HOSTS
SELAH GURU
Instagram @selah_guru
Selah Guru, a lyrical artist and performer born in Harlem, NY, and raised in Augusta, GA is co-host of The Boom Bap Hour Uncut, Hip-Hop Expressive Coordinator, and founder of Supreme MCs Rule Hip-Hop Expression Program, improving economic and social outcomes for youth K-12 by using the elements of Hip Hop as a tool for self-expression, emotional intelligence and learning social skills.
His mother has been a huge inspiration in his entertainment career. She recognized her young son’s talent and entered him into an acclaimed talent contest at the age of 7, winning performing Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean at Augusta, GA Civic Center. Since then, he has dominated stages in numerous Hip-Hop shows and festivals across the nation.
Selah has showcased lyrical skills in front of some of the best Hip-Hop artists in history at a young stage in his Hip-Hop career, including the Notorious B.I.G., Doug E. Fresh, and Sway of MTV. All of them recognized his talent and was a major push in the furthering of his career. With musical influences ranging from rock, jazz, soul to Hip-Hop, his style cannot be neatly fit into any box. As a freestyle artist, Selah constantly reinvents himself. However his message is what it’s always been since Hip Hop started, which reflects in his music. A true thoroughbred, and very conscious from his words to his style, he TRULY loves Hip Hop and lives and breathes it daily. In his own words, “HIP HOP SAVED MY LIFE!!!!!”
He has an uncanny ability to discover and develop new artists. He was a 2018 finalist for the A3C Action Accelerator for Hip Hop Social Change, and honored as a 2018 Fellow of the Lincoln City Fellowship sponsored by The Speranza Foundation.
BIZZO BEATS
Instagram @bizzobeats
Bizzo Beats is a 30 year veteran DJ, producer,
and world class mix engineer/music producer with many releases under his belt.
A Philly native, he is co-host of The Boom Bap Hour Uncut. He also serves on the board of advisors for the Supreme MCs Rule Hip-Hop Expression Program, improving economic and social outcomes for youth K-12 by using the elements of Hip Hop as a tool for self-expression, emotional intelligence and learning social skills.
Bizzo also hosts classes for DJing, where he mentors adults and youth on the importance of mastering this important element of Hip-Hop, producing and making beats.
Ruby V.
Instagram @mrsrubyv
Mrs. Ruby V is Marketing and Promotions Manager and co-host of The Boom Bap Hour Uncut. She is also co-founder of the Supreme MCs Rule Hip Hop Expression Program, improving economic and social outcomes for youth K-12 by using the elements of Hip Hop as a tool for self-expression, emotional intelligence and learning social skills.
A native of Minneapolis, MN, she is a specialist in Communications, Design, Marketing, Visual Art, Public Relations and Branding.
She is also a visual artist and graphic designer, having participated in gallery showings as well as touring art shows such as Art, Beats & Lyrics in Atlanta, GA and Washington, DC. She received an Associate of Arts in Graphic Design from Art Institute of Atlanta in 1998, and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Digital Design from American Intercontinental University in 2009. She worked as a graphic and web designer and freelanced for higher education and small to large corporations. She has also worked as an Executive Assistant for a prominent African American art gallery where she specialized in planning events, and has also taught expressive therapy classes. Her art has been chosen for marketing projects with schools such as Paine College and Tulane University. She also continues to promote art & music with her husband Selah.
MEET THE TEAM
GRAPHICS/VIDEO
Nathan Dias - Leesburg, FL
Graphics/Video Designer
“Telling people to not mind the art style is like telling people to ignore the frozen crust on their Pizza. It's really hard to ignore and no matter how good the sauce and cheese is, it's not going to taste that good.”
To me Hip hop is this unfiltered window into the artist’s mind. In nearly any other genre, or medium you would be called heavy handed. Yet because of how hip-hop puts so much focus on the lyrics, it must be this pure expression.
Hobbies/Likes:
Role-playing Games, Animation, and Drawing.
BLOGGERS
Bria Jackson - Cartersville, GA
Staff Writer
"My troubles don't determine where I'm going, the way I overcome them does."
To me, hip-hop is a culture. Various sounds, with or without poetic words, telling a story. Hip-hop means black power, especially when looking at the EARLY versions of it. It's dominating, it brings a sense of effervescence, it creates dances, it is everything.
Hobbies & Likes: reading, writing, hanging with friends, planning my future, enjoying nature, listening to music
Jason Callahan - Belmont, Mississippi
Staff Writer
“To do something and achieve it, is to never wonder what if you would have done it”
Hip hop to me, is a way of learning about the artist’s life, the struggle they overcame. Hip hop has broadened my understanding of many areas, I chose not to think about.
Hobbies: Listening to music, gaming, cooking, hanging out with friends, writing, and working on computers.
Kayla Thomas - Blackwood, NJ
Staff Writer
Hip hop to me is the embodiment of culture. It blends elements of African and African Americans' styles and influences while still being appealing and enjoyable for all people.
Hobbies: I enjoy reading, composing music, singing, and writing about music.
Jessa Jansen -Gainesville, Florida/Atlanta, Georgia
Staff Writer
"So many stories of who I am, and how I got to where I am" - Brandi Carlile
Hobbies: I enjoy writing, reading, running and binging on True Crime documentaries and podcasts as well as hours devoted at times to ”Netflix and Chill”.
I would like to share a quote and piece from a Rolling Stone article from an interview David Bowie did back in 1983 on MTV:
While promoting Let’s Dance, Bowie takes on MTV, a young network at the time for playing virtually no videos by black artists. “Having watched MTV over the past few months, it’s a solid enterprise with a lot going for it,” Bowie said. “I’m just floored that by the fact that there’s so few black artists featured on it. Why is that?”
When MTV, VJ Mark Goodman suggested that the teenagers of 1983 wouldn’t appreciate artists like the Isley Brothers, Bowie said: “I’ll tell you what maybe the Isley Brothers or Marvin Gaye means to a black 17-year-old, and surely he’s part of America as well.
Rolling Stone goes on to say: ”David Bowie was one of the few white voices in rock brave enough to take MTV on directly.”
I have always found this interview impactful and a part of my why I have celebrated the type of artists in the Hip Hop music arena, and how their individual stories help fuel their music and how even those artists taken too soon, continue to inspire so many generations. (see reference below)
Reference:
Greene, A. “Flashback: David Bowie Rips Into MTV for Ignoring Blacks.” Google, Google, 13 Jan. 2016, www.google.com/amp/s/www.
Annabelle Snipes - Aiken, SC
Staff Writer
“I just want to pet my dog and pretend Obama is still the president.”
Hobbies/likes:Painting, Writing, Acoustic guitar and mashed potatoes