along pop culture lines.
Def is described as introspective, insightful, and socially aware. He's starred in several movies, has won awards from the NAACP and he has written many songs about his native home, Brooklyn, NY. Some of his lyrics here.
One thing is for sure, Def has got the attention of a huge body of fans. It will be more than interesting to see what he does with it as a vehicle for heading his admirers in a direction he thinks will suit them best.
Def will be joined by Bakari Kitwana, director of Rap Sessions: Community Dialogues on Hip-Hop, and co-founder of the first ever National Hip-Hop Political Convention. Kitwana is also the author of The Hip-Hop Generation: Young Blacks and the Crisis in African American Culture. Both Def and Kitwana are known for their attention to contemporary race-related issues and the influence of media.
According to Tamara H. Horstman-Riphahn, M.Ed. Executive Assistant to the Dean, School of Education, Def was in the area in February, when he spoke in Rochester. Horstman-Riphahn also said that Kitwana has become a close acquaintence of Ronald S. Rochon, Ph.D., Dean of the School of Education at Buffalo State, through Kitwana's involvement with students across the country.
Sponsorship for this forum has been provided by the Auxiliary Services Grant Allocation Committee, University at Buffalo Graduate School of Education, African American Students Organization, Black Active Minds, Student Life Office, and United Students Government.
Friday, May 2
Buffalo State College
3PM, Bulger Communication Center North
Free and open to the public
From the release: This dialogue will focus on the importance of community strength, individual responsibility, and collective respect within social and political activism.
Former executive editor of The Source, Kitwana has been acknowledged as an expert on hip-hop politics by the Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, CNN, The O'Reilly Factor and other leading news outlets. His writings have appeared in the New York Times, Boston Globe, Savoy, The Nation, Village Voice, Black Book and other publications. Kitwana writes "Do the Knowledge," a column on hip-hop and youth culture for the Cleveland Plain Dealer and is a consultant on hip-hop for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He's been a visiting scholar in the political science department at Kent State University and has lectured on hip-hop at colleges and universities across the country for the last decade, including Harvard University, Columbia University and Stanford University. His new book Why White Kids Love Hip-Hop: Wankstas, Wiggers, Wannabes and the New Reality of Race in America (Basic Books, June 2005) is about race and hip-hop culture. Kitwana holds Masters Degrees in English and Education from the University of Rochester.