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Warm up for opening of Universal Hip Hop Museum in the Bronx

The museum aims to be ready for visitors for Hip Hop’s 50th anniversary

LiFTED | Leah Liu | 6 Mar 2021


In less than two years, the Universal Hip-Hop Museum (UHHM) in the Bronx will be open to the public. The museum aims to accurately preserve the history of local and global Hip Hop music and other elements including DJing, breakdancing, and graffiti through stories, performances, film screenings, and cutting-edge virtual and augmented reality technologies to showcase the genre’s unique appeal.

On February 24, UHHM took the public via a webinar on a 3D virtual tour of its interior while listening to Civil Rights icon, Dr. Benjamin Chavis, radio host Barbara “Roxie” Delaleu, DJ Spark of iHeart Radio, UHHM's founder and executive director Rocky Bucano, and Chair of the Capital Campaign and UHHM Chief Strategist Michael Blake explain why and how to donate to the museum.

“We’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time. Maybe I’ve been waiting for 10 years. Eventually, the concept was completed and everyone was excited,” said Bucano, the executive director of this project, said during the webinar. "It is a cultural timestamp that will bridge the Hip Hop and Bronx community with a permanent place to call home.”

The birth of Hip Hop took place at a party in the Bronx in 1973. So the museum’s organizers hope to open it in its birthplace in 2023 for the 50th anniversary of the genre. Rappers Kurtis Blow and Grandmaster Melle Mel are the people behind the idea of the museum. Other Hip Hop artists involved as investors are Nas, LL Cool J, and Ice T. UHHM will take up 60,000 square feet in the new Bronx Point waterfront development.

Learn more about UHHM here.