RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom

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The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) will open RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom—a celebration of one of the most influential cultural and social movements of the last 50 years—on March 24, 2018 in its Great Hall. Through photography, video, art, music, dance, fashion, and interactive gallery features, the exhibition uncovers the under-recognized story of how Hip-Hop changed the world.

Created to accompany the exhibition, an array of public programs and activities will be offered throughout the spring and summer, including activities inside of the gallery’s Hip-Hop Dojo, events during the popular late-night event Friday Nights @ OMCA, and other special programs including a conversation with Hip-Hop journalist and editor Danyel Smith on Saturday, June 9 and the OMCA Park Jam on Saturday, July 21. Additional details are available on the OMCA website, museumca.org.

Find below some of the Hip-Hop Dojo Programs

Cypher Sunday

In Hip-Hop, free styling is the art of lyrical improvisation and a cypher is a circle with no visible beginning or ending. Test out your freestyling skills–rapping, dancing, or beatboxing—and come watch and support others in this participatory event series taking place inside special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom.

Part of special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom, the Hip-Hop Dojo is a practice, performance, and event space that will come alive with a series of programs during the spring and summer. More than 80 participants will lead programs in the Dojo that include music, dance, yoga, trivia, chess, and more. Details included below and at museumca.org/events.

Participants take turns offering thoughts off the top of their heads in the form of rhyme while a guest DJ spins, and guest hosts will facilitate the experience based on a specific topic each time. Come share your lyrics, ideas, and sounds every first and third Sunday through August 12.

Plug ‘n’ Play

Every Friday during Friday Nights @ OMCA, a rotating list of guest DJs take over the Hip-Hop Dojo inside RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom to demonstrate live sets. This weekly event series created in collaboration with San Francisco’s The DJ Project features local DJs to give visitors a taste of the vast musical genre of Hip-Hop. Get down to Bay Area classics, international crossover hits, and underground unsung legends, among other topics. Inspired to try it out yourself? Build up your own skills inside the Sound Lab inside the exhibition space. Included with Museum special exhibition admission (half-price on Fridays after 5 pm, free for 18 and under). There is a $4 charge in addition to general admission pricing for special exhibitions.

Flow: Hip-Hop Yoga

Want to bring together your love of Hip-Hop and mindful movement—or better breath control on the mic and greater endurance on stage? Come practice your core strength on every first Friday of the month inside the special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom. Relax and build your skills with “Your Local Yoga Dealer” Shakira while you discover the shared principles between the grounding of the mind and body. All levels welcome. Included with Museum special exhibition admission (half-price on Fridays after 5 pm, free for 18 and under). There is a $4 charge in addition to general admission pricing for special exhibitions.

Queens: Women, Chess, Hip-Hop

Rochelle Ballantyne and Jennifer Shahade speak with Adisa Banjoko, Hip-Hop Chess Federation founder and writer of Bobby, Bruce & the Bronx. A rising star, Stanford graduate Ballantyne is the black female closest to achieving chess title of “Master” and was featured in the 2012 documentary Brooklyn Castle. Shahade is a two-time US Women’s Chess Champion, author of Play Like a Girl and Chess B*tch, poker professional, and editor of uschess.org. After the talk, Ballantyne and Shahade take on all comers in free play. Included with Museum special exhibition admission (half-price on Fridays after 5 pm, free for 18 and under). There is a $4 charge in addition to general admission pricing for special exhibitions.

Mic Check/Checkmate

“Make your next move your best move.” Check out the strong ties between Hip-Hop and chess communities in this event series inside special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom. Refine your own skills of discipline, precision, and mastery by joining chess games open to all. Included with Museum special exhibition admission. There is a $4 charge in addition to general admission pricing for special exhibitions.

Hip-Hop Trivia

Think you know Hip-Hop? Test and expand your knowledge of the culture every third Friday in the Hip-Hop Dojo inside special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom during Friday Nights @ OMCA. Topics will include fashion, politics, history, and more. Bring a friend to round out your answers—and don’t forget to study up with the exhibition’s Reading Room on your next visit. Drop-ins welcome. Included with Museum special exhibition admission (half-price on Fridays after 5 pm, free for 18 and under). There is a $4 charge in addition to general admission pricing for special exhibitions.

Chop It Up

In Hip-Hop culture, the barbershop is known as a community hub for news and debate. Inside special exhibition RESPECT: Hip-Hop Style & Wisdom, gather around the Barbershop space inside the gallery to learn from guest speakers focusing on new topics each month. Explore unexpected aspects of Hip-Hop culture. Included with Museum special exhibition admission. There is a $4 charge in addition to general admission pricing for special exhibitions.

ABOUT THE OAKLAND MUSEUM OF CALIFORNIA

The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) brings together collections of art, history and natural science under one roof to tell the extraordinary stories of California and its people. OMCA's groundbreaking exhibits tell the many stories that comprise California with many voices, often drawing on first-person accounts by people who have shaped California's cultural heritage. Visitors are invited to actively participate in the Museum as they learn about the natural, artistic and social forces that affect the state and investigate their own role in both its history and its future. With more than 1.9 million objects, OMCA is a leading cultural institution of the Bay Area and a resource for the research and understanding of California's dynamic cultural and environmental heritage.

VISITOR INFORMATION

Museum admission is $15.95 general; $10.95 seniors and students with valid ID, $6.95 youth ages 9 to 17, and free for children 8 and under and Members. There is a $4 charge in addition to general admission pricing for special exhibitions. OMCA offers onsite underground parking, with validation for Museum visitors, and is conveniently located one block from the Lake Merritt BART station, on the corner of 10th Street and Oak Street. The accessibility ramp is located at the new 1000 Oak Street main entrance. Regular hours are 11 am to 5 pm, Wednesday through Sunday, 11 am to 9 pm Fridays. museumca.org