YO - Brussels Hip Hop Generations

True to their interest in urban cultures, BOZAR and visit.brussels are presenting a major exhibition devoted to hip-hop. This genuine global phenomenon has its roots in the cultural development of large cities and the position of adolescents within these urban environments, both on the ground and in the mediasphere. Originating in a New York of the 1970s suffering the pains of dis-industrialisation, hip-hop was launched by adolescents alienated from the prevailing values of a society from which they felt excluded.
As the world has since globalised, several generations of young bruxellois have successively participated in this cultural movement, each one appropriating it in turn. With the explosion in television channels and the new technologies, hip-hop has been constantly reinventing itself through its four favoured means of expression: dance, graffiti, DJing and rap.

As part of MIXITY.brussels 2017, BOZAR and visit.brussels are paying homage to this complex culture, rich in its diversity, disciplines and successive generations, each one refining the culture in the light of their own perceptions. The project presents a melting pot of more than 30 years of creation in the capital. Alongside the presentation of major periods in the history of Brussels hip-hop, the exhibition proposes an immersive experience. The public will be invited to consult archives and objects but also to get up close to today's hip-hop artists through the many workshops, performances, battles and other encounters.

Curators: Adrien Grimmeau and Benoît Quittelier