Hip-Hop Week MKE is back in Milwaukee. From big concerts to movies, here's what to know.

After a three-year hiatus, Hip-Hop Week MKE is finally back, and the timing couldn't be more perfect.

Running Aug. 21 to 27, the Milwaukee-wide celebration kicks off 10 days after the 50th anniversary of the birth of hip-hop. Beyond the Milwaukee rappers who've made national and international waves over the decades − including Speech from Arrested Development, Lakeyah and Certified Trapper − the city itself has its own special claim as the first city in America to create a weeklong hip-hop celebration.

"We celebrate hip-hop because it is more than just music," Milwaukee alderman Khalif J. Rainey, founder of Hip-Hop Week MKE, said in a statement. "It is artistic expression, community connection and a force for social progress all in one."

Once again concerts will be a part of the mix, but as was the case for the first two iterations of Hip-Hop Week MKE in 2018 and 2019, there'll be presentations as well.

Here are some highlights.

More: Lil Baby pairs storytelling with dazzling visuals in rap extravaganza at Fiserv Forum

More: From Drake to Lil Baby, hip-hop arena shows are surging in Milwaukee. Here's why.

Live music includes Moneybagg Yo, Jadakiss, Babyface Ray, the Pharcyde

The return of Hip-Hop Week MKE includes the biggest concert that's ever been a part of the festivities, with Moneybagg Yo bringing his arena tour to Fiserv Forum Aug. 27 with five opening acts. Tickets for the 7 p.m. show are $44.50 to $164.50 at the box office (1111 N. Phillips Ave.) and fiservforum.com.

But the Rave (2401 W. Wisconsin Ave.), which in past years hosted artists like Ghostface Killah and Kevin Gates for Hip-Hop Week, will again be the primary venue for shows, which this year includes veterans Jadakiss (8 p.m. Aug. 23; currently $21.50 to $26.50 for two tickets, $50 for reserved balcony seats), and the Pharcyde (8 p.m. Aug. 25; currently $16.75 for two tickets). The Rave will also host rising Detroit star Babyface Ray (8 p.m. Aug. 25; currently $22.50 to $27.50 for two tickets), with a must-see opening act: DC The Don, who recently became the second Milwaukee rapper, after Lakeyah, to be named to XXL's prestigious Freshman Class list.

And No Studios (1037 W. McKinley Ave.) will host two free concerts. The first at 9 p.m. Aug. 22 features local hip-hop veterans Dope Music Crew, Twan Mack and the Rusty P's. Then at 9 p.m. Aug. 26, Large Professor, an acclaimed rapper and producer who's frequently worked with Nas (and collaborated with other noted acts like Public Enemy and A Tribe Called Quest), will do a DJ set inspired by 50 years of hip-hop history.

Movie screenings include 'Belly,' 'Menace II Society'

Milwaukee Film's Black Lens program is also presenting three movie screenings at the Oriental Theatre (2230 N. Farwell Ave.) for Hip-Hop Week. First up will be 1993's "Menace II Society," a highly-praised, pop culture-seizing drama set in the streets of Los Angeles, directed by brothers Albert and Allen Hughes. (7 p.m. Aug. 24.) "Belly," a splashy crime thriller directed by hip-hop video director Hype Williams starring DMX and Nas, will be screened at 7 p.m. Aug. 25. Then at 3 p.m. Aug. 26, Byron Hurt's warts-and-all, PBS-airing documentary "Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats & Rhymes" looks at the genre's positive impact, but also takes stock of the misogyny and homophobia too frequently intertwined in the music. Tickets for each of the films are $6 to $12.

Guest speakers include Damon Dash, Boyce Watkins

Among the crucial behind-the-scenes figures that helped make hip-hop what it is today, entrepreneur Damon Dash is among the most crucial; he helped guide Jay Z through superstardom and co-founded Roc-a-Fella Records. Kevin Newell, founder and CEO of Royal Capital Group, will lead a conversation with Dash at 6 p.m. Aug. 26 at the Bradley Symphony Center (212 W. Wisconsin Ave.) around the topic "Betting on Yourself, Building Generational Wealth."

And Milwaukee Ald. Russell Stamper III will have a discussion with author and commentator Boyce Watkins on "10 Commandments of Economic Black Power," and sign copies of his book of the same name, at the Rise and Grind Cafe (2737 N. King Dr.) from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Aug. 24.

Both events are free to attend.

Contact Piet at (414) 223-5162 or plevy@journalsentinel.com. Follow him on Twitter at @pietlevy or Facebook at facebook.com/PietLevyMJS.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Hip-Hop Week MKE is back in Milwaukee. Here's what you need to know.