Hip-hop lovers celebrate the genre’s 50th anniversary in Logan Square
In 2010, Auristela Nunez traveled with a friend, a boombox and a Gang Starr CD to breakdance at the Illinois Centennial Monument in Logan Square, nicknamed “the Eagle.”
“We were playing it on repeat, and we were breaking and people were like ‘Hi, are you going to be here next week,’ and I was like ‘I guess,’” Nunez, 47, of Hampshire, said.
Nunez, who goes by Lady Champ, said she then started going to the monument to dance every Sunday, the same spot she used to visit when she skipped classes in high school. More and more people showed up each week, she said. She eventually found a DJ willing to play music and said they set a date in August to appreciate hip-hop and counteract the bad reputation the genre was getting in the media.
On Sunday, dozens of hip-hop lovers competed in breakdancing and graffiti painting at this year’s Battle 4 The Eagle. Renegades of Funk, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting Chicago hip-hop culture, celebrated 50 years of hip-hop at the event, which included free food, music and art. Kids warmed up before dancing in the square in front of a cheering crowd. Colorful graffiti posters also decorated the park.
“I’m happy, honored that we can celebrate hip-hop every year without any fights, any problems, any arguments,” Nunez said. “All ages, all races, all genders, everybody is accepted.”
The start of hip-hop dates back to DJ Kool Herc’s inventive performance at a back-to-school party at a Bronx apartment building on Aug. 11, 1973. This weekend, people across the country celebrated the genre, now one of the most dominant in music.
While Chicago might be known for its style of urban blues and for inventing house music, hip-hop also has rich ties to the city. In fact, the first hip-hop record was produced in Chicago in 1980. Some of the most influential rappers from Common to Kanye West to Lil Durk also got their start in Chicago.
Julio Calderon, who goes by DJ Illanoiz, knew Lady Champ from high school and offered to help out in the early days of the battle. Because Chicago is in the middle of the country, he said, it’s experienced influences from the East Coast, West Coast and the South.
“I’m lucky to be a part of it; it’s my life,” Calderon said.
“We’ll give it to New York, but Chicago had a big part. Because we were a big city, a lot of people went to New York to learn and a lot of stuff got brought back here,” said AJ Garcia, the social media manager for Renegades of Funk.
Garcia said Battle 4 The Eagle celebrates all four elements of hip-hop — DJing, rapping, graffiti painting and breakdancing. Competition winners get cash prizes along with a trophy. While hip-hop might have been seen as a “fad” at first, Garcia said it’s clear the genre is here to stay, and it can help bring the community together.
Logan Square has its own history associated with hip-hop, Garcia said. Hip-hop artists and community members have met up and battled at the Eagle since the 1970s, viewing it as a safe spot from gang violence.
Co-founders BboyB and Breaker Ray gave out the eagle trophy for the first time in 2004 after Breaker Ray saw an eagle trinket in a store. The duo decided to host a battle in the park they frequented as kids.
“At that time we didn’t have the floor or anything,” Garcia said. “It was just a bunch of kids.”
Garcia said the event has grown significantly since it was just a few people and a boombox. People from other states and even other countries come to battle at Logan Square. Garcia said because of gentrification, many people who grew up in Logan Square can’t afford to live there anymore, so Battle 4 The Eagle helps keep the culture alive.
“It’s the biggest secret that no one knows that people do know,” Garcia said. “Everybody in the community knows about us, but outside they don’t.”
“I can show my kids that this is what I used to do back in the day,” he added.
Marla Isaacs, 41, of Skokie, listened to music while watching kids dance from a lawn chair at the event. She said she’s loved hip-hop for her whole life, and on its 50th anniversary she’s happy it’s “getting the recognition it deserves.”
“They’re doing a great job — I’m loving it, I’m loving it,” she said. “I love the graffiti wall, it’s a wonderful day.”
