#pflipperks: MY 1ST CONTACT HIGH

Recently I visited Contact High: A Visual History of Hip Hop, an exhibit at the Annenberg Space for Photography in Los Angeles. It...was..ah…may…zing! I visited because I was raised on hip hop and r&b - shoutout to the 90’s- but also because photographers, makeup artists, wardrobe, A/V professionals are literally the painters of culture. Through them we experience moments in time, but we also experience their genius in how to create these moments. From fashion to photography these key background artists aren’t automatically thought of as influencers of the culture, but it is because of them that we are able to have the blueprints we have today. Lil Kim, MC Hammer, and Outkast are all examples of how key background artists have helped paint the culture that is now hip hop for the world to see. I loved this exhibit because it went even further back and behind the scenes showcasing pioneers like Roxanne Shante, MC Lyte, Rakim, and Big Daddy Kane when they started and how they evolved. Personally this exhibit is a photographer’s delight and a stylist’s joy because it’s a journey in fashion, culture, evolution, and photography from a genre that many thought wouldn’t last a decade. If you have the chance to visit L.A. soon, the exhibit is FREE and open to the public until August 2019. Click HERE for more info. Until next time…

**biggie, faith, diddy, craig mack, total.**

Patrick FlippinJune 8, 2019