Week-long mural festival Below The Stacks, took place in REO Town Lansing, MI September 15 – 21, 2019. Presented by Muralmatics and All of the Above HipHop Academy, one year later there’s still plenty left from the event to talk about and celebrate.
The BTS Welcome Center was located in REO Town square. From there our AOTA Creative sisters and brothers provided festival maps and related merch, and their volunteers were on site to answer any questions about the mural festival.
But let’s start with a wall at the entrance of the square. The white Below The Stacks logo on top of its black background was eye catching already, especially from afar. The design appears simplistic but there’s an incredible amount of detail in it.
Once you’re up on it, though, you notice the layers in the words that make it look three dimensional. From my vantage point I saw a lot of people taking pictures in front of the logo.
The corner of that wall set the tone for the whole week of beauty from artists Birdcap (Escatawp, MS), Spitz (Lansing), Imagine 876 (Nepal), Max Sansing (Chicago, IL), MURALMATICS (Lansing), Samskee (Lansing), Sent Rock (Chicago), Sydney G. James (Detroit), Wing Chow (Richmond, VA), Royyal Dog (Los Angeles, CA), and Werc (New York, NY).
I spent most of that first day, a kickoff event called “Art Attack”, standing on a stage in the square with two of my AOTA Creative brothers, Ess Be and Y’z council. The pair of producers/DJs have a musical chemistry that had me, for most of our several hours together, awestruck.
I had the privilege of being the MC for the day and I was just so impressed by the diverse, in-the-moment soundtrack Y’z and Ess Be created for everyone to enjoy.
The three of us had the task of entertaining the event visitors, me with words and them with music. And they played a mix of hip-hop and soul music that kept people engaged, smiling, and dancing throughout.
For a while, though, the festival visitors were pretty spread out. This kept the center of the square open.
Our AOTA brother James Henson aka Scorpion took advantage. A B-boy with exceptional contemporary dance skill, he twisted and contorted his body to the jams while people watched and applauded from afar.
Before long Scorpion’s solo routines drew the attention of a fellow B-boy who strode up looking to battle. Scorpion accepted his challenge without hesitation.
The festival visitors were pretty spread out because there was a lot to do in REO Town. There were family painting activities, lots of food and artwork to take home, and how-to workshops. Many of them were behind us painting the community mural, some partook of all the good food available on site, and others explored the many vendors and business owners displayed in the area. They were bagging up goodies while watching two of the first murals painted before their eyes.
As entertaining and intriguing as this was, some of them eventually migrated to the music. And Y’z and Ess Be had the perfect song for them.
As a diverse group of the enthused congregated in front of the stage, the duo piped in “Cupid Shuffle”. This popular song at “Art Attack”, just like any other gathering, proved to be irresistible. The lyrics gave its well-known commands and every participant obeyed in rhythm.
With everyone front-and-center, two more of our AOTA brothers, Ant and B-Boy Young One, invited all the children to take part in a breaking workshop in front of the stage.
With their parents and numerous other spectators watching, the children were taught the basics of breaking before being given the floor to perform. The best part was seeing everyone smiling and having a good time together, enjoying the type of shared community experience Below The Stacks was created to do.
From my vantage on stage with Y’z and Ess Be, that was everything! |THIS.
All of the Above HipHop Academy is a 501(c)3 organization of artists and educators using the elements of Hip-Hop culture to mentor youth, support their artistic expression, build their confidence, and nurture their development into community leaders. Our program teaches writing, breaking, music production, and street art, meeting the needs of the youth across Lansing, MI
[By Mr. Joe Walker | Photos by Kendall D. Lartigue]
We go “Above & Beyond” every Wednesday at 8:00 AM!
