A Night for Women-N-Hip Hop

Party flyers were a staple in the early years of Hip-Hop and hard-copy invitations were the main medium for communicating information and promoting an event. The flyers symbolized many key appearances, acts, conventions, DJ performances, and contests in the Hip-Hop scene. Many flyers were created by local graffiti artists such as Buddy Esquire and Phase 2. The flyers were often presented by Hip-Hop promoters, DJs, and MCs who hosted the parties. Money was given to the artist to draw creative art and graphics for about $40-$60 for approximately 1,000 party flyers. The parks’ open public spaces have provided the perfect venues for park jams, impromptu dance-offs, DJ battles, and rap battles that established the sound, fashion, art, and message of Hip-Hop. Most of the Hip-Hop parties were a space for positivity where many of the Hip-Hop community could escape the realities of racism that included police brutality, drug abuse, and gang violence in their surrounding communities.

Many of the original Hip-Hop parties took place at local roller rinks, community centers, parks, and clubs. Roller rinks were an important cultural site for fun in the late 70s and 80s where adults and teens would attend roller discos and Hip-Hop parties.  The space would be used as a place for DJs to spin, rappers to show their talents, and for breakers to showcase their dancing skills on the large skate floor. Community centers were another important space in the early years of Hip-Hop for youth to gather and escape their everyday life. Additionally, community centers and recreation centers were the original spaces where DJ Kool Herc would spin in his early era of DJing. The community centers such as the Bronx River Center and the PAL were usually located in the middle of the projects. But local promoters would give parties and give money back to the center for books and trips for the local kids in the community.

MC Sha-Rock (Sharon Green, b. 1962) was one of the original members of the Funky 4 and then became the +1 More when she returned to the group. With Funky Four +1 More being the first rap crew with a female MC, Sha-Rock is known as Hip-Hop’s “First Lady”, “Mother of the Mic” and the first most prominent and influential female battle MC and founding member of Hip-Hop culture in the late 1970s. When the Funky 4+1 More disbanded, Sha-Rock joined a new group with two of her peers, Debbie D and Lisa Lee, called Us Girls. While part of US Girls, they had their first major film debut in the 1984 Hip-Hop movie Beat Street. Sha-Rock’s early contributions to Hip-Hop paved the way for not only urban youth growing up in the South Bronx, but she also laid the foundation for emerging female MCs in Hip-Hop.