The University got a glance at hip hop's forefront this past Saturday night at the premiere of Genesis 2:002. The sold-out event not only attracted artists from around the country but students from around the Metro area as well.
What is Genesis? It's an exhibition to promote the talents of the topmost up-coming MCs, DJs and break-dancers in the nation. The show was planned and implemented by CX Entertainment and University Programs Council. CX Entertainment is a production company made up of University students Maurice Archer, Michael Dunkle, Ulrick Casseus, Wambaa Mathu and Emanuel Arnold. Their group is responsible for bringing Genesis here for a third year.
The most striking part of the event was not necessarily the exhibitioners, but the spectators.
"Hip hop is all about diversity," promoter Dunkle said. "Everybody comes together on one accord."
The power of hip hop artistry at Genesis was also made evident by the lengths people took to get there. As I chatted with an old friend who attends Virginia Commonwealth University, I learned that she came up with a caravan of six cars just for Genesis.
The first part of the show was composed of MC battles. Freestyle artists came from everywhere from California to Virginia Beach. I found a clear divide between those that truly mastered the art of entertainment through extemporaneous flow and those who merely spit out premeditated metaphors. The former was what people came out to see. The latter was what got booed off the stage.
The lyrics got harsher as the competition got tougher, and the crowd got more discriminating. After all, it was our response that decided the fate of whoever was on stage. At some point, many had concerns that one of the competitors was writing lyrics on his hand, which instantly down-graded his status in the audience's eyes. No Comment, a young man from Virginia Beach, ended up taking the $500 prize back home.
The next part of the show was the B-boy competition, a series of triple round break-dancer battles, culminating to a final, all-out battle between the best competitors. All the contenders had the basics of breaking mastered. The ones who proved most successful were those that flexed their creativity in addition to their brawn. The judges had a hard time choosing a winner, as proven by the length of deliberation.
Though the competition was fierce, it was diffused by a general feeling of camaraderie and sportsmanship among the breakers. Their constant smiles established that they were there to have fun, not just to compete. All the dancers were top quality, made the experience fun and were worth the expense and trouble anyone undertook to see them. The winners, the Floor Brats, went home with $3,000.
The next part of the show was the DJ exhibition. This year's presentation was slightly different than past years in that it was not a competition. The promoters wanted the audience just to be able to enjoy the display of musical skills. Headed up by DJ Q-Bert, renowned music mixer and scratch artist, the DJ exhibition was a demonstration of talent using genres that ranged from break beats to dance to hip hop.
After surveying spectators of the show, the general consensus is that it was "awesome." Congratulations to CX and UPC for putting together one of the ONLY successfully and truly inclusive performing arts programs at U.Va. The CX in CX Entertainment stands for Communicans Xeneum - "giving the gift." For Maurice, Michael, Ulrick, Wambaa and Emanuel Arnold, the members of the production company, entertainment is the gift. And the gift was definitely given and received on Saturday night. Here's to Genesis 2003.
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