Greater Than The Sum Of Its Parts: A 2011 Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival Recap and Reflection [Words, Photos, Video]

WE ON AWARD TOUR: The Bodega Recognition Awards

Another opportunity to rub elbows directly with industry tastemakers arrived in the form of the first Bodega Recognition Awards program, highlighting several individuals and organizations in several categories, including best event venue, best website and best independent record label.

Admittedly, award events often exist for reasons purely important only to the organizers. Categories and nominees are often crafted with somewhat of a bias, as organizations seldom reach beyond their circles of involvement to find viable candidates. It can be argued that winners not chosen by true third-party methods, are chosen according to strategy other than merit.

While this is in no way to imply that the Bodega Recognition Awards were such, the great part about this facet of the Festival was that it did not matter.

As an event open to the public, it was a great opportunity for those interested in a career even loosely related to hip hop in Brooklyn to conduct an all-important, often neglected form of self-promotion that is becoming extinct in the age of spam email and social media.

Networking.

Even if you weren’t nominated for an award, you could have met journalism and blog heavyweights such as the aforementioned Jake Paine (HipHopDX.com) and Meka (2DopeBoyz.com).

You could have heard from community leaders such as Assemblyman Hakeem Jefferies and City Council Member Liticia James, both advocates for the positive influence hip hop can have, but more importantly, political leaders in the community striving for social justice.

While Brooklyn Bodega staff were present at all of their events, the congratulatory and laid back atmosphere of the post-award networking lent itself to meeting and greeting folks like Bodega Radio personality and editor of BrooklynBodega.com, The Company Man as well as Bodega executive director Wes Jackson.

In the end, regardless of who won, the Bodega Recognition Awards event was a unique opportunity for the everyperson to directly rub elbows with individuals and organizations involved in hip hop.

[Click to see our pictures from the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival Main Day]