Navani Knows Radio: The Halftime Show 15th Anniversary Special

For the past 15 years The Halftime Radio Show has set the bar and become a rite of passage for breaking Hip-hop artists. It’s a place where people go to get the sound and the quality they have come to expect from NYC radio. After 15 years and outlasting many other shows of it’s caliber this is def a huge feat to celebrate. It’s a testiment that although how people consume music is changing, there is still a need and a niche for displaying the craft of Djing, freestyling and all the aestetics that drew most of us to Hip-Hop to begin with. Tune in tonight as the crew celebrates it’s 15th Anniversary with a slew of legendary guests DJing, producing and spitting live from 10:30 pm – 1 am on 89.1 FM and on Ustream.

 

Navani Knows: Counting Down to the Halftime Show 14th Year Anniversary

After covering many of the classic Halftime Anniversary shows as a journalist this year everything comes full circle for me as I am now on board as a member of the show and helping to organize the show itself. It’s been such a great experience! This year the show is taking a break from the usual chaos of having 30 mcs and 4 producers and numerous Deejays all in the house and instead taking a step back to reflect on the ealry years. This edition of the Halftime Anniversary Show will feature highlights of the early years, from 99-01/02 with freestyles from artists like Ghostface, Big L, Eminem, 50 Cent, Redman  and a lot more! Tune in this Wednesday, March 7 @ 10:30- 1 AM on 89.1FM or http://www.ustream.tv/channel/halftimewnyu

Check the Deets:

Navani Knows hip-hop lives

I was introduced to hip hop when I was rather young, circa the Special Ed days. I had a cousin that was five years my senior and I thought she was the coolest person alive so anything she was into I studied. She was into real hip hop. Because I was always a mature kid, she hung out with me voluntarily (plus she was always grounded) so we spent countless hours in her room listening to hip-hop… Nas, Raekwon (the purple tape), Wu Tang, Mobb Deep, Biggie and their producers all became my close confidantes.

My cousin eventually moved out to go to college, and then became a St Louis transplant but the bond with music she induced in me stayed till this day. So when the opportunity to cover the 10 year anniversary edition of the WNYU Halftime shows, I was thrilled. The Halftime show has been a right of passage to the hip hop community for the past decade Over its lifespan the college radio show, hosted by DJs Eclipse and Skizz, has featured hip-hop superstars (50 Cent, Eminem, Kanye West) during their formative years. The event brought out a slew of hip-hop’s elite artists including DJ Premier, Alchemist, Joell Ortiz, Termanology, Masta Ace, Bobbito Garcia, Beatminerz, among others.

There are moments when things in your life come full circle, and this event was one of them. To be able to meet and build with artists I grew up listening to, the pioneers of the genre and see it back in its rawest form, made everything else in my life makes sense. I remembered why it is I do what I do, for the love… and being present there made all the sacrifices worthwhile.

Cheers to real hip hop, free styling, spinning live, and getting star struck over meeting legends like DJ Premier and Alchemist. I ran into hip hop last week, and it’s alive and well.

Check out a clip from the show here.