DJ Mr. Supreme

SEATTLE MUSEUM OF HISTORY AND INDUSTRY HONORS HIP HOP (here’s what I saw!)

| King County News - Fresh Juice for the Northwest

Mohia 2September 23, 2015 – The Legacy of Hip Hop at the Museum of History and Industry (HOHAI) will run September 19, 2015 through May 1, 2016. This trip through NW hip hop history is a fun way for elder b-boys to take a walk down memory lane, and for the younger generation to learn about those that came before them.

It’s well worth the $14-$17 entry price to see some of the once-in-a-lifetime artifacts which include championship dance trophies won by Seattle’s own Massive Monkees, 30 years of cd’s, tapes, and records from iconic rappers and Dj’s such as the Emerald Street Boys, Sir Mixalot, B-Mello, DJ Mr. Supreme, Specs, and more.  Also on display are iconic jackets from Nastymix Records (the Seattle label founded by Mixalot and Nasty Nes), Macklemore, and Mecca wear.

The event features a “tag wall” (pen & paper) for visitors to “get up”, as well as a series of live performances from both established and up-and-coming artists (Dumi, Nya, Specs, and more).

MohaiNoticeably missing from the display is the contribution of Seattle’s first breakdance groups “the Emerald City Breakers” and “Seattle City Breakers” and their founding members Junior Alefaio and Carlos (Slamalotte) Barrientes; as well as multi-generational hip hop icons Dave (Pablo D) Narvaez, Rafael Contreras, Donald (Ziggy) Puaa, and Nathan (Sire One) Hivick.  However, even with these stars omitted the display is still very comprehensive in it’s presentation and has received very favorable reviews from many in the old school community.

Curators Jazmyn Scott (The Town Entertainment) and Aaron Walker-Loud (Big World Breaks) freely admit that there are major gaps in the exhibit and that the amount of hip hop history and artist contributions is just too big to include everyone; but they hope that the exhibit will at least shine a spotlight on some of the talent that has existed here for the past 30 years.

“It’s not even that it’s my (or our) version of the story. It is an attempt to put into historical context, something that has been widely overlooked for years. We have acknowledged from day one that there are gaps; there is no way to tell the entire story. With this, we hope to give a glimpse into SOME of the people, places and things that make up this very rich culture in our town. It is only a starting point. Maybe someone else will pick up the torch or support us in making it even more comprehensive.” ~ JS.

The program features an interactive exhibit with historic audio recordings, photography, artwork, and more.

For more information on NW Hip Hop including artists not featured in the MOHAI exhibit please visit the following link:

VP 2

https://kingcountynews.org/2014/11/11/deepest-roots-30-years-of-hip-hop-in-seattle/

 

4 Generations of B-Boy’s come out to celebrate 30 years of Hip Hop Culture at the “Seattle City Breaker’s Reunion!”

| King County News - Fresh Juice for the Northwest
Seattle’s Pioneer Breaker Dancers “Pablo D” and “Sir Slamalot”

By ZiggyFan2012

One year after Seattle’s historic event we take time to remember how awesome it really was!

Seattle, WA. May 13th, 2011 – It was a historical night in West Seattle as the Unified Outreach non-profit Arts Program hosted the “Seattle City Breakers Reunion” celebrating 30 years of hip hop culture in Seattle.

This event brought together some of Seattle hip hop’s legendary Breakdancers and B-Boy’s/B-Girl’s in a multi generational event that took many through a time-warp and back to the early 80’s when group’s such as the Emerald City, Seattle City Breaker’s, Fresh Force, 1st Degree Breaker’s, and DeRoxy Crew ruled the dance floor.

The event featured guest speaker “Nasty” Nes Rodriguez who was the first radio DJ to host an all rap music show back in 1983.  Having the honor of sharing the DJ booth with Nes were legendary DJ’s  B-Mello (KUBE), Mr. Supreme, SoulOne, SuReal, NaNino, SeaBefore, Khazm, DV-One, and DJ Tecumseh (from Bamboo Beats).

The venue provided by West Seattle Christian Church featured a 600 person event center/performance hall which quickly filled to capacity with four decades of B-Boy’s and B-Girl’s crowding in to see the Seattle’s original break dancers.  Event organizer’s David Toledo and Carlos Barrientes provided a special seating area for a group of 20 special needs youth to attend and to participate in some of the “open floor” breakdancing.

The star of the night (who flew in from Hawaii for the event) was Ziggy “Zig Zag” Puaa; a breakdancer who rose to stardom in Seattle during the 80’s and then disappeared at the height of his career.  Rumor’s had circulated for years about Ziggy’s demise during a surfing accident; only to have Ziggy shock many old friends and fan’s when a video surfaced on YouTube featuring Ziggy breakdancing in Hawaii last year.  Also a surprise to many was the attendance of Danny Molino who has been in a wheelchair since a gun shot wound to the head paralyzed most of his body in the early 1990’s.

Other legends to appear at the event included “Seattle’s first Breakdancer” Jonathan (Junior) Alefaio, as well as Rafael Contreras, Spencer Reed, Danny Molino, Carlos (Sir Slamalot) Barrientes, Li’a Cat (Wacky) Talaga and Dave “Pablo D” Narvaez.

Staying true to the idea of Hip Hop’s “4 Elements” (DJ, MC, Breakdancer, and Graffiti Artist) the house was full of other pioneers as well; including Specs Wizard, Sam Sneke, KeepOne, Tyrone Dumas, FazeOne, Gerald Carpio, Curtis Tauiliili, Mr. Cool Anthony Espinoza, Vince Nguyen, Bublz, Kevin Lundeen, and Kid Silly.

The event culminated in an awards ceremony celebrating the “Heart of Hip Hop” in which 8 “Old School” legends received individually colored award plaque’s celebrating individual achievement.  Receiving awards were Carlos Barrientes (Red/Power), Spencer Reed (Yellow/Joy), Ziggy Puaa (Orange/Passion), Dan Clavesilla (Dark Blue/Knowledge), Sam Sneke (Light Blue/Creativity), Danny Molino (White/Pure Style), Michael Hall (Purple/Magic), and Nes Rodriguez (Pink/Universal Love).

The event welcomed 4 decades of breakdancers to participate in the open floor; from the original’s, to current hotshot’s Massive Monkey’s and the Vicious Puppies, to a group of toddler B-Boy’s/B-Girl’s it was a full-filled family event welcoming all ages.

It was a night to remember and something that will not be duplicated soon in Seattle as many legends and icon’s of the Seattle Hip Hop Community came together for a night of reminiscing, educating, and celebrating a our shared history.

For more information on the event, current, and upcoming event, please visit the Seattle City Breakers group on Facebook.