Tag Archives: ATTCreative

Creative Class: iOne Digital and AT&T Dream In Black Show Out For The Culture

iOne Digital and AT&T Dream In Black Show

Source: iOne / iOne

Recently, iOne Digital’s brands Hip-Hop Wired, Bossip, NewsOne, MadameNoire, HelloBeautiful, GlobalGrind, Cassius and A Space For Creators cooked up lists creatives and influencers who are using their unique talent to move culture with the Creative Class. A total of 55 men and women were selected for their impressive and inspiring success in entertainment, business, politics, news media, and more.

AT&T’s Dream In Black campaign joined in on the celebration of the launch of the Creative Class at Ponce City Market’s Skyline Park in Atlanta, Georgia. In attendance were iOne President Detavio Samuels and SVP Chief Content Officer Marve Frazier, who addressed the crowd and held a brief Q&A with honorees Tristan Walker, founder of Bevel and Dionna Dorsey, District Clothing entrepreneur.

The activation was also a full-blown party where attending participated in interactive booths including a “photo booth” classroom and caricature portraits by Tony Smith as well as light bites, an open bar, and the vibes presented by DJ Wally Sparks.

A big up goes to AT&T, the honorees, and everyone who showed out. Check out more photos of the festivities below.

iOne Digital and AT&T Dream In Black Show

Source: iOne / iOne

Source: HipHopWired.com

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Creative Class: iOne Digital and AT&T Dream In Black Show Out For The Culture

iOne Digital and AT&T Dream In Black Show

Source: iOne / iOne

Recently, iOne Digital’s brands Hip-Hop Wired, Bossip, NewsOne, MadameNoire, HelloBeautiful, GlobalGrind, Cassius and A Space For Creators cooked up lists creatives and influencers who are using their unique talent to move culture with the Creative Class. A total of 55 men and women were selected for their impressive and inspiring success in entertainment, business, politics, news media, and more.

AT&T’s Dream In Black campaign joined in on the celebration of the launch of the Creative Class at Ponce City Market’s Skyline Park in Atlanta, Georgia. In attendance were iOne President Detavio Samuels and SVP Chief Content Officer Marve Frazier, who addressed the crowd and held a brief Q&A with honorees Tristan Walker, founder of Bevel and Dionna Dorsey, District Clothing entrepreneur.

The activation was also a full-blown party where attending participated in interactive booths including a “photo booth” classroom and caricature portraits by Tony Smith as well as light bites, an open bar, and the vibes presented by DJ Wally Sparks.

A big up goes to AT&T, the honorees, and everyone who showed out. Check out more photos of the festivities below.

iOne Digital and AT&T Dream In Black Show

Source: iOne / iOne

Source: HipHopWired.com

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Creative Class: Audio Shapeshifter Lil Nas X

Creative Class 2019

Source: Getty composite / Getty

Name: Lil Nas X

Occupation: Rapper

Location: Atlanta-Los Angeles

How We Know Him: His genre-bridging hit “Old Town Road” set records, disrupted pop culture and defied odds.

Why We Chose Him: A proud member of the LGBTQ community, Lil Nas X smashed pop culture, hip-hop culture and Black cultural norms.

What’s Next: Catch Lil Nas X on stage. He’s wrapping up a national tour.

IG: @lilnasx

While the digital era affords creatives a route to promote their work to the world with just a push of a button, only a very few will truly go down in the record books as game-changers. Those that will not only make true impact in their category but also break down doors for future talent and change the overall perception of their medium. Even if society doesn’t see the effects of their work in real-time, chances are they will be able to look back and see how they helped advanced the art form for the better. Lil Nas X should be recognized as an innovator.

Born Montero Lamar Hill, the Georgia native was at a major crossroads at the early age of 19. As a burgeoning online personality, he decided to drop out of college to pursue his music career. In October 2018 while staying at his sister’s house he would come across the track that would change his life forever. He purchased an instrumental online from a Dutch producer YoungKio for 30 dollars. He would go on to write to the banjo riff-driven track which would become “Old Town Road”. Not only would he seamlessly blend Rap with Country via a simple but very catchy melody but his approach to promoting the single was also unique.

