"5ifth Element" - Knowlege is Power & The Universal Zulu Nation

Greetings Fam!

It's been a while in the making, but the 5ifth Element is finally here and we're happy to present our first post. This segment, curated and written by @vandigital will focus on a variety of topics revolving around Hip Hop history and important knowledge-based information for the community to absorb, reflect and comment on.

"By no means am I a Hip Hop historian, nor do I consider myself 100% qualified as an "expert" but I think it's important to discuss these topics and to share what I've learned and provide links to further reading" - @vandigital

I felt like the best place to start this segment was to kick off with the most iconic (soulsonic) force that many say is the origin of what we know as "Hip Hop Culture". That is The Universal Zulu Nation. With so much information out there, I'm not going to go into depth in this piece, but I would like to share some of own personal experiences as well.

Afrika Bambaataa

Alongside Kool Herc, Bambaataa is considered the catalyst of Hip Hop as we know it. The organization "The Universal Zulu Nation" was founded by Bambaataa as a means to turn the street gangs in his neighborhood (and ultimately NYC) into a positive force. Now, I wasn't around in the mid 70's in the Bronx, New York, but from what I've read and heard, it was ripe with violence and street gangs, of which Bam was a member of the feared Black Spades and after a failed truce amongst the rival gangs, the idea of forming the Bronx River Organization in 1974 (my birth year) to put on parties for the kids to help them get off the streets and give them an alternative to gang life.

The origin of his name, and ultimately the organization he was creating, came from watching the movie Zulu. The Bronx River Organization became the Universal Zulu Nation and following the adoption of the parties (like the ones Kool Herc was throwing already) he created the Jazzy 5 and (the infamous) Soulsonic Force, some of the first "Hip Hop" crews of the time.

Zulu Nation

Over the years The Universal Zulu Nation evolved into more than just a way to keep kids away from negative gang activity, it began to embody a set of principles and and beliefs, along with defining the pillars of Hip Hop in the elements of DJ, Emcee, Bboy/Bgirl, Graffit and Knowledge. Please do explore these Beliefs yourself to get a better perspective.

Some original members included the likes of Ice-T, Jam Master J, Phife Dog, Ice Cube and more.

Worldwide

It didn't take long for the UZN to spread around the world. Hip Hop was becoming a growing force in the 80's and with MTV and globalization, the culture began taking root worldwide. Chapters of the UZN began to form and connect with each other and became the official organization of Hip Hop Culture.

In fact, here in Malaysia there is a chapter of which I belong and represent. Although I'm not active under the banner of UZN, I do carry on the tradition and use my knowledge and wisdom to share with the community here so they have a deeper understanding of the culture they are participating in.

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Knowledge is Power

I encourage you to do more reading on this topic. I've highlighted a number of links throughout the piece, so click on them as you need and also here's a great article (a quick read) by the esteemed Hip Hop journalist Davey D - "From gangs To Glory"

Also I recommend the book "Cant Stop, Wont Stop by Jeff Chang. It's a great read!

Once again thanks for reading this far and for being a part of our community. Stay on the look out for the next 5ifth Element segment coming your way next week! In the meantime, drop a comment, get the conversation going and make sure to support what we're doing here at #hhtb!

Yours truly @vandigital

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