By Led Black
January 21– January 26
Okay folks, it’s official. The groundbreaking Uptown Hip-Hop showcase, WHIN By Any Means 3, is going down on Thursday, February 28th at Negro Claro (3805 10th Ave). This event is going to be bigger than ever. Swank space, more acts and a bunch of special guests. This will be one for the history books. Not only will it feature the crème de la crème of Uptown Hip-Hop acts but a whole host of top-notch acts from different genres will perform as well. The Uptown Collective is a proud sponsor and supporter of the WHIN By Any Means movement.
We also posted a beautifully written missive by Vanessa Martir on the passing of her dear friend Will Teez. This is a must-read piece for all those that knew Will and were inspired by him. In addition, we ran someone searing images of the Will Teez Farewell Memorial that took place in Inwood Hill Park on January 20th by Saundi Wilson.
Our very own Frank Medina gave us a poignant poem about choosing the wrong path and its consequences. This week saw a bunch of new music and videos from a slew of talented Uptown artists such as Audubon, Rayniel Rufino, Ty Hayez and Ace IOD.
When most people think of the Bronx, a few thoughts initially come to mind: it’s too far Uptown, it’s too dirty or our personal favorite: What’s in The Bronx anyway? Well, our newest contributor and lifelong Bronx resident, Jenni Ruiza, will give us the scoop on a weekly basis. In addition, we posted a photo essay of the first annual Save Our Youth concert at The United Palace by Art By Dj Boy.
Saturday, January 26th was the 200th anniversary of the founding father of the Dominican Republic, Juan Pablo Duarte. Not to be left out of the celebration, Uptown held a diverse and dynamic art exhibit to celebrate the occasion. Check out my recap of the festivities with some amazing pictures courtesy of Art BY Dj Boy. Duarte continues to live in the hearts, minds and souls of Dominicans on the island and in the diaspora. We ended the week with the debut of a new column entitled Flashback Fridays that features pictures of the Uptown of yesteryear from our audience.
Keep checking us out at www.uptowncollective.com.
Led Black
Editor-in-Chief
The Uptown Collective
The UC’s mission is to become “the” definitive, transformative and community-based force impacting the arts, culture, business and New York City’s overall perception of Upper Manhattan. Its objective is to reset, reboot and positively redefine Uptown’s artistic, political, cultural and business spheres via the online space as well the collective’s initiatives and functions.
