Jeff Chang is a powerhouse. He is a hip-hop activist, father, proud male feminist and author of the authoritative book Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation. Can’t Stop is a must-read—with an introduction by the legendary DJ Kool Herc, and chapters spanning from the history of Bronx street gangs all the way to Ice Cube’s “Death Certificate” LP—once you pick it up, you can’t stop reading and you won’t stop learning.

Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop is one of the most comprehensive books on hip-hop culture and history. How did you make the decision to take your interviews and historical research to the next level and put them out in non-fiction form?
I started thinking about the book when Solesides ended in 1997. It was a way of working through all that I thought I had learned up to that point. Back then it was going to be a book just about Ice Cube’s “Death Certificate”. As time went on, I realized I had a much bigger story: the story about how the hip-hop generation emerged in this post-civil rights, globalized era.

Of all the interviews you conducted, which individual made the most significant impression on you and on the outcome of the book?
So many people had such an indelible impact on me. I think meeting Benjamin Melendez and Carlos Suarez from the Ghetto Brothers brought many things together. The 1971 gang peace treaty, organized in the Bronx, still affects us today. In many ways, it made hip-hop possible. It is the ultimate example of a butterfly effect. Something that happened amongst a small number of forgotten youths in an abandoned borough of the big city still touches us more than three decades later, all around the world. Yet, you can’t read about it in most “official” histories of New York City, let alone hip-hop. The thing that sticks to me about all of these Bronx pioneers – from Benjy and Carlos through DJ Kool Herc, Afrika Bambaataa and Grandmaster Flash – is that they felt they had to do what they did. They weren’t getting paid at first, they did it out of love and passion and a desire to live. DJ Kool Herc says in the introduction, “It was something we did for fun.” That’s the beauty and power of hip-hop right there in seven words.

What’s next for Jeff Chang?
I’m working on an anthology on the aesthetics of hip-hop, a book that will be artist-centered and move beyond just rap music to look at how hip-hop has moved into performance arts, visual arts, literature and all kinds of other forms. People can always catch up with me at my website, www.cantstopwontstop.com and check out my blog to see what I’m obsessing about at any given moment. I don’t know if that’s healthy, but that’s what’s up!

She has over 20 pairs of puma sneakers, predominately pink of course, and Nas is on high rotation in her CD player. English is her first language, Spanglish is her second. As a child, she dreamed of becoming a fashion designer, but her early days as a street promoter for Def Jam Records led Melissa Giles to becoming an instrumental leader in the Urban Latino movement.

Growing up in Miami, Melissa was frustrated with the lack of events and activities that celebrated her diverse cultural background. Being of British and Venezuelan descent, she searched for something that blended her urban American upbringing with her sexy heritage.

Finding nothing that filled this void, Melissa decided to change things and made history by successfully launching Misto LES, a renowned all female marketing street team. But she didn’t stop there. Melissa recognized the need for more entertainment outlets that met the needs of Urban Lations*, so she founded Soulfrito Urban Latin Music Festival. In her position as director, she is intramental with bringing the annual music festival to the people of Miami. Along with her Soulfrito staff, Melissa also organizes monthly events in Miami, NY and LA that celebrate music, fashion, poetry and up and coming artists.

What inspired you to launch Misto LES?
I started working for street teams where it was all male. They would always ask me to bring girls and I noticed we got mad attention. A rep from Bad Boy in Miami would always say, “You’re the number one female street team.” And it stuck! From there, it grew and now we’ve developed Misto LES into a Marketing & PR Agency for the Urban Latino market. Our clients have included Baby Phat, JLo Sportswear, HBO, AOL Latino, Def Jam Records and Loud Records.

Where does the word Soulfrito come from?
Well I wanted something that represented the flava of our culture. Sofrito is a seasoning we (Latinos) add to our food and I personified it by renaming it SOULfrito. The flava of our soul!

