MANSFIELD — Ryan James aims to celebrate Mansfield’s hip hop scene with a dedicated festival next month.
The founder and owner of U.P.N.O. Music and Media said he hosted a similar festival in 2000 called “Hip Hop Explosion” for about three years in a row.
“I think hip hop gets a bad rap because people who don’t know all the nuances within the genre assume that the songs are going to be raw and edgy — something you couldn’t say on TV,” James said.
“It can be that, but there’s also gospel hip hop and jazz rap, rock hip hop — there’s a ton of different genres and expressions within hip hop. My goal here is if you haven’t been to a hip hop festival before, come out and see some local talent and get to know the culture a little bit.”
The Cypher City hip hop festival is scheduled for June 29 at the Richland County Fairgrounds.
James said he wanted to name the festival “Cypher City” to promote Mansfield’s talent and “unheard voices.”
“A cypher is a collaborative performance between artists, but the root word means a hidden message,” he said. “Mansfield has a lot of hidden gems and hidden talent, and I want to share that with more people.”
Sponsors of the festival include 419 Legends, TigerLyfe, Mind Capsule Media, UPNO Music and D.A.D. Entertainment.
“If you’ve ever been curious about hip hop, come out and see what it’s all about,” James said.
Cypher City to offer kids activities & vendor market
Doors will open at 1 p.m. and musicians will perform through 9 p.m. Entry is $5 per person.
James plans to have food trucks and kids’ activities at the festival as well. Local businesses interested in setting up a table at the festival’s vendors market can contact James at upnomusic@gmail.com.
“I think anything that touches hip hop culture should be there,” James said. “Filmmakers, book writers, artists — everyone’s welcome. The vendors will be free to set up and once we’re full, we’ll close that.”
Austin Moore, founder and organizer of Mansfield Music Fest, said MMF will have a booth at the fairgrounds for the June 29 festival.
“Ryan is hard working in the hip hop, rap and R&B scene in Mansfield and we’re excited to work together,” Moore said. “It takes us all coming together for the greater good no matter the genre of music to make Mansfield’s music scene even better than it already is.”
James said he plans to have The Queens Address podcast from Columbus and other media at the festival. Some hip hop veterans will also be giving feedback to the performers.
“I am really excited to bring Mickey Factz on,” James said. “Mickey is from Brooklyn and lives in Atlanta now. He’s essentially a hip hop historian. He comes from battle rapping and now has his own school for teaching people the craft.”
In addition to a lineup of local, regional and some out-of-state acts, James said he is planning a “beat battle” among producers.
“I would love to have someone make an art piece, too,” James said. “The whole point of this is for people in the community to get a better picture of the hip hop culture and listen to some good music.”
The festival’s headliners will include KevLarR, ZUC, Thuh Koz and Mickey Factz. Yonna K will be the festival host and DJ Dro Jack will deejay the event.
James wil be posting updates and more information on the event’s Facebook page.
The lineup also includes:
- Mr. Wrong
- Lake
- Deimos
- Danny Holmes
- Don Kartel
- Bishop Lanier
- Coach K
- Young Trimble
- Cash Roulette
- CV$H
- Blazi Boys
- Sad Boy
- Jay Franklin
- Akron’M
- Desi Rae
- EbaNee (poetry)
- Joey
- Howell Pierre