X would go on to put his previous experience as a social media personality to use and started pushing “Old Town Road” via hundreds of memes. This would prove to be a wise marketing strategy as the song quickly went viral via the TikTok app. Millions of users posted clips wearing traditional country music garb while doing the #YeehawChallenge to the song. A record label bidding war for Hill would commence and he would sign with Sony Columbia in March 2019. The major label support would push the song even further but that same month Billboard would remove the song from their Hot Country Songs chart citing “While “Old Town Road” incorporates references to country and cowboy imagery, it does not embrace enough elements of today’s country music to chart in its current version.” The trade magazine’s decision made headlines with many feeling the disqualification was unjust and blatantly racist. The snub would turn to be a blessing in disguise.

In an effort to embrace the rising star on the behalf of Country music, icon Billy Ray Cyrus would join Lil Nas X on the remix further propelling the song to never-seen heights. “Old Town Road” has gone on to break several records including holding the longest run at the number one slot on the Billboard 100 singles chart. While on this incredible wave of success he used his celebrity to champion the rights of the LGBTQ community by announcing he was gay on the last day of Pride Month. He has since graced the cover of TIME Magazine proving that a destiny delayed is never a destiny denied.

Source: HipHopWired.com

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Creative Class: 2DopeBoyz Co-Founder Meka “MekDot” Udoh

Creative Class 2019

Source: Kazeem Famuyide / Kazeem Famuyide

Name: Meka “MekDot” Udoh

Occupation: Content Creator and DJ

Location: New York

How We Know Him: He’s the man behind the edgy opinion-based reviews Hip-Hop needed to keep things honest.

Why We Chose Him: The co-founder of 2DopeBoyz remains devoted to chronicling the culture with candid reviews and breaking news.

What’s Next: Udoh’s devotion to music remains a constant. In addition to running his brand, he stays busy collaborating with artists and DJ’ing gigs.

IG: @mekdot

Every couple of years the way we consume music evolves. While the shift from physical albums to digital downloads is obviously the most landmark change, we could not ignore how media has transformed entirely. In the mid-2000’s journalists and fans alike started taking to the web to voice their opinion and share music on Rap blogs.

At the forefront of the wave was Meka Udoh who’s weekly “Slap-Boxing With Jesus” column on HipHopDX was a snarky but yet critical take on Hip-Hop. The California native would again raise the bar when he launched 2DopeBoyz in 2007.

The website allowed he and his co-founder Shake, who share at times vastly different tastes, to share their thoughts on music. From its’ inception 2DBZ had a true point of difference as the pair of friends spotlighted new music and upcoming talent from different areas of the country. Readers were not only guaranteed free access to the content but also very biting reviews of albums and mixtapes alike.

Prior to this time outlets such as XXL and The Source provided formal reviews which at times went over people’s heads. Meka’s reviews read like a concise evaluation for the everyman. If he liked a project, you immediately felt it in his writing; if he felt your release was lacking you were in trouble. “Cliché as it may be, music — more specifically, the sound of music — is what keeps me motivated and inspired to be able to create. Coming from a family of women who are, literally, all either in the medical or legal field, I was more attracted to the arts as a child” he revealed.

Twelve years later 2DopeBoyz continues to be a popular destination for Hip-Hop culture. Additionally, MekDot has earned his stripes as a DJ with gigs throughout the country and clutch mixes / playlists. Put some respeck on his name.

Source: HipHopWired.com

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Creative Class: Chicago Rapper & Activist Vic Mensa

Creative Class 2019

Source: Getty composite / Getty

Name: Vic Mensa

Occupation: Rapper/Activist

Location: Chicago

How We Know Him: Signed to JAY-Z’s Roc Nation, the 26-year-old proudly reps his hometown musically and culturally.

Why We Chose Him: Never one to mince his words, Vic is never afraid to bring attention to the socio-economic issues plaguing Chicago, and the nation, while also doing something about it.

What’s Next: Via his Save Money Save Life organization he plans to train 11,000 kids as street medics, he’s giving out shoes in the community and still pumping out music.

IG: @vicmensa

 

In mid-September, Public Enemy’s frontman and activist for the culture, Chuck D, sent a tweet out into the world. He didn’t use many characters but his message was firm and direct: “Support @VicMensa.”

Vic Mensa, 26, has fans from all walks of life. In 2013, he dropped his first solo mixtape Innanetape. Since then, he’s worked with everyone from Pusha T to Chance the Rapper and of course, Kanye West. Perhaps one of the characteristics that Mensa’s most famous for is his ability to evolve without much explanation. Most recently, he dropped a rock album with Travis Barker on the drums, titled Punx93. The LP shares its name with Mensa’s clothing line which recently hosted a show at New York Fashion Week this fall. When he speaks about his pieces, his voice rises and falls passionately.

“The gritty reality of Chicago is something that I express through 93PUNX, although you may not automatically associate that with rock & roll fashion, at the end of the day it’s street culture,” Vic Mensa tells Hip-Hop Wired.

He adds, “93PUNX is the brainchild of myself and Conrad Muscarella. We both grew up skateboarding and attribute a lot of our sensibilities and style to that culture. We tried to incorporate people of all shades and backgrounds in our look book to show that this clothing and movement is really for everybody, black, white, Latinx, straight, trans & everything else! We wanted to recreate the energy of the legendary New York club CBGB. It was so amazing seeing everything come together in the way that it did.“

Mensa has remained open to growth, both musically and on a personal level, especially as it relates to community efforts. His SavemoneySavelife foundation is dedicated to fighting racism and injustice in the States and Vic Mensa is no one’s figurehead. Two weeks before Chuck tweeted his 16 characters of public praise, the rapper made good on his word and popped up in Los Angeles to perform an Anti-ICE concert from the flatbed of a truck.

Currently, his non-profit, alongside NFL player Nick Kwiatkoski, is collecting shoes for a drive later this fall, meant to benefit Chicago youth who’ve been affected by the city’s gun violence and homelessness. “I do the things I do in Chicago because the city gave me so much,” he tells Hip Hop Wired. “I understand that it’s only right to return the support. Chicago means everything to me, it is the soil that grows my creative expression, the foundation of my being.”

The sneaker event, in its second year, is aptly titled The Anti-Bait Truck—not to antagonize but to make a lucid point regarding the Chicago Police Department and their alleged willingness to entrap the disenfranchised.

“One of my primary goals with my non-profit organization moving forward is providing free mental health services for people in the community,” Mensa shares. “We’ve been working with a school in the city called Camelot that takes all the long term suspension and expulsion students, so I am aiming to hire med students to provide therapy in school for these kids.”

If nothing else, Vic Mensa is a musician who rides for his city, against small-minded comments from internet DJs and politicians alike. He’s vocal about holding Chicago close to his heart and is planning innovative movements promoting change while talking heads on TV make the city’s woes, their bullet points. His day one fans have had to accept that Mensa won’t fit into anyone’s set limitations, and why should he? There isn’t much growth to be had from inside a box.

 

 

Source: HipHopWired.com

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Creative Class: Sneaker Sage Jacques Slade

Creative Class 2019

Source: Jacques Slade / Jacques Slade

Name: Jacques Slade

Occupation: Sneaker Documentarian

Location: Los Angeles

How We Know Him: Kustoo has rapper, actor and musical director on his resume but he’s best known for keeping us up to date on all things sneakers via his YouTube channel.

Why We Chose Him: With more than 1.1 million subscribers, he’s a legit influencer delivering informative and insightful info minus any douchey baggage.

What’s Next: Slade is constantly refining his content and linking with brands like Nike who seek his expertise.

IG: @kustoo

 

Jacques Slade is crafting a career out of talking about sneakers. Okay, it is a bit more complicated than that, but talk about a dream gig.

But the real-life sneaker documentarian has put in much to carve his lane and come to fame by entertainingly and expertly detailing new releases, unboxing the most exclusive kicks and recording the culture in ways that keeps both devout sneakerheads and shoe laymen tuning in. A former rapper (who still gets gig blessing Hollywood with his musical expertise), Slade started as a writer before gravitating in front of the camera to share his knowledge. Slade’s YouTube page remains a standout in an increasingly crowded sneaker video space.

When Hip-Hop Wired recently caught up with Slade, he dropped a jewel any Black kid looking to make a mark, in any industry, should take to heart. Said Slade, “As Black people I feel like a lot of times if you come from a certain type neighborhood, you don’t feel like success is something that you should have. Or that these opportunities or windows aren’t going to open up for you.

He added, “You have to take that risk and step outside what’s happening in your neighborhood or step outside of what you’ve always been taught or what people have always told you, and know that there are opportunities out there for you. [With] social media; Youtube, Instagram and all that stuff, it’s a totally different playing field now. There are opportunities to do whatever it is you want.”

Detailing the wants and needs of sneakerheads, and commentary on sports and Pop culture, makes Jacques Slade a go to follow on social media, and if you want to keep it a buck, life.

Source: HipHopWired.com

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Creative Class: Hot Girl General Megan Thee Stallion

Creative Class 2019

Source: Getty composite / Getty

Name: Megan Thee Stallion

Occupation: Rapper

Location: Houston

How We Know Her: She’s collecting her stacks while coining phrases, such as “Hot Girl Summer”,  to complement the vibes of infectious tracks like “Cash S**t” and “Big Ole Freak.”

Why We Chose Her: Thee Stallion’s lyrical content, stage presence and swagger make her a clear standout among her peers. She owned the summer and is clearly investing in her next season.

What’s Next: Ya girl’s getting her degree, touring nationally and working on more hits.

IG: @theestallion

Just when the world thought that the female Rap game didn’t have enough room to house another star Megan Thee Stallion has proven the naysayers wrong. Over the last year, the Houston native has single-handedly stolen the show with both her bars and infectious approach to uplifting women.

Born to a mother who had rapped in the 1990’s, it seems Megan Pete was destined to call shots on the microphone. At the age of 16 she started writing lyrics but it wasn’t until she attended college that her talent took center stage. As a student at Prairie View A&M University the natural entertainer would upload her freestyles and footage of her serving male rappers in battles to YouTube. In 2018 her talent met timing aligned.

With the release of her EP Tina Snow she made a name for herself in the game with her single “Cocky AF.” Still, it wasn’t until the release of the unapologetic“Big Ole Freak” that her star power was truly recognized. The song perfectly complemented the direction of the female Rap movement—and Meg became a clear leader in the pack when she coined the vibes for women of all ages this year with her “Hot Girl Summer” catchphrase. The term quickly went viral on social media thus making her a pop culture mainstay. Most recently she signed with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation. If the management firm still has the golden touch this most likely ensures that Meg and her hotties are here to stay.

Source: HipHopWired.com

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Creative Class: Multifaceted Journalist Brian “B. Dot” Miller

Creative Class 2019

Source: Getty composite / Getty

Name: Brian “B. Dot” Miller

Occupation: Content Creator/Hip-Hop Journalist

Location: Queens, New York

How We Know Him: From magazines to blogs to podcasts and more, Miller stays documenting the culture.

Why We Chose Him: A staple voice in the Hip-Hop community, Miller keeps an ear on what’s now and next, and reports his findings on the Rap Radar podcast and MTV News.

What’s Next: The New Yorker is waiting for the Docusign to clear on another big deal.

IG: @bdottm

Covering Hip-Hop culture can be a thankless job. Nevertheless, Brian “B. Dot” Miller has carved a renowned career covering all aspects of the game, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

“I’ve never been a person driven by money and for a long time I wasn’t making a lot of it, “ B. Dot tells Hip-Hop Wired. “But I loved creating and I recognized early on in my career that the struggle was only temporary. My advice is to always pray, work—work some more, and trust the process.”

That process, which includes transformation and adaptation, involved starting at XXL magazine as an editorial assistant, heading off with Elliott Wilson and becoming a founding editor at the Rap Radar Hip-Hop blog to eventually becoming one of Rap journalism’s better known figures (enough to earn name checks from rappers over ill-received stray tweets). While the blog era has since waned, the Rap Radar podcast is still nabbing exclusive content over at Tidal.

“I feel like I have a responsibility to myself and the people that support me to produce. I hate celebrating yesterday’s touchdowns, so I’m always trying to find new ways to win,” he says. “The idea of being mediocre keeps me up at night.”

Recently, the Queens native scored another W by adding MTV News correspondent to his resume. So what’s next? Plenty, but he can’t really say, for now.

Says B. Dot, “I have to wait until the ink is dry to say, but in the meantime, I’m working on my first book. Stay tuned.”

 

 

Source: HipHopWired.com

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