by senior contributor Brendan Kownacki
Photo Credit: Naiffer Romero
It was about way more than music during this weekend’s Hip Hop Inaugural Ball, dubbed the “dopest ball ever” –it was truly a night to honor a cast of characters from the hip hop community for the contributions they have made to the industry, to the country and to the people all around.
John Legend, Wayne Brady, Rosario Dawson, and many more were on hand to take part in the special awards ceremony held in downtown DC.
John Legend
Legend, who has become a familiar face in the Washington metro area was given the humanitarian award at the gala and he used the chance to mention that he thinks hip hop helped to jolt Barack Obama into the White House. Legend said the the influence of hip hop and music and culture helped to pave the way to a culture for the first African American President.
Rosario Dawson (R)
Rosario Dawson, who has also become a DC mainstay, was honored with the Vanguard Award for her work with her group, Voto Latino. Dawson and the Voto Latino have become familiar around town for helping to build awareness about race relations and issues related to the Latin community and the group has sponsored an event for the past few years prior to the White House Correspondent’s Dinner.
Rapper 2 Chainz
Rapper 2 Chainz was also recognized for his backing of a political cause, that being the “respect my vote” campaign from the Hip Hop Caucus which has advocated for voting rights for felons. 2 Chainz was humble as he addressed the crowd and the Grammy nominee expressed that he was pleased to be honored for his work outside of music.
The evening was absolutely centered around inclusion and getting people involved; sadly the one person not included was event co-chair Russel Simmons, who reportedly couldn’t attend thanks to a bout with flu.
