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“Know the Elements” Hoodie: The Science of Hip-hop

Posted on February 6, 2015 by

Check out this wicked "Know the Elements" hoodie by 5e Gallery. There could not be a more perfect hoodie for me, combining hip-hop and science nerdery. And it even fits nicely. Hip-hip Heads: Do you get all the references underneath the elements?

My colleague Christine and I shot some pics of the hoodie at my museum the California Academy of Sciences today. Cause, you know, SCIENCE.

Near the rainforest.

Outside the project lab.

Pretending to do the science.

"Know the Elements" is just $45 from 5e Gallery. 

And of course gotta drop Blackalicious right here. 

 

3 thoughts on ““Know the Elements” Hoodie: The Science of Hip-hop”

  1. Ben Spofford says:
    March 7, 2020 at 6:12 am

    1)Deejay-ing 8.11.1973 was when DJ Kool Herc threw the famous “Back to School Jam” at 1520 Sedgwick Ave. in the Bronx. During his set, he decided to do something different. Instead of playing the songs in full, he played only their instrumental sections, or “breaks” – sections where he noticed the crowd went wild. During these “breaks” his friend Coke La Rock hyped up the crowd with a microphone. It has since been recognized as the honorary birth of hip hop.

    2)Emcee-ing typically involved a mic check so MC’s could catch the beat typically saying “one, two, one two, one two.”

    3)Graffiti had by far the most extensive and interesting reference. March 18, 1983 (318.1983) is the release date of the film Wild Style, produced by Charlie Ahearn, and featuring the likes of hip hop pioneers Fab 5 Freddy, The Cold Crush Brothers, The Rock Steady Crew, Grandmaster Flash, Busy Bee Starski, Grandmixer DXT, and the person credited with the first hip hop record to reach #1 on the Billboard Top 100 “Rapture” by Debbie Harry of Blondie. The film has been sampled on a number of legendary hip hop albums like Nas’ Illmatic and Beastie Boys’ Check Your Head.

    4)B-Boyin’ The 6-step is one of the foundational sequences of breaking, for most b-boys. It is the first footwork sequence breakers often learn and continues to be the move around which many sets are structured.

    5)Knowledge, or Knowledge, Culture and Overstanding is characterized as awareness, experience, and understanding of self. Having 360 degrees of knowledge implies a circle, or complete understanding of one’s place is space and is equal in all directions surrounding one’s self. This is the final element and possibly the most essential. It was first referenced as an element by Afrika Bambaataa and the Universal Zulu Nation. It is said to bind the other four is an essential foundation point for understanding hip hop’s history and origins.
    ***(Some feel that this element and an understanding of the origin or history of hip hop has been lost over time and that cultural awareness of this element or lack thereof is the primary reason for the division between traditional hip hop artists, what old heads refer to as “true hip hop, which has a stark contrast to current mainstream rap, and newer hip hop artists focus on materialism and consumerism which some feel is “the embracing of ignorance.”) That is a discussion for another day.
    I hope this finds you and that you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I also hope I can find this edition of this hoodie since I have only been able to find ones that do not have the “atomic weight” references below the elements.

    Reply
    1. admin says:
      March 9, 2020 at 8:57 pm

      That’s awesome, thanks for all this background!

      Reply
  2. Helen Garcia says:
    April 12, 2023 at 7:02 am

    Hi I would like link to purchase hoodie of 4 elements of hip-hop please

    Reply

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