Music festival season just got sweeter for hip-hop purists. The premier of Ice T’s 2016 Art of Rap Festival was recently announced by the rap music legend, actor and entrepreneur himself. This event is set to celebrate the history of hip-hop by featuring a lineup of performances by some of the greatest MCs to ever hold a microphone. The festival, which will tour major cities in the United States, boosts a magnificent roster of rappers including Public Enemy, EPMD, The Sugar Hill Gang, Mobb Deep, MC Lyte, Kurtis Blow, Naughty By Nature, and Melle Mel.
Ice T’s 2016 Art Of Rap Festival was birthed last year when Ice T himself organized events to highlight the rich history of the now-dominant musical genre.
When discussing the purpose behind his 2012 documentary, Something From Nothing: The Art Of Rap, after which the festival is named, Ice T said, “The main thing I want people to get out of this is respect for the art form. We call it something from nothing. When I started rapping, nobody had ever bought a car from money earned by rapping. When you [are] doing stuff and not getting paid, it’s different. Now, rap is a train that’s moving fast and a lot of people are seeing it as a way to get on and become famous. But all we want you to do is sit down and put some work in so the level and the degree of the art can stay up there. ‘Cause when you drop the bar really low and anybody can do it, it won’t be respected.”
See the tour dates below:
07-16 Dallas, TX – Gexa Pavilion
07-17 Austin, TX – Austin 360 Amphitheater
07-22 Hollywood, CA – Palladium
07-23 Las Vegas, NV – Downtown Las Vegas
07-29 Brooklyn, NY – Coney Island Amphitheater
07-31 Atlanta, GA – Aaron’s Amphitheatre at Lakewood
08-05 Chicago, IL – Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
08-06 Detroit, MI – Freedom Hill Amphitheatre