Hip-Hop Convention seeks to rap the vote

From Chuck D's radio gig to Russell Simmons' Hip-Hop Summits to P. Diddy's "Vote or Die" shirt, there's no question the hip-hop nation has mobilized for this election.

Pittsburgh didn't get a Hip-Hop Summit, where the only price for admission to see big stars was signing up to vote. "It happened in the cities where the artists are," says Khari Mosley. "Detroit had Eminem. In St. Louis, Nelly was there. There's no national artist in Pittsburgh on that level."

But Mosley, a hip-hop artist and political consultant who came out of the National Hip-Hop Convention in Newark as the Pennsylvania chairman, has organized the Pennsylvania Hip-Hop Political Convention at the University of Pittsburgh this weekend.

The event will feature voter registration drives, speakers and workshops on grassroots political organizing. There are two concerts associated with the event, a local slam on the lawn of Carnegie Mellon University today at 5 p.m. and the Talib Kweli concert on Saturday that is part of the Rock 'N' Row Weekend.

Interestingly, Kweli, known for being a socially conscious rapper, recently noted that he was conflicted about this election, saying that there wasn't much of a difference between the candidates and that the hip-hop nation should make its impact on local politics.

Adrienne Maree Brown, 25, program director of the League of Pissed Off Voters, co-editor of the book "How to Get Stupid White Men Out of Office" and one of the speakers of the local convention, is familiar with the position that Kweli is taking.

"There was a big article that came out by Bakari Kitwana that the hip-hop nation shouldn't vote, that there's not that much difference between them. I totally disagree with that idea. I think if the folks think beyond their little sphere a little bit, then that becomes really obvious."

Brown has been traveling all over the country, she says, training people on the issues in the election, using as a guide the five-point agenda from the Hip-Hop Convention: education, economic justice, criminal justice, health care and human rights.

Asked whether or not her league of voters was partisan, she says, "I call it post-partisan, 'cause we're really operating with the understanding that none of the parties really do [expletive] for us and we really have to step and start doing [expletive] for ourselves. They're lucky to get our endorsements. We're trying to put our folks into power. It's not about race. It's about all the determining factors of personality, what a person brings to the table."

Brown says it's been helpful having hip-hop artists involved during this election, but she cautions, "I also think we have to be careful. Folks can tell when someone is doing something that's trendy. I have a lot more respect for artists who have been doing it for a long time. I think the real test is, where are they in six months? Where is P. Diddy in six months? I would love for him to be working with us. But our work continues whether they're there or not. ... I like working with underground artists because they're not trying to make a billion dollars with every word that falls out of their mouths, so that gives them the freedom to say what they need to say."

Mosley, one of those people free to say what he needs to say, has a busy weekend planned, running the convention and riding around neighborhoods on a flatbed truck with DJ Selecta, trying to register as many voters as possible.

Mosley will also take off his nonpartisan hat to lay out his own political opinions in rhyme at the CMU concert. The rapper, who favors the Golden Age of Hip-Hop, says he likes the fact that even mainstream hip-hop artists are coming back around to issues.

"Gratuitous violence and sex is getting a little old. There was a time in hip-hop when everyone was dropping knowledge. You wore African beads and medallions and you talked about knowledge. Public Enemy was the No. 1 group. Then it seemed like people got tired of that. The West came out with G-funk and even for me it was a fresh break. But I think a lot of people have seen Kanye [West's] success and said, 'OK, you can come positive and still have success.' It goes in cycles. I feel good about it."