You may want more hip-hop events that look less like carnival attractions in their vastness and more like August 11th birthday surprises. (Like Okayplayer’s Hip-Hop 50 site.) There are two free shows that fit the bill: The Clipse in Flushing and the original “Native Tongues” crew in Harlem. Free movies also top our list, including the Rooftop Films premiere of Kite Zo A, about Haitian vodun subcultures, and last year’s Asian-American megahit Everything, Everywhere, All At Once. Skate for free in the Lower East Side on Saturday to rap staples.
Special Events and Tributes
Everything, Everywhere, All At Once
Thurs Aug 17
6pm - 10pm
Brooklyn Bridge Park, DUMBO
Last year’s Oscar favorite reminds us Hollywood can and does make films for all people (as long as we scream loud enough and wait 40 years in some cases). It’s no worse for the wear and will bring you joy to watch outdoors over fizzy drinks.
Cost: Free
Flippers
Sat Aug 26
7 p.m. - 11 p.m.
Flippers Roller Rink, Rockefeller Center
Presented by Okayplayer, join Flipper’s Roller Boogie Palace for our monthly afro-diaspora themed night championed by respected NYC DJs, AQ and Niara Sterling. Skate to the futuristic & soulful sounds influenced by the African diaspora from resident DJs Niara Sterling & AQ. This is the first installment of our Okayplayer Presents evening with the second to be announced this August.
Cost: $30, or $40 with skate rental. Visit www.flippers.world for tickets.
Hip-Hop Roller Skating at Henry Street Settlement
Sat Aug 19
12 p.m. - 5 p.m.
Sol Lain Park, Lower East Side
Henry Street Settlement is for the kids and loads up a beautiful free skating event that’ll have you dipping and twirling to '90s and '00s raps while in the neighborhood that made those acts big in nightclubs. Full circle.
Cost: Free
'Kite Zo A: Leave the Bones' Screening
Sat Aug 19
8:30p
Brower Park, Crown Heights
Haitian culture in a sensory exploration documentary that zeroes in on vodun tradition and dance right there in a hotbed of Haitian pride, Crown Heights.Cost: Free
Hip-Hop 50: Native Tongues Edition
Sun Aug 20
5pm - 9pm
Marcus Garvey Park, Harlem
Monie Love, Kool DJ Red Alert, Chi Ali, Dres from Black Sheep, DJ Ralph McDaniels giving those Afrocentric hits that made acts like Noname and Kendrick possible. Conscious and woke but for radio heads.
Cost: Free
IQ BBQ: Clipse
Sat Aug 19
Starts at 2pm
Knockdown Center, Flushing
The polarizing Pusha T joins brother No Malice for a rare Clipse resurgence at the Genius IQ BBQ. He’s in his rival’s home state (Jim Jones) but gets lots of tristate love for gritty anthems like “Grindin” and “Popular Demand.”
Cost: Free