The Bronx Terminal Market kicked off the holiday season unveiling its annual ‘Winter Wonderland”’with a special tree lighting ceremony on Tuesday, November 19, followed by an announcement of the opening of the Hip-Hop Museum.
The Bronx Terminal, the one-stop shop destination in the south Bronx, welcomed the community to celebrate the holiday season with music by WBLS, winter crafts with the Bronx Children’s Museum, art projects with Bronx Native, pictures with Santa, and giveaways by local retailers and more.
On Friday, December 6, visitors will be able to view the exhibition for the new universal Hip-Hop Museum, which will offer a one-of-a-kind immersive AR experience as a tribute to Hip Hop’s creative and socioeconomic impact on today’s global economy.
Karen Auster, founder of Auster Agency, who leads the programming at the Terminal Market, fostered the idea and brokered the relationship.
“For many years the Bronx Terminal Market has been devoted to producing cultural programming for the entire community,” Auster said. “Hip Hop was born in the Bronx so having the Bronx Terminal Market as the first exhibition location for the Universal Hip Hop Museum is a huge honor and we are thrilled to kick off the holidays with this great news at the annual Winter Wonderland event!
Related Companies and The Universal Hip-Hop Museum announced the 2,350 square-foot exhibition will include a timeline of the genre’s history, artistic murals depicting the roots of Hip-Hop and classic artists, a replica of the IRT No. 4 subway train, a giant Aerosol spray paint canister installation representing the culture’s history through graffiti, a virtual DJ stand for visitors to test their musical skills and more.
“We are thrilled to partner with the generous team at Related Companies and Bronx Terminal Market to bring the Universal Hip-Hop Museum to life at this marquee location,” said Rocky Bucano, executive director of The Universal Hip-Hop Museum. “Kurtis Blow, LL Cool J and I first walked the space with Auster a few short months ago and we instantly knew it was the perfect space for our inaugural exhibition prior to the opening of our permanent location in 2023.”
Bucano said its important to share the history and message of Hip-Hop, and they’re ecstatic to bring part of the museum to the Bronx and the world early.
For the month of December, the space will also celebrate the 40th anniversary of Kurtis Blow’s song, ‘Christmas Rappin.’ Visitors will also get a first look at the future permanent Universal Hip-Hop Museum with a virtual tour of the space and a 3-D model.
Avi Kollenscher, senior vice president of Related Companies, a global real estate and lifestyle company, said their mission to celebrate and preserve the local and global history and future of Hip-Hop not only honors the Bronx and it’s role in the history of music, but it helps to further establish the area as a thriving community.
“We are extremely proud to be a part of it and excited that we were able to make it happen as part of our holiday celebration,” Kollenscher said.
The museum is slated to break ground in 2020 and open in 2023 at Bronx Point.
