Harry Allen
Hip-Hop Activist
Harry Allen, Hip-Hop Activist & Media Assassin, writes about race, politics and culture, for publications like VIBE, The Source, The Village Voice and others, and has been doing so for over twenty-five years. As an expert covering hip-hop culture, he has been quoted in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, on National Public Radio, MTV, VH-1, CNN, the BBC and other information channels. Well known for his association with the seminal band Public Enemy and for his widely-heard “cameo” on their classic record, “Don’t Believe the Hype,” Allen also founded the world’s first not-for-profit, 501(c)(3) organization for hip-hop…
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Full Bio
Harry Allen, Hip-Hop Activist & Media Assassin, writes about race, politics and culture, for publications like VIBE, The Source, The Village Voice and others, and has been doing so for over twenty-five years.
As an expert covering hip-hop culture, he has been quoted in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, on National Public Radio, MTV, VH-1, CNN, the BBC and other information channels.
Well known for his association with the seminal band Public Enemy and for his widely-heard “cameo” on their classic record, “Don’t Believe the Hype,” Allen also founded the world’s first not-for-profit, 501(c)(3) organization for hip-hop culture, the Hip-Hop Hall of Fame & RhythmCultural Center, Inc. (d.b.a. RCI: The RhythmCultural Institute) in 1994. He further satisfies both his musical and political interests through service on the advisory board of the Archives of African American Music and Culture (AAAMC) at Indiana University, and as the host/producer of his weekly WBAI-NY/99.5 FM radio show, ONFICTION, where he covers film, media, art, science, literature and other subjects.
Allen publishes the blog Media Assassin at harryallen.info and is currently developing a book on architecture and researching a documentary on hip-hop.
Testimonials
Ernie was perfect for our Elders Conference at Little River Casino Resort in Manistee, Michigan. We will definitely be using PDA again!
LITTLE RIVER BAND OF OTTAWA INDIANS
Our speaker was great and the crowd enjoyed her! She was very engaging. Thank you again PDA for the great list of suggestions!
MEDTRONIC
Everything went great! and our speaker was wonderful! Thank you so much for all your help PDA! Looking forward to the next one.
UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI – KANSAS CITY
I hope that this message finds you well. We had a phenomenal time with Atsuko this past Thursday. We wanted to just let you know how amazing she was. All those that were in attendance thoroughly enjoyed her and had nothing but amazing things to say about her. Thank you for working with us to make sure this happened!
BAYLOR UNIVERSITY CAMPUS
We had a fantastic day with Inge! She was very engaging with all those that attended. Her personal stories about the holocaust were very special and we were moved that she was willing to share them with everyone. Thank you again, PDA for all your hard work and dedication to make this program such a success!
SALT LAKE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Dear PDA Group, Thank you so much for your hard work in scheduling our speaker! From the moment we reached out to you the first time, you worked with us on all details and logistics and kept us up-to-date on the progress. Thank you for all your hard work on making our event such a success! We couldn't have done it without you and your team!
SAP COMPANY
Thank you again, Dr. Kimbrough, for a great presentation, our attendees are still talking about it!
CAMPUS LABS
Dr. Henry Lee's presentation was entertaining, insightful and wise. I, and everyone at Pfizer, especially appreciate the remarks you directed about following your passion and preparing yourself to excel. Thank you, everyone, at PDA for helping to make this happen!
PFIZER
The event was successful! I received many messages expressing how awesome, outstanding and inspiring Ms. Webb-Christburg's speech was."
DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. MEMORIAL BREAKFAST, BOSTON, MLK SPEAKER
Everything went well. Atsuko was very easy to work with and the students enjoyed her performance! Thank you again for your recommendation and I hope to work with you again in the future!
CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
Dr. Novello left this morning after a very successful event on our campus! Thank you PDA Group for your help from the first phone to the last you were with us every step of the way.
GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY
Jordan Carlos was very very entertaining! A majority of students who answered the event survey indicated they really enjoyed Jordan and definitely will bring him back!
WESTERN CAROLINA UNIVERSITY
On behalf of myself and my organization Entertainment Unlimited the Campus Programming Board of Ferris State University, we thank you PDA and Dan for a successful event!! Dan was magnificent! Students really enjoyed the presentation. I know I did. Can't wait to bring in more programs with PDA Group.
FERRIS STATE UNIVERSITY
It was a great pleasure to work with PDA Group! The communication was always prompt, friendly and helpful. We loved the speakers and events we booked through Mr. Peter Walker (PDA Group).
WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
Thank you, Peter, for all your help, you'll be happy to know that the event went incredibly well! Aneesa Ferreira was by far one of the best speakers we've ever had!
FURMAN UNIVERSITY
Topics
Shooting The Enemy
Learning photography in college, Allen combined this burgeoning passion with his love for hip-hop culture, taking pictures of a local mobile d.j. crew. When its members went on to stardom, however, he realized that he had the world’s only collection of pre-recording Public Enemy photos.
In this presentation, Allen screens select images from his archives while discussing the way this formative period shaped him as a writer and thinker, and forged P.E.’s ultimate rise.
Why Saying “White Privilege” Isn’t Enough
The term “white privilege” has achieved high visibility in the grass-roots discussion of race and rights. As a name for a purported “suite of benefits” that people of European descent supposedly receive, by virtue of living in Western cultures, saying “white privilege” has begun to serve as a demarcator of how progressive one is on issues of identity and power.
In this presentation, however, Allen argues that, besides not going far enough, the term may actually be detrimental to understanding and remedying injustice. Laying out his argument in a step-by-step fashion, he calls for new language — and new thinking — on arguably the most provocative issue of our day.
Hip-Hop on YouTube: Decade Zero One
How did the rise of Internet video affect hