MC Lyte talks on the Kickstarter overview for the Smithsonian’s ‘Anthalogy of Hip-Hop and Rap’ project; Photo: Smithsonian/Kickstarter
The Smithsonian in Washington, DC announced a Kickstarter to fund it’s newest project, the Smithsonian Anthology of Hip-Hop and Rap, and to drum up interest the prestigious organization took to Twitter, announcing a rap battle of epic proportions.
Recently Hamilton creator, Lin-Manuel Miranda joined the cypher, tweeting: “Artifacts on wax; platinum plaques on tracks; Hamiltonian @Smithsonian got facts on facts #Smithsoniancypher.” It didn’t take long for the Smithsonian to clap back with its own verse, tweeting, “Your tweeting to us, sir, is really a pleasure. Because you’re an inimitable national treasure.”
The cypher kicked off on Friday with The National Museum of African American History and Culture tweeting a verse inspired by Jay-Z‘s “Public Service Announcement.” It tweeted “Allow me to re-introduce myself; My name is… the National Museum of African American History Culture (oh) N-to-the-M-A-A-H-C.”
So far the responses has been warm, so much so that other museums from different cities have gotten in on the action. The Children’s Museum in Indianapolis, Indiana, got their MC Hammer on and tweeted, “This is too legit. Too legit to quit. Dancing to your #HipHopHistory. Parachute pants equipped.”
Of course the term “battle” is being used loosely. It’s all fun and games, aimed to support what will likely be the most comprehensive collection of hip-hop ephemera in the world, an anthology that will include more than 120 tracks on nine CDs and a 300-page book with ten essays.
The project is due to be published in December of 2018, and until then you can follow the rap battle by using the hashtags #SmithsonianCypher and #HipHopHistory on Twitter.
Check out the Smithsonian’s Kickstarter overview below, featuring Chuck D of Public Enemy and MC Lyte, amongst the bevy of artists contributing to the forthcoming anthology.