And Nas says Hip Hop is dead. Well he wasn t in Pittsburgh Sunday, January 14, 2007, as the first Hip Hop Awards were held at the Hilton Hotel in downtown Pittsburgh to give props to those involved in the local Hip Hop scene.

 

Sunday evening the utmost respect was given starting from the original pioneers of Hip Hop including our own local pioneers Stan-tha-Man, Sly Jock, the Pittsburgh All Stars, Nick Nice, Mel Man and Rob Penney.  

 

The large banquet room was SRO once the show started. The air of excitement was thick in the air, it felt like a party. As all sectors of the local hip hop scene were in representative including the clothing stores, record stores, recording studios, radio stations, media, sports figures and production companies.

 

The evening began but where else at the beginning with a hot display of DJ mastery. MC, Paradise, opening comment was to the crowd, how good Pittsburgh looks tonight. The MC position was shared between Paradise and pioneer of rap Mele Mel of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, whose performance of The Message took us back to the beginning of rap in the South Bronx and ended with the audience on their feet dancing and singing don t push me cuz I m close to the edge, I m trying not to lose my head, it s like a jungle some time, it makes me wonder how I keep from going under.

 

The other performances throughout the evening were by local nominated artists, 2 G s, which moving rap lyrics of If they take from me one more time, I m gonna lose my mind, describing lost friends to street violence; The Suspects; Heleraziers; Da Sinate, a crowd favorite; and the break dance group, Caution Crew.

 

As the winners were announced the crowd jumped in extreme excitement when it was one of their favorites. The most excited announcement was the best video, which was won by NewGame Records & Greedy Films, Dat Deal.

 

The evening s event is a positive step forward for Pittsburgh, in building a solid organization for networking opportunities among artists, producers and promoters, also a place for the showcasing and grooming of local talent.

 

 

Male artist: Wiz Khalifa.

Female artist: Baby Sis.

Duo or group: The Govament.

Producer: E-Rock.

Lyricists of the Year: Wiz Khalifa.

Mover and Shaker Award: Meanstreet Ent.

Mix-tape Solo: Joe Beast.

Mix-tape Group: Matt Dillinger -- Assault Series.

Best Hip-Hop Record Store: 720.

Best Hip-Hop Clothing Store: Timebomb.

Best Hip-Hop Video: Dat Deal DVD.

Best B-boy: Ambition.

Best Graffiti Artist: Mook.

Best Inspirational Artist: Scribe.

Recording Studio: I.D. Labs.

Club DJ: Schizo.

Radio Personality: J Kruz.

Best Hip-Hop Web Site: Cravedemboyz.com http://cravedemboyz.com/

Concert/Party Promoter: Fab 5 Ent.

Best Athlete (pro): Charlie Batch.

Best Athlete (college): Darrell Revis.

Best Athlete (high school): Dejuan Blair.

 

The next time you are in a record store and looking for so new jams, purchase a CD from one of our many local talented artists, I m sure you will enjoy what they have to offer. Let s support Pittsburgh in big way. They ll be soon making big waves on the national scene.

 

The success of the evening was a team effort and thanks goes out to Dwayne Muhammad, of 360 Entertainment, promoter of the event and others who helped organized and kept it running smoothly, Brother Jasiri and also the security people for keeping the event fun and safe.