Words Beats & Life Presents: FRESH (A Hip-Hop Ball)

FRESH is the inaugural Hip-Hop Ball of Words Beats & Life, a Hip-Hop organization celebrating 16 years of service and culture. The ball features performances by WBL favorites University of Maryland Hip-Hop Orchestra, Congo Sanchez, along with DJ RBI, DJ Geena Marie, DJ Ayes Cold and DJ 2-Tone Jones.  We will also be honoring University of Maryland Alumnus and global change maker, Saafir Rabb.  

In this, our 16th year of service, we are returning to our origins at the University of Maryland, the campus where the organization was founded as an event of the Black Student Union.  With FRESH, we are celebrating our work and raising funds to bring world class production equipment and technology  to the young people of the District of Columbia through the renovation of our space.

See for Yourself:

http://www.wblinc.org/dd17/ 

Your purchase is tax deductible.

FRESH Shuttle
Don't have a car? Catch the Green Line to College Park and catch the 16 passenger shuttle right to the The Samuel Riggs IV Alumni Center.

FRESH Dressed

Dress is hip-hop style black-tie - so fellas, wear your most fly sneakers, hats, and shades; ladies, go for some fly sequins and bling. 

Passport into the World of Words Beats & Life

FRESH Menu

Experience food from 5 of the countries we have visited in the last 16 years!

FRESH Experience

Rock the Mic: Hip-Hop Karoke

Gallery Shows featuring the work of pioneer Graffiti Fine Artist Mare 139

Dance Showcase Featuring B-Boy crew Lionz of Zion and the Hip-Hop dance crew Groove Junkies.   

FRESH Ball Committee Chairs:

Mazi Mutafa, Asad Jafri & Naimah Armstrong

FRESH Ball Host Committee:

Lauren Bullock   .   Ron Brown   .   Raquel Brown    .    Zack McGants    .    Tony Verlich    .    Reggie Thompson    .    Shanna Lim    .      Flex Mathews    .    Nick Hernandez       .      John Ortiz    .    Joe Mauro    .    Teri Rosina    .    Asad Walker    .    Lester Wallace    .    Patrick Washington       .        Tiffany Branch    .       Mark Lawrence    .    Christina Bert      .       Kendell Renee Kelly    .    Koren Martin    .    Kameron Matthews    .    Alison McNeil    .    Celest Davis    .          Jim Bender    .     Hillary R. Lovick    .     Kevin Denny II    .    Esther Coleman   .   Lawrence Cosby   .   Lee Perine    .   Ayanna Smith   .   Jessica Sturgis   .  Erica Kennedy     .    Brian Alexander       .      Jordan Pearlstein     

FRESH Sponsors:

Capital Auto Auction, Busboys and Poets, Marvin, DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, the Meyer Foundation, Inncuvate, The Share Fund, Cove, &pizza 

About the work of WBL:

It’s hard to believe that the first recording booth we ever had was a closet at the Benning Park Recreation Center, in Southeast D.C.  It had no sound insulation and terrible acoustics, but we made it work because we knew the value of our students’ work.  Soon what began as a monthly Saturday program in a facility designed for recreation became the first space we worked to transform through the arts.  Over time, Words Beats & Life has grown to create opportunities for young artists through our public arts program, hosting showcases, an international artist exchange, and our daily after school program.  

Every time we host a production, from small community venues to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, we think about the experience of our audience.  Today we are doing the same thing with this campaign, only the audience is our students, community partners, and individual artists in need of space to create.  With your help we can build a world-class facility in the Washington, D.C. neighborhood of Columbia Heights that will also act as the blueprint for future centers to be created in neighborhoods throughout the District of Columbia. We have worked with artists in countries all over the world, and one of the most important things that travel did was to remind us how crucial local, accessible spaces are to the experiences you create.   

Moving into our 16th year, Words Beats & Life is preparing to transform our space into the resource our artists have always deserved. This transformation will impact our students, our community, and our city itself.  We know that when artists transform our city, they also change the world. Join us to make this change.