BHF an acronym for the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival is an annual event held in July at the Brooklyn Bridge Park to celebrate Hip-Hop music and culture. Produced by the Bodega Agency which is a fully owned subsidiary of Brooklyn Bodega, Inc. The core goal of the festival is to shed light on the contribution of Hip-Hop to the growth of the Arts, Communities as well as fostering social change.
The Brooklyn Hip-Hop festival was founded by entrepreneur Wes Jackson who is also the current Executive Director and President of Brooklyn Bodega with the co-founders Gregory Trani and Douglas Nettingham. The Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival has been hosted by Ralph McDaniels since 2006. He was tasked with creating Video Music Box the pioneer music video show entirely geared towards urban market public television broadcast.
The Brooklyn Hip-Hop festival was started in 2005 where it was first held at a parking lot in Williamsburg and is now considered New York City’s biggest hip-hop event. The core of the festival is hip-hop performances collaborating with partner hip-hop cultural events and the climax being the festival. The festival is not only keen with its music programming but also integrates a segment called “Family Day” which comprises music seminars, performances, and demonstrations led by family inclined organizations.
Known to attract large crowds of over thirty thousand people, the Brooklyn Hip-Hop festival spearheaded a new format of programming and went on to become a highly anticipated historical event that is considered different from larger hip-hop festivals like Rock the Bells. The events seem more of a New York thing allowing artists to give back to the community. Local businesses have also gotten on board contributing to the cause such as the Brooklyn Brewery that gave a parking lot for the first event, FLUD Watches, Hoodman Clothing, and many others.
The Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival is known to attract a multitude of hip-hop artists both at the very top of their careers as well as those who are starting and trying to get their big break. Some of the famous hip-hop stars that have graced the event include Buster Rhymes, Jay-Z, Raekwon, J. Cole, Slick Rick, M.O.P, Ghost Face Killer, Kanye West, KRS-One, Kendrick Lamar, Styles P, Jay Electronica, and many others.
The Brooklyn Bodega which owns the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival utilizes the proceeds from the annual festival to sponsor throughout the year cultural programming.
Summary:
Since its establishment in 2005, the Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival has grown into a movement supporting not only the growth of hip-hop music as an art but also fostering community change, development, and growth. Founded by the Brooklyn Bodega Agency, the event has grown from a parking lot event into a mega cultural phenomenon attended by multitudes of revelers and graced by famous as well as rising stars.
