New York City And The Universal Hip Hop Museum Are Working Together On A Variety Of Events For Hip Hop’s 50th Anniversary in 2023.

Mayor Eric Adams is teaming up with the Universal Hip Hop Museum to commemorate next year’s 50th anniversary of hip-hop in 2023.. Mayor Eric Adams and several Hip Hop legends spoke about the celebration at a press conference on Monday (November 14).

“Happy birthday to hip hop. Hip hop turning 50, we’re going to have a celebratory party like we’ve never witnessed before. The birth of hip hop is here in New York City,” Mayor Eric Adams said.

Roxanne Shanté was one of the Hip Hop pioneers who attended the presser at City Hall. She discussed her excitement for the upcoming festivities in New York.

“When they first approached me and told me, ‘Listen, what we’re going to do is we are going to do 50 events, 50 days celebrating 50 years of Hip Hop,’ I was like, ‘That’s a lot of 50s,” she said. “But I am honored to be able to participate knowing that seeing the spin that has been taken with New York City and knowing that we’re getting ready to celebrate something like Hip Hop here in New York City, where it was.”

Grandmaster Flash was another legendary figure in attendance at City Hall. He reflected on Hip Hop’s longevity during his time at the podium.

“I’ve been called a legend a lot of times,” he said. “Legends die young. A lot of times legends don’t get a chance to see what they’ve done in full fruition. And I’m talking to all the Hip Hoppers there and all the Hip Hoppers around the world, I want to say thank you. Because when I did this, this thing could have been a hell no … It’s a blessing to be here to see this.”

Flash concluded, “We did this for absolutely nothing. And now [Hip Hop] is unarguably the biggest music on planet Earth, and I want to say thank God we here.”