Afrika Bambaataa

Object Details

Exhibition Label: Afrika Bambaataa is a founding master DJ of hip-hop and the music’s philosophical proponent around the world. A gang member raised in a Bronx housing project, Bambaataa was transformed by a trip to Africa. He returned with a vision to transmute gang violence into cultural battles based in music, dance, and the arts. He founded the Zulu Nation as a new kind of consciousness-raising gang. An influential DJ in New York City’s club scene, "Bam" crafted a global electrobeat with the Soul Sonic Force: he mixed disco and funk with the rhythms of DJ Kool Herc (Jamaica), Kraftwerk (Germany), and the Yellow Magic Orchestra (Japan). An intimidating figure with a tight scowl who often wears a floor-length leather coat, Bambaataa still gives this simple advice to DJs and rappers: "you must seek knowledge." His club hit "Looking for the Perfect Beat" distilled into five words the elusive musical quest of the African diaspora in its American form.

1983

Medium: Gelatin silver print
Dimensions: Image: 20.4 x 13.5 cm (8 1/16 x 5 5/16"); Sheet: 25.3 x 20.2 cm (9 15/16 x 7 15/16"); Mat: 45.7 x 35.6 cm (18 x 14")

National Portrait Gallery

Topic: Costume\Jewelry\Necklace; Afrika Bambaataa: Male; Afrika Bambaataa: Performing Arts\Performer\Musician; Portrait

GUID (Link to Original Record): http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4c3b533d5-7643-4dd4-87aa-11d983e48bd4