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Pusha T is easily one of the sharpest lyricists in Hip-Hop today and knows a thing or two about being an entrepreneur. In a recent interview, King Push shared his thoughts on Black Business Month, the upcoming Pepsi Dig In Day in Washington, D.C., and more.
Pusha T recently sat down to speak with Blavity about Black Business Month, the inaugural Dig In Day in the heart of Southeast Washington, D.C., and even shared one of his favorite spots to dine in the DMV. The Virginia Beach, Va. native spoke with the outlet about Pepsi Dig In Day, which the brand launched in 2020 to support underrepresented communities and support Black-owned businesses. The event, which takes place this weekend, was at the top of the mind of Pusha T as he shared his thoughts on Dig In Day.
“I’m expecting for it to be a time for music, community and networking just to clash all at once,” Pusha T said. “The actual event space of Anacostia is one of my favorite event spaces. It’s where a lot of events are held where the creative and the business minds of the DMV come together. It can be kind of artsy, kind of techie; it can be whatever the mix calls for that evening. I’m looking for the event to be community building, networking and a good time.”
The Sandlot rests near the Anacostia River in the historic Anacostia community, which continues to see rapid development. The free event will surely bring a good crowd that the businesses nestled along nearby Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue will hopefully benefit from.
Pepsi is working in partnership with The James Beard Foundation, Fig. 8, Okra, Black and Mobile, and a number of other companies and brands. Pepsi has awarded over $2 million in grants to 200 Black-owned businesses and 500 restaurants since the start of the Dig In Day campaign.
“I think prioritizing Black-owned businesses is important because it gives specifically the Black community a sense of hope,” Pusha continued. “It gives us the ‘I can do it’ mentality from the ground up, and I always think that’s good to see. A lot of people where we’re from and some of the areas we’re from and a lot of the positions that we’ve been put in, we may think it’s a heavy lift to start your own. One might think it’s too heavy of a lift, but when they see how many people took that leap of faith and how many people were involved and actually succeeded from sheer blood, sweat and tears, I think it’s good for the community to see and it lets everyone know that we can do it.”
As noted in the interview, Push is familiar with the DMV region and says that African-Asian fusion restaurant Bronze is his top choice with Jerk At Nite, one of the businesses that will serve Dig In Day revelers, being another.
Pusha T will headline the Pepsi Dig In Day Block Party happening this Saturday (August 19) at Sandlot Anacostia in Washington, D.C. Joining Push will be Alex Vaughn, Black Alley, with sound support from DJ Money and DJ Five9.
Learn more about Dig In Day here.
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Photo: Scott Dudelson / Getty
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The DMV, the acronym for the region comprising Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia, boasts some of the strongest Hip-Hop talent in the nation and across the globe. e Words, Beats & Life Inc. (WBL), the longest-running Hip-Hop educational nonprofit organization, is hosting the DMV HIP HOP 50 concert featuring homegrown acts such as Oddisee, Adé, Nonchalant, and more.
The DMV’s Hip-Hop history is a rich one, dating back to the 1980s and exploding in the 1990s with the likes of Opus Akoben, the AMPHBNS crew, graffiti crew EBO, the Soul Controllers mix show at the University of Maryland College Park campus and venues such as State of The Union and Kaffa House, and more.
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Acts such as Questionmark Asylum, D.C. Scorpio, Stinky Dink, and the aforementioned Nonchalant helped to expand much of the region’s sound beyond its familiar Go-Go sound and introduced the nation and the world to another side of the Nation’s Capital and its bordering lands.
This Saturday (August 12) at the Lincoln Theater, WBL will kick off its DMV HIP HOP show with the globe-trotting Oddisee, now based in Brooklyn, N.Y. but never losing sight of his roots. He’ll be rocking with his band Good Company, and his Diamond District cohorts, yU, and Uptown XO are also on the bill. Adé, formerly known as Phil Adé, is still crafting music at the major label level and Nonchalant is keeping her feet in the game working both as an artist and DJ.
The stacked lineup includes the likes of the talented Dior Ashley Brown, longtime crew Meridian with Dimes, Noyeek, Theory, El Beta, ane BenOfficial, Prowess The Testament, Asheru, Substantial, Priest Da Nomad, and the legendary DJ Kool. On the wheels will be area mainstay DJ RBI, and attendees can expect performances from Enoch, Flex Matthews, Odd Mojo, Sub Z, and a homecoming for Freestyle Union founder, Toni Blackman.
In other WBL area happenings, WHINO, a dazzling art and dining space in Arlington, Va., is hosting a Hip-Hop Karaoke event TONIGHT (August 11) on Hip-Hop’s 50th and invites attendees to show off their rapping skills with all of the heavy lyrical lifting done for you. All you have to do is read along and spit those bars with conviction. Find out more about the event here.
If you can’t make either event, WBL has its Fine Lines Graffiti and Paint Jam on Sunday (August 13) for a live session of graffiti art and the like. Learn more here.
To get your tickets for WBL’s DMV HIP HOP 50 concert, click here.
Learn more about WBL here.
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Photo: WBL
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