Jermaine Dupri commemorates 50 years of hip-hop at Essence Festival of Culture
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Renowned rapper, super-producer and music magnate, Jermaine Dupri is amazed that 30 years have passed since he founded his label So So Def. That milestone comes as Dupri leads a celebration of 50 years of hip-hop at the Essence Festival of Culture in New Orleans on Saturday.
Missy Elliott, the first woman in hip-hop to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, will headline the night at the Superdome, but Dupri curated a central segment that lets everyone know: “The South Got Something To Say. ”
“Atlanta’s dominance in rap is an unheard-of force,” Dupri said in an interview with The Associated Press. “And I think we should recognize that.”
Dupri brings together for the first time a group of artists – Big Boi, TI, Ludacris, Gucci Mane and Lil Jon – all on one stage.
“I’m just trying to represent my city the best I can,” Dupri said when asked what festival fans can expect. “It’s about the unity, having so much power on stage at once, man! We’ve all had shows together, but not as one. This is almost like the super friends getting together. Feeling excited. An hour of non-stop hits is coming.”
Dupri notes that the festival usually shifted its talent for concert series to an older hip-hop demographic via artists whose shows were considered “clean.”
“I remember performing there a few years ago and we were told that we swore too much on the show, that we had too much profanity for the audience. That was the last time Frankie Beverly and Maze performed, so you can imagine the audience was between 40 and 70 years old,” he said. “This is Essence’s first time presenting hip-hop at this level. I asked them if they were willing to do a real, uncensored show for us and they said they were ready. I hope you all are too.”
Dupri said he plans to reflect both the genre’s lifestyle and the music during this once-in-a-lifetime experience.
“I have asked Karl Kani to dress for this event so that I can feel as nostalgic as possible. I want to make sure I have all the elements or at least try to capture them all, including the fashion, the dances, the hosts, the DJs and being a real B-Boy,” he said.
Dupri said he understands why people are still wondering if hip-hop is here to stay.
“I think people have always felt that hip-hop was less than the music that existed before, like R&B and rock. I often think that when hip-hop artists don’t take the performance aspect as seriously as they should, I can see why. That’s what creates that conversation. That’s why I take this show as seriously as possible,” he said. “Hip-hop has so many different layers. You have Pharrell as creative director for men for Louis Vuitton, Future as creative director for Lanvin. That’s indicative of what hip-hop does and how it infects humanity and the places where we live. It’s hard to imagine it ever disappearing. It’s a lifestyle that will continue to grow.
“Once I was infected with this as a child, you realize it leads nowhere. I started in 1984, a music era as addictive as I ever imagined crack was.”
Dupri described the longevity of his career as “amazing”.
“It’s almost unbelievable,” he said. “I remember when I thought if I could last a year. When Kris Kross came out, I wondered how long this group would last. When So So Def was 25 years old, it felt like we were 100 years old. To get past that, that 25th, is just amazing.”
Dupri said he is proud of the work he has done and the artists he has been able to find and mentor along the way, including Da Brat and Bow Wow and more recently Latto and JI The Prince – products of his talent show, “The Rap Game .”
“When I see how far along these artists are and the ones who came out of my show, I wonder if people realize how far ahead of the game I am,” he said. “This is a very competitive space that we live in. Real pronunciation. The world met this girl (Latto) in a TV show and we chose her as the first winner. Does this mean that JD knew or saw something before the rest of the world? Yes. Now we have nothing to do with her success so far, but she is still a branch of the JD tree, of me keeping my ear to the street and able to spot talent.
“Most of the artists I find are usually someone who nobody wants to sign at the time. This was not something I wanted to do at first,” he added. “But God put me here to work with younger talent and artists and create a space to see them win. All it does when I see their success is that it feels like a graduation to me. I am proud to see that.”
