The Second AFA Hip Hop Summit on 9/29/07 is right around the corner ...

If you are stranded on a desert island and have no clue what I'm talking about let me enlighten you a bit.

On September 29th, the one and only AFA Hip Hop Summit will be going down in NYC @ The Tank.

There will be workshops and discussion panels on Hip Hop culture and music from 3 - 6 pm in the afternoon for all ages. Then, from 6-9 we are having a huge concert featuring the AntFarm Affiliates. Admission is $10 dollars for the entire day, but $6 dollars with school I.D. (high school & college).

Here is a breakdown of the workshop blocks:

Open Letter Entertainment and the Ant Farm Affiliates present:
THE HIP-HOP SUMMIT 3 - 9 pm / All Ages / $10 ($6 w/ school ID)

Workshop Block #1: 3 - 3:30 pm
Using Independent Media
How can local, independent and emerging media help the independent hip hop artist gain exposure?
Presenters: Sketch tha Cataclysm, Dirt E. Dutch, Quixotic, Protégé

Workshop Block #2: 3:30 - 4 pm
Performance
What goes into making a great performance? How do you get prepared for the stage? Learn from the MCs who've been doing it!
Presenters: Rising Sun Quest, Hawl Digg, Roc 1, Expertiz, Choyce

Workshop Block #3: 4 - 4:30 pm
DJ'ing and Turntablism - Main Auditorium
What is the role of the DJ in hip hop? How can you get started as a DJ? What are the different types of DJs in hip hop? How has technology changed the game?
Presenters: DJ Sir.Cumference, Quixotic, Nemesis Alpha, Protege

Workshop Block #4: 4:30 - 5 pm
Lyric Writing
Jay Z doesn't need to write down his lyrics…you do. Get songwriting tips from the hottest lyricists in the Ant Farm Affiliates.
Presenters: Expertiz, Othello, Quest, Hawl Digg, Choyce

Workshop Block #5: 5 - 5:30 pm
Production
Hip hop has always been about the rhymes AND the beats. Let these producers show you how to put together beats and record songs that are professional quality.
Presenters: Dirt E. Dutch, Deto 22, Quixotic, Sketch tha Cataclysm

DEMO DERBY: 5:00 - 5:30 pm
We will randomly select songs for an honest critique, played for everyone over the TANK's sound system, by our expert panel of producers, DJs and MCs. CDs of your music may be submitted throughout the day in the Demo Derby box located at the front of the stage.

CONCERT feat. ANTFARM AFFILIATES & Special Guests TBA: 6:00-9:00 pm

Presenters/Performers:

AntFarm Affiliates:
In early 2007 underground giants from the New York and Connecticut hip hop scene joined forces and created the ANT FARM AFFILIATES. Anchored by powerhouse groups Phenetiks, Workforce and d_Cyphernauts and pulling in the essential microphone soloists Sketch tha Cataclysm, the Rising Sun Quest, Spaz the Working Class, Expertiz and Cee Reed, the Ant Farm possesses the depth and talent reminiscent of the Juice Crew, Native Tongues or the early Rawkus roster. Pushing past the boundaries of commercial rap, the Ant Farm Affiliates proudly wave the flag for hip hop in the new millennium.

Choyce:
Charles "Choyce" Dalton fell in to Hip Hop culture at an early age as his father did DJ work in his younger days and his mother was involved in the Hip Hop culture of the mid-80's . But it wasn't until the age of twelve that he discovered his own musical ability. In 1992 Choyce moved to Rochdale Village in South Jamaica, Queens, where he became childhood friends with Mark "Maom" Mclean and Wendell "Bonito" Jordan. After years of evaluating his life and practicing his craft, he finally found the niche he was looking for and accepted hip-hop as his life, not just a hobby. The events that caused this transition make up the man now known as Choyce.

d_Cyphernauts: Othello, Nemesis Alpha and producer Quixotic
The d_Cyphernauts have been talking the talk and walking the walk since their fusion in 2000. Rising from the ashes of NSB studios in the Bronx in the summer of 2000, rappers Othello and Nemesis Alpha continue to produce music that is streetwise, vital, intelligent and revolutionary. The Bronx battle-rapper and the Staten Island social commentator have an unrivaled stage chemistry. Nemesis Alpha's fierce, straight-forward delivery is offset by the syncopated cadences and the spitfire flow of Othello's lyrical swordplay. Both MCs are also inner city schoolteachers and their commitment to uplifting the youth of the next hip hop generation is apparent in their music. As the creators of the Enter the Cypher Hip Hop Showcase and Open Mic events and the founders of the Ant Farm Affiliates, the d_Cyphernauts have established themselves as a force on the new York and Connecticut hip hop scene. The d_Cyphernauts refuse to be players in the current state of rap music, they are intent on changing the game.

Phenetiks: Roc 1, JK 1, Protégé, Deto 22, and Sir.Cumference
Started in 1994 by producer Deto-22, the Phenetiks formula has always been a simple one: dope beats with personality, and MC's who spit hungry. Although the crews roster has changed countless times, the overall vision and philosophy has not. While making some small hometown buzz, deto-22's and Brooklyn native Roc-one involved themselves in a local project, the "Clash of the Titans" with three other area artists (Quest, Spaz, JK1) in 2000. During the 9-month recording sessions, it became apparent JK is an animal when spittin' and the MC to MC relationship he had with Roc was perfect. DJ Sir.Cumference came aboard in 2004 as the official phenetiks DJ, and has since solidified himself as the "Show" when phenetiks is live. Childhood friends with Sir.Cumference, and frequent phenetiks studio visitor, Protege has seen the vision the crew had and understood it from the rip. And now it's here, the crew, the 5, phenetiks in the Rawkus 50.

Rising Sun Quest:
Rising Sun Quests reps and reflects the life of his hometown in Connecticut. He began writing in high school, performing in the lunchroom ciphers, and quickly gained respect with his punchlines that drove the crowd wild. He has two solo albums titled Stellar Evolution‚ and Surviving Life, dealing with a wide range of topics stemming from personal experience. He has graced major stages in Connecticut, New York and Massachusetts.

Sketch tha Cataclysm:
Can great Hip-Hop come from public access television? Well, if you've seen Sketch Tha Cataclysm you already know the answer is an emphatic yes. Sketch got his start hosting two public access Hip-Hop shows in his hometown of Waterbury, CT, performing what he calls, in retrospect, "terrible battle raps littered with inappropriate similes and varied other foulness for shock value." It was during that eight year period as a host, however, that he learned how to write complete songs and released an album entitled Tao Te Ching. Tao Te Ching was a collection of songs about the world told in first person and third person narratives and in a series of editorials. The name Sketch comes from his innfatuation with drawing and never finishing pictures when he was little. "Tha Cataclysm" came due to a chance encounter with a magazine, legal purposes, Jeru, and a desire to make his name become more of an artistic statement than a rap name with a subtitle. Basically, Sketch Tha Cataclysm = Design The Change. Sketch Tha Cataclysm's latest CD is entitled "Party Music 4 Pissed Off People". PM4POP is exactly as advertised, socially conscious music that you can dance to. While a lot of artists have attempted to play both sides of the coin Sketch has managed to succeed where most of them have failed. Neither lyrics nor production take a backseat in Sketch's recording or live shows. Sketch has made sure both shine equally without letting one overtake the other, creating the balance that is often lacking in hip hop today.

Workforce: Hawl Digg and Dirt E. Dutch
Workforce's first EP release is available this winter on Little Ax Media. You can trust it's a well thought out compilation of bonified bangers for true hip hop heads! Hawl Digg introduces his sharp crisp and catchy lyrics over thunderous beats produced by old-school visionary, Dirt E. Dutch. Workforce have shared stages with De La Soul, J-live, Mos Def, Slick Rick, Pharoah Monch, and the Stronghold.