WKCR is thrilled to announce the return of its highly anticipated Hip Hop Festival, an event that honors both the vibrant history of the genre and the station’s longstanding commitment to playing alternative and less-heard hip hop. The festival, preempting all regular programming on Friday November 15th, is a testament to WKCR's deep connection to hip hop's roots, its evolution, and its place in music history.

The history of hip-hop at WKCR stretches back to 1986 with the “We Could Do This Show," hosted by Pete Nice and DJ Clark Kent and to “The Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Show,” Hosted by Adrian Bartos (DJ Stretch Armstrong) and Robert “Bobbito” Garica, which was the first place NY heard such artists as the Wu-Tang Clan, the Fugees, Jay-Z, Eminem, Biggie Smalls, and many others. This programming legacy continues with the shows “Offbeat” and “Notes from Underground” and, now, in this festival.

Listeners can look forward to a wide variety of styles of hip hop from both regular and special programmers, with the programmer and theme changing with each three hour slot. The festival’s diverse programming is designed to showcase the genre's broad appeal and unrelenting innovation and to pay tribute to a genre that WKCR wants to center at the heart of its own story as a station. Tune in on 89.9FM or stream the festival live on our website, wkcr.org. Follow WKCR on Instagram (@wkcr) and Twitter (@WKCRFM) for updates about this special broadcast and future events. As always, online listening is available 24/7 at wkcr.org via our web stream