Kamala Harris hosted an event celebrating the 50th anniversary of hip-hop at her official residence on Saturday. The Vice President welcomed numerous artists such as Common, D-Nice, Omarion, Jeezy, MC Lyte, Roxanne Shante, and more. She put on the event in collaboration with the Recording Academy’s Black Music Collective and Live Nation Urban.
“Hip hop is the ultimate American art form,” Harris said at the event. “Born at a back to school party in the Bronx, raised on the streets of Philadelphia, Chicago, Oakland and Atlanta, hip hop now shapes nearly every aspect of America’s popular culture and it reflects the incredible diversity and ingenuity of the American people.”
Kamala Harris Hosts Hip-Hop Anniversary Event
“To be clear, hip hop culture is America’s culture,” Harris further said, “It is music and melody and rhyme. Hip hop is also an ethos of strength and self-determination; of ambition and aspiration; of pride, power and purpose. Hip hop is a declaration of identity. It says I love who I am. I represent where I come from, and I know where I’m going.” Later in the day, Harris was seen dancing to Q-Tip's "Vivrant Thing." Check out a clip of that moment below.
Kamala Harris Dances To "Vivrant Thing"
Several other politicians were in attendance as well including Rep. Steven Horsford, Rep. Cori Bush, and Sen. Raphael Warnock, as well as Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. At one point during the evening, comedian Deon Cole introduced Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason, Jr. “Every day, Vice President Harris is fighting for the people,” Mason, Jr. told the crowd. “She’s fighting for our people. Our vice president was rooted in hip-hop, and it’s essential to who she is.”
[Via]