What woman do you admire in hip-hop?
Queen Latifah. She is one of the few female rappers who has evolved and developed herself into a successful actress, mogul and businesswoman.

How has Hip-Hop influenced your life?
I love hip-hop. I grew up on it but I’m not gonna front and say I’m a true hip-hop head. But I love good quality music and I admire artists who are actually saying something like Nas, Talib Kweli and Kanye West. I also miss what hip-hop use to be. It has become too CRUNK now.

What’s your opinion of the future of Latin hip-hop (hip-hop beats with Spanish lyrics)?
I’m more concerned with Latinos making urban music in general not just latin hip-hop. I feel that Latinos have been apart of the whole urban movement since its birth and now with us being the number one minority group, the industry is finally staring to take recognition of our power.

That’s why I feel that reggaeton is getting the recognition that it is. Everyone is like, “What’s this reggaeton stuff?” What reggaeton has fortunately done is open the eyes to the urban and Latin music industries. By proving that there is a huge market with Latinos making mainstream urban music, whether it be hip-hop or R&B, and buying it.

Where do you see Soulfrito in 5 years?
Having successfully brought some culturally relevant substance to the youth across America and I expect to see Soulfrito as a leading brand in the national and international markets.

The Urban Latino movement is where hip-hop was 20 years ago, but growing twice as fast and Melissa Giles is in place and ready to burst doors open for the future urban Latino P Diddys, Queen Latifahs, Spike Lees and FUBUs of the world.

Botate Nena! Botate! (Puerto Rican seasoned, “You go gurl!”)

*Sidenote:
Who or what is Urban Latino? Urban Latino is the term used to refer to U.S. born 2nd, 3rd and 4th generation Hispanics, who consume English language media and listen to more than just traditional Hispanic music, they listen to hip-hop, R&B, Reggaeton and various other genres. Urban Latinos represent a traditional Latino culture with an Urban upbringing with over $300 billion in purchasing power.

www.soulfrito.net

I guess the first thing you’d want to know is what qualifies me as an “industry angel,” to go around popping off info about the music industry.

Well let me present my credentials: first, I’m a staff writer for Allhiphop.com and I’m the entertainment editor on my campus paper. Those two factors put me in contact with a lot of artists and more importantly, their label contacts. I get to check out the imprint-side of the industry. Second, I work for Radio One Dallas, that’s 97.9 the Beat and 94.5 KSOUL. This connect also puts me on the corporate side of the business. Finally, I’m a consumer, just like you. I’m in the record stores (actually Best Buy), I go to the concerts, I go to the clubs. I see whether an artist is being pushed along on a gimmick or really working their talent. I meet the local performers and the Indie outfits breaking their asses to get into the business. I see both sides of the game… and after hearing so many of the same types of questions I feel like I have knowledge to share.

Dallas hosted a hip-hop summit in October. Unlike the first one in 2002, which consisted of an organized presentation to the masses, the agenda this year focused on answering the audience’s questions. Minister Benjamin Muhammad, Russell Simmons, Reverend Run, Erykah Badu, the D.O.C., Headkrack, an on-air personality at 97.9 the Beat, and two students from Paul Quinn college sat before an audience in the chapel at Paul Quinn College.

The panelists told the audience what hip-hop meant to them, then opened the floor to questions. The question that came up the most frequently were questions of how to get on in the music game. The panelists gave their own [long winded] responses, but I’m giving you my answer. A clear one. A concise one.

I’m an artist and I’ve made a CD, how do I get my music to the big record labels?
Russell Simmons used Roc-a-Fella, Cash Money and No Limit as examples, you need to get the majors interested in you through the buzz you created for yourself. A&R reps aren’t in the streets taking demos like they are on TV and the movies. You either need an inside connect or you need to make so much noise in the streets that you can’t be ignored. A local act in Houston named Chamillionaire & Paul Wall sold 20,000 independently and now they’re being courted by the majors. The majors don’t want to gamble on possibilities. They want something that’s already certified by the streets. Certify yourself with the streets and they’ll take notice.

