Founded in 2012, the South Florida Book Festival (SFBF) has made steady strides and is now one of the fastest-growing events of its kind across the southeast region. Each year it presents celebrity authors and respected thought-leaders. Professor Eddie Glaude Jr, comedian Rickey Smiley, director Eric Dean Seaton, and writer/producer of Boondocks Rodney Barnes were some of the featured authors of past festivals.
This year’s event is entitled “WORD!: Celebrating 50 Years of Hip-Hop Culture.” It was in August 1973, when Clive Campbell pulled out two turntables and created a whole new musical sound by mixing the sounds of James Brown and Aretha Franklin. His innovative technique became hip-hop. Fifty years later, hip-hop —the music, deejaying, dancing, and fashion—has massive global impact as a culture and an economy.
At its root, hip-hop is about creative and personal expression by marginalized groups through spoken word, and over the course of the last half-decade hip-hop artists have used their words to illuminate their own realities in ways that are sometimes harsh and sometime lavish, but always entertaining.
The festival will foreground the intersection of literature, visual, and performing arts generated by the culture featuring authors who prove that hip-hop is more than just a fad; it is a cultural phenomenon that has changed American society and pop culture. The lineup will also include scholars of the culture and biographers of hip-hop’s legendary artists.
We are glad to announce Kwame Alexander, Rob Kenner, and Dr. Regina N. Bradley as our featured authors. Festival attendees will also have a chance to see an exciting performance from the Olujimi Dance Theater exploring the African and Caribbean roots of modern hip-hop dance.
Register today and stay tuned for more additions to the lineup.
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