Kelvin Brown wants you to know that “hip-hop is not the devil,” and he’s attempting to dispel this stereotype by bringing a hip-hop organization to Loyola.

Brown, a music industries sophomore, is a transfer student from Ohio Dominican University and said that he feels Loyola would benefit from an organization like this because “there is nothing else like it,” and it would “give Loyola its own identity.”

The goal of this organization is to promote hip-hop and educate people on its culture. Brown maintains there is more to hip-hop than raunchy lyrical content about sex, drugs and money. He intends to raise more awareness about its positive aspects through this organization.

The Loyola University Hip-Hop Association is still in its beginning stages of development, but the members are working on a constitution to be approved by the Student Government Association.

If approved, the organization hopes to receive money allocated by the SGA to fund projects that would give back to Loyola students and residents of New Orleans through events such as concerts and fashion shows, as well as charity work.

Another project idea is a free mix tape for Loyola students that would feature local hip-hop artists. The goal for this project is to “share music and bring about a sense of community within Loyola,” Brown said.

He said he plans to involve students in every aspect of this project, from production to content to the graphic design for the mix tape covers.

This mix tape would also be accessible to students online, through the organization’s Facebook group page.

Although the association is not yet officially approved, meetings have already begun to take place. Brown serves as the organization’s president, and other members include Jasmine Bailey as vice president and Victoria Adams as secretary.

“The bigger it gets, the more we can do,” said Brown.

Korinna Sheahan can be reached at [email protected].