Hip-hop is not dead. And Wednesday night, Creative Campus hopes to prove it with their new event, Tidal Flow.
“This is a showcase that we are doing to seek out new, unseen, unheard talent on campus,” Philine Gromotka, a sophomore majoring in art, said. Gromotka is a part of the Creative Campus team in charge of Tidal Flow.
Tidal Flow was originally supposed to be a rap-based event, but as the team came together, they decided to expand it to encompass all aspects of hip-hop culture. Art, dance, spoken word and other various aspects of the culture will all be present at the event.
“We think that hip-hop comes in a lot of different forms and styles. We’re just trying to reach out and see what’s out there on campus,” Naomi Thompson, a senior majoring in psychology and a Creative Campus intern, said. “Who’s yearning to perform more, who’s yearning to see more hip-hop on campus.”
The Tidal Flow pre-party will begin at 1 p.m. on the Presidential Plaza beside the ten Hoor parking deck. It is expected to last until 4:30 p.m. For the pre-party, Creative Campus has enlisted the help of a student aerosol artist, who will be engaging with participants to create an interactive aerosol art piece. After completion, the piece will be relocated to Allen Bales Theatre, where it will serve as the backdrop for the performances later that evening.
“It’s an 8-by-24 foot kind of wall that people can come and paint on,” Gromotka said.
Immediately following the aerosol art, participants can head over to Maxwell Hall, where Creative Campus is located, for free pizza and refreshments. Afterwards, at 6:30 p.m., a panel will be held at Allen Bales Theatre to discuss hip-hop culture. The panel will last until about 7:30 p.m., and then the talent showcases will begin. Performances from Riptide, Gravity Company dancers and Common Ground can be expected, as well as additional performances from other members of the student body. At the conclusion of the night, a freestyle segment will be opened to the audience.
“We just invite people to come on stage and perform if they feel like it, if they feel like they have been inspired by the show or if they just want to show us some talent,” Gromotka said.
OVERSET FOLLOWS:It is uncertain whether or not this will become a yearly event, but Gromotka said it is definitely a possibility. Thompson, too, says that she believes this event could be repeated so long as there is a need for it.
“This event is a chance to see and hear from the audience about what they want to see on campus,” Gromotka said. “We want to do this for the students, so that people who are interested in it have somewhere to go to and then so that people who are artists have a place they can go to and perform.”
Tidal Flow is a free event open to students as well as any other members of the community interested in seeing hip-hop talent celebrated throughout the night. Regardless of whether you are a fan of hip-hop culture or not, Gromotka says, the event is a great opportunity to learn more about this culture on campus.
“We want them to realize that hip-hop is not dead. We want them to see that that kind of talent is here,” Gromotka said. “We want them to be inspired by it and just enjoy it.”