Well I’ve already done that, I’ve been selling CDs out of my trunk but nothing’s really been jumping.
That’s the grind homie. I know it looks to us like cats just jumped up out of nowhere but artists were in the grind for YEARS before they could get majors to take note of them. DJ Clue was making mix tapes in the hood forever before he got a distribution deal. Joe Budden was an all-star on the mix-tape circuit for 5 years before Def Jam signed him. Look how old Wu Tang was when they released “Protect Ya Neck.” None of this happens overnight.

The streets already know about my Indie label. How do I get the radio to play my music?
Ask industry people and they’ll say “call and request the song.” That’s only partially true. Before the requests can make any impact, the people at the station need to know who you are–and by the people I mean the people in the offices–not just the DJ’s. It’s the program director’s job to put songs into rotation. Everything goes through him first. He works off of a playlist, usually the top 40 in other similar markets. Get the program director interested in your product. Use the radio to advertise. Airtime is cheaper than people think. You can cop a 30-second commercial advertising *whatever*, and if your music is playing in the background then that’s the radio’s whole audience taking in your sound. If it’s undeniable, people will call and ask what song was playing in the commercial. Create your buzz and keep yourself fresh in the mind of the program director. Then those requests will start to mean something.

How do I start my own record label?
READ. I don’t care how inarticulate some of these rap CEOs can come across, all of them are SMART. And it’s because they took in all of the knowledge they could about their trade. There’s a million and one books on the record industry. All you need to do is pick one up and start reading.

Many of you know her, many of you don’t. Her plate’s full but she’s still hungry for more. She is a superwoman, fighting with positive aggression. She’s a filmmaker, an activist, an educator, a community organizer, a writer and a mother. Her name is Rachel Raimist and she is changing the face of hip-hop.

Rachel grew up in Upstate New York. In 1993, she left the city that never sleeps, for the City of Angels, to attend the University of California. While there she successfully earned her B.A in Film & Production. Following, she received her M.F.A in Film Directing in 1995. Currently, she teaches Video Production at the University of California, Irvine.

Rachel runs her own independent production company, Unleashed Entertainment. She is also a freelance writer. Raimist writes for the now defunct, Blu Magazine, The Cipher, ShadowBox, Red Eye Magazine and Culture Magazine. She’s a woman with a lot to say and write but that’s only half the story.

Having directed and sub-directed more than 30 films and productions, Raimist has attracted a lot attention and has retrieved recognition for her positive political outlook. She’s been interviewed by 60 Minutes and has had her work written about in such publications as The Village Voice, L.A. Sentinel and L.A. Weekly.

Her independent documentary, “Nobody Knows My Name” documents women in hip-hop, featuring real-life stories from female artists such as Medusa, Lisa, T-Love, DJ Symphony, Asia One and Leschea. This film gives you the opened minds and hearts from the artists.

Rachel’s initiative was to creative the ultimate chronicle and shoot across the U.S. Sheer dedication and almost hitting rock bottom, the production of the project had fluctuated from it’s highs and lows. Rachel was left to support herself and her aspirations for the production after receiving weak support from those whom she’d shared her ideas.

Back in New York, both of her parents were suffering from cancer, so she was traveling back and forth. Soon after starting production, Raimist discovered she was pregnant and lost all funding from UCLA.

“Nobody knows My Name” features women in hip-hop who don’t use their sexuality to get where they want to be. The film covers 3 of hip-hop’s base elements, it missing the graffiti element. Although, Lady Pink is mentioned there is no footage of any graff-writers. Understandably, many of them did not want to talk on camera.

Rachel is currently working on making “Nobody Knows My Name” into a book. She is accepting submission from writers around the world for the project.

The film has been showcased all over the world and in 45+ colleges & universities worldwide. You can find “Nobody Knows My Name” at Women Make Movies.