Join us for the 50 years of Hip Hop Celebration on Monday, March 6th at 5:30 PM CST at the New Orleans Jazz Museum.
5:30-6:25 PM-Welcome/Reception/Presentation/Donation of an 808 drum machine to the New Orleans Jazz Museum from the Universal Hip Hop Museum-Second-Floor in the Drumsville Exhibit
6:30-8:00 PM-Live performances on the balcony and video games in the courtyard.
Hot97’s Gerard “HipHopGamer” Williams will MC the event.
There will be food, cocktails, video games, and live performances by the IGL5Gs: Indys Blu, K.Levy, Money Baby 504, La Reezy, and Suave3KC from the IGL Foundation.
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In his early teens, Gerard “HipHopGamer” Williams continued to develop his love for gaming, rap music, and sports. He soon delved more heavily into the music world as a way to express himself. At the age of 14, his brother be-stowed the nickname “Jackal- Flarez,” which was then shortened to “Jackal.” The name fit Gerard as his electric energy combined with his rap style was described as flowing like a “wild dog.” Soon after embarking on his musical voyage, Gerard received an offer for a major recording deal with MC Chan; but, the opportunity ended up falling apart. Never one to give-up, Gerard shifted his focus back to his first love, video-games and embarked on the next chapter in his legendary story. Several years later in December 2007, Gerard finally found the path that would help him leave his mark on the world. Combining his love for gaming, rap music, and sports, he donned the moniker that he would be forever remembered as, the HipHopGamer (HHG). He created his first YouTube video modeled on existing television platforms but also sprinkled in his trademark authentic view that was missing from existing content.
Building on this concept, Gerard continued to release content until E3 veteran and former owner of thebitbag.com, Torrence Davis invited him to attend E3 for his first time. Though he never lost his love for music, pursuing that as a career would soon take the backseat to his goal of marrying his love for gaming and culture to develop the career that we know today. The HHG movement continued to grow as after an interview with TV host and DJ Peter Rosenberg of “Ebro in the Morning” on Hot97, as he was presented with the opportunity to become a gaming content contributor for New York’s top hip-hop radio station, Hot 97 Combining his love for gaming, sports, and entertainment in a unique way, the HipHopGamer began curating and creating custom content for motion pictures such as Battleship and Ghost in the Shell as well as by interviewing celebrities such as Jerry Rice, Kevin Hart, Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, John Cena, Hugh Jackman, Zoe Saldana, Ryan Reynolds, Tyler Perry, RZA, Raekwon, Vivica A. Fox, Angela Bassett and a host of other A-list celebrities and industry leaders.
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Indys Blu is a classically trained vocalist and songwriter whose focus is expressing authentic and relatable experiences through her music. She was first inspired to sing “Rolling in the Deep” by Adele in her school talent show. After winning 3rd place, she asked her parents if she could take singing lessons so she could win first place the following year. In the 4th grade, Indys sang Blossom Dearie’s, “If I were A Bell” and won first place. The following year she sang the Italian song “Se Tu M’ami” by Alessandro Parisotti and again won first place. She continued studying classical music under renowned opera singer Kate Arthurs and participated in Komenka Ethnic Dance and Music Ensemble, an annual musical where she learned and performed songs in Spanish, Hindi, Japanese, Italian and more.
In 2021, she attended a 5-week intensive course at Berklee College of music. Indys Blu has studied under Grammy-nominated Tank from Tank and the Bangs, America’s Got Talent pick Casme’ Carter, and more. Tank introduced her to New Orleans Youth Open Mic Night (NOYOM), a local open mic group for teens. While it almost entirely included local amateur and professional poets, Indys always took to the stage to sing. She was a member of that group for two years. She has also performed with the renowned Preservation Hall Jazz Band, musician Joshua Starkman, and guitarist Tommy Halverson. Indys Blu’s music is inspired by Summer Walker, Daniel Caesar, and Alanis Morrisette. She has sung at weddings, funerals, private parties, and events. She is currently taking opportunities to perform covers as well as her own R&B music which was released last summer under her first album, entitled, Same Conversations. Her latest song, “Marry Yo Momma” is a catchy, soulful song that leaves the audience remembering why “lyricist” is just one of Indys’ many talents.
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Kaelan Levy, also known by his stage name, K.Levy, is a hip-hop artist, actor, and motivational speaker from Vacherie, La. K.Levy is a St. James High School alumnus and has been committed to giving back to his community since he was a child. He’s been writing songs and developing his talent since the age of 5, in hopes that he could build a platform for himself and make an impact on everyone who crosses his path. He is well known for his motto, “Mission Legendary”, which inspires people to challenge themselves to be the best that they can be in any circumstance. Levy is not driven by fame or clout but by the actual direct impact he has on others, a rarity these days. That impact is not only felt in the music as K.Levy is an author and speaker, presenting his story in different mediums, and reaching people in numerous ways.
K.Levy seems to stay extremely prolific and consistent as he looks to show more transparency moving forward. With the motivational hip-hop artist getting set to drop more albums now is the time to find some hope in K.Levy’s music. Every time K.Levy grabs the mic, he’s ready to showcase not only his skills but his experience in this thing called life, putting on and educating the youth for the future. With years in the game, K.Levy sees through all the smoke and mirrors and provides a unique experience for those looking for more. All the while providing various avenues of creative expression and teaching others in the process. K.Levy has found ways to innovate and create his own lane by creating his own tour - The Backyard Boomin' Tour and also creating his own music festival - K.Levy's Legends Festival. Mission Legendary is the standard at all times. This is the mindset K.Levy exhibits on a daily basis.
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Money Baby 504 is a 19-year-old rapper from Raleigh, North Carolina. He moved to New Orleans at the age of 9 where he created his first rap song and his own brand called 4GO, which stands for 4 Greatness Only. He always dreamed about performing in front of thousands of people and letting them hear and feel his music. He has large career goals for himself and would like to achieve performing in an arena or stadium for a halftime show, he would love to meet his idol Snoop Dogg, make more music and music videos. Some of his biggest achievements are meeting Scott Starch, flying to Miami to perform for Coast to Coast live, and making it on the Papoose mixtape Number 19 with his hit song “Banana.” He recently teamed up with IGL Foundation’s IGL5Gs and Hot97’s HipHopGamer to perform in the Smoothie King Center at the New Orleans Pelicans game.
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La Reezy is one of the most exciting new rap artists, entrepreneurs, and influencers at 18 years old. His lyrics are about his real life as a teen growing up in Uptown New Orleans, going to school, being a big brother, and looking for love. He prides himself in creating intentional music designed to make you think by elevating your thoughts without cursing, selling drugs, or degrading females. La Reezy feels he was chosen to go through his life experiences so he can share them with the world and intends to deliberately shake up the rap industry with his style of hardcore-clean raps.
La Reezy also gives epic performances as if he’s a seasoned professional. He has been performing at family functions, birthday parties, and pop-up shops since he was 5 years old. He always shows up as if he is on a big stage performing for thousands, both surprising and delighting crowds with his showmanship. His biggest influencers are Rod Wave, NBA YoungBoy, Quando Rondo, Lil Wayne, Adele, Austin Moon, Justin Beiber, and Michael Jackson. La Reezy is also making moves on the internet. He currently has over 245,000 streams and is verified on Spotify and Soundcloud. He can be found on Instagram @LaReezyMusic, Facebook @LaReezy, Twitter, Spotify, Apple Music, Sound Cloud, etc.
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With his sultry sound and mixed bag of eclectic sound, Suave3KC is making strides in the area of “Rock-N-B” music. As a growing influencer in New Orleans, Suave3KC is best known for his ballads on pushing through pain and redefining teenaged love. He is best-known for his soon to be international hit, “Hey My Lover.”
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Through dynamic interactive exhibits, multigenerational educational programming, research facilities and engaging musical performances, the music New Orleans made famous is explored in all its forms. Housed in the historic Old U.S. Mint, strategically located at the intersection of the French Quarter and the Frenchmen Street live music corridor, the New Orleans Jazz Museum is in the heart of the city’s vibrant music scene. Through partnerships with local, national and international educational institutions, the New Orleans Jazz Museum promotes the global understanding of jazz as one of the most innovative, historically pivotal musical art forms in world history.
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The Universal Hip Hop Museum was founded by Rocky Bucano and a group of iconic entrepreneurs and artists including Kurtis Blow, Ice T, LL Cool J, Nas, and many others. They joined forces to create the world’s first Hip Hop museum in the Bronx. The Universal Hip Hop Museum in the Bronx celebrates and preserves the history of local and global Hip Hop music and culture to inspire, empower, and promote understanding. Anchored in the birthplace of the culture, the Universal Hip Hop Museum in the Bronx will provide a space for audiences, artists, and technology to converge, creating unparalleled educational and entertainment experiences around the Hip Hop culture of the past, present, and future.
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The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division and play their home games at the Smoothie King Center.
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IGL Foundation is a 501c3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to bring people together to learn, compete, and play by providing opportunities for students in the areas of technology, gaming, and the digital arts that are both enriching and entertaining. They do this by producing events of various sizes and scopes that combine industry professionals and local gaming communities to participate in panels, keynotes, and competitive esport tournaments. The Independent Gaming League was created by the IGL Foundation to provide a place for all gamers to have a place to compete in both online and live tournaments. Through these events and tournaments they raise funding for all of their youth educational programs.
The IGL Foundation leverages the popularity of the $92B-a-year video game industry to get kids excited about Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) as well as digital arts. They raise money by running events and tournaments to provide affordable STEM/Digital Arts education programs for students year-round. By producing programs, seminars, conventions, and workshops that are both fun and educational, their goal is to better prepare students and their communities to be a part of today’s technology-driven workforce economy.
