 |
||||||
 |
||||||
 |
||||||
|
||||||
| By Franklin Bueno Diamondback staff writer |
||||||
|
|
||||||
| Campus students experienced the many facets of hip-hop culture Friday night at a DJ Showcase that benefited Hurricane Mitch victims. Participants saw the talents of student DJs, MCs and break dancers. The main event was a battle of the DJs, with judges deciding the best three of eight student DJs. The crowd awarded first prize "DJ Tripp," sophomore business major Ken Wood. "DJ Redz," Berry Blanton, junior communications major received second prize. Wood won a mixer and a set of Technics turntables; Blanton won various records, a magazine subscription and a pair of tickets to a concert at Howard University. "I feel great right now, but I definitely have to give much respect to all of the DJs that came out ... Going head-to-head with Redz, he definitely gave a whole lot of competition, but, you know, everybody was on my side, and I came out victorious tonight," DJ Tripp said. Glass Onion, a campus group that produces shows, was the primary organizer of the event, which was at the Student Union. While the Student Union Program Council funded the event, all proceeds were sent to Hurricane Mitch victims through the Red Cross.Campus students paid three dollars to see the event and non-students paid five dollars. Organizations such as the Black Student Union and the Lambda Upsilon Lambda fraternity also helped fund the event. Spectators showed interest and enthusiasm in the contest regardless of their knowledge of hip-hop scratching, which is the sound produced by manipulating the turntables and mixer. "I have heard a little [scratching] here and there at parties, but never at a competitive arena ... I'm always interested in seeing new things and new art forms," said Kristin Kresch, a junior anthropology major. "I thought [the competition] was great ... It came very, very close ... there were at least four top DJs who had major skills... I know they put a lot of work in practicing," said Melissa Gormley, a junior journalism major. DJ Iran and EZ Street, radio personalities from 93.9 WKYS, made an appearance at the event. DJ Iran gave a performance on the turntables, while EZ Street was the emceed. "As I get older, I get to see a lot of younger DJs take it to another level, and that's great," DJ Iran said. "I'm down with anyone who still loves vinyl and respects the art of DJing that's beautiful to me." EZ Street said he enjoyed hosting the DJ contest and added that it was a pleasure to see "real hip-hop" from "young DJs. " Some DJs performed out of enthusiasm for the craft. "I'm in it because I enjoy DJing; I really don't care if I win. Whether I win or not, I still have fun," said Rory Thomas, a freshman mechanical engineering major at Johns Hopkins University. Ben Alcoff, a freshman letters and sciences major and one of the judges, said he looked for the technical aspects of DJing, specifically, scratches and beat juggling. When the audience chose Blanton and Wood, the finalists had a face off on the turntables. EZ Street selected three people from the crowd, who declared Wood the winner. "It's so great that all of my friends came out," Redz said. "This is my first battle, so I'm really happy about how I did." |
||||||
|
|
||||||
| + Back to Articles | ||||||