Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival 2014 Lineup Includes Raekwon, Jay Electronica, CJ Fly and more

Brooklyn’s yearly hip hop concert event and family day activities returns, with headliners to include Raekwon, Jay Electronica and CJ Fly from Pro Era

The announcement of this year’s lineup, and the plethora of great talent that has touched down on the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival final day stage over the last few years, is testament to how the grassroots organization Brooklyn Bodega, led by founder and CEO Wes Jackson, is able to keep delivering quality entertainment year after year.

The Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival has become one of the more notable independent hip hop festivals in the country, all while keeping ticket prices relatively low compared to other more established festivals like the withered Rock The Bells, which is still trying to figure out the reasons why their last tour crumbled as the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival celebrates its 10th year.

This week’s announcement that the Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival is back isn’t surprising, because this festival has a dedicated following and people to support it, but how will this year’s 10th anniversary show compare to the others that came before it? That still remains to be seen, but with a lineup consisting of Wu-Tang Clan’s Chef Raekwon, Roc Nation signee Jay Electronica, and Pro Era’s CJ Fly headlining the acclaimed final day stage, I sense that this year’s show could provide one of those magical hip hop moments that the festival has delivered over the years.

Concertgoers were treated to such moments in the past, like the time when Kanye West surprised everyone, joining headliner Q-Tip during his raucous set in 2011. Or a reunited, if only for ten minutes, Leaders of The New School, performing “Scenario” along with A Tribe Called Quest during Busta Rhymes’ set in 2012. Or the moments when we saw independent cats like Lupe Fiasco, Kendrick Lamar, Curren$y, and Homeboy Sandman bless the mic before they became internationally known. Or watching legends including Big Daddy Kane, Redman, EPMD, Ghostface Killah, De La Soul, and many more performing for their NYC faithful along the waterfront in the shadows of the Brooklyn Bridge.

It’s almost gotten to the point that you are like, “Who hasn’t performed on the BHHF Final Day stage?”

Brooklyn Bodega has worked diligently to embrace the diversity of hip hop in a fickle hip hop environment that only a few short years ago had many shaking their collective heads about the negative state of the genre, and where it was headed. In an interview on the Brooklyn Independent Media cable channel show, BK Live, Wes Jackson discussed the meeting of different genres along with the blending of hip hop listeners young and old.

“We’ll book a Rae and a Joey and put them in the same space, so the young guy is like, ‘I really came to see Pro Era, but my dad talks about Wu-Tang, so let me just see.’ Then the old fogie will say, ‘Who are these young whippersnappers? You know these young guys aren’t so bad.’ We are here to facilitate that conversation.”

The Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival kicks off July 9th at The Brooklyn Historical Society with the Bodega Education Initiative celebrating 20 years of Notorious B.I.G.’s Ready To Die. The Hip-Hop Institute will present “Told It First Hand,” a panel discussion with some of the personnel involved in the production of the classic LP.

Hip hop film will be represented by The Dummy Clap Film Festival on July 10th, a showcase for up and coming film makers as well as established film industry icons. To give an idea of what we might expect, last year, director Charlie Ahearn appeared discussing his classic movie, the groundbreaking Wild Style.

July 11th is the 10th Anniversary Party celebrating with all that have made the first ten years possible, including fans, artists, volunteers, writers, and everyone in-between. However, this event is invite only, so you can’t just walk into this one.

The final day, July 12th, hosts both the Family Day and Final Day performances. Bring the family, young and old, as the family-friendly day is always geared towards learning more about Hip hop culture. Break dancing, deejaying, and other elements of hip hop music and culture are often represented, through workshops, exhibits, and vendors. Halfway through the day, the Final Day performances will begin, and undoubtedly, more artists will be announced leading up to the festival. Expect a noteworthy tribute to the festival’s first decade for sure.

Brooklyn Bridge park, a beautiful area to see a show with the Manhattan skyline in the background and a cool breeze coming from the nearby East River, is in a construction phase right now, so it is unclear exactly where this year’s event will take place.

The Show and Prove series, the long running MC competition, will return as well, although the process has changed. In previous years, a series of small concert events whittled down the entrants to semi-finalists, with the ultimate winner appearing on the festival’s main stage. This year, entries will be submitted online with partner Sonicbids and then Brooklyn Bodega’s A&R/talent buying team will cull through the submissions to pick “at least two winners to rock that big stage on July 12th.”

So save the dates if you can, read our past coverage of the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival, and support local hip hop. The Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival tickets will go on sale soon, so buy early to take advantage of special offers.

For more information, please go to bkhiphopfestival.com or brooklynbodega.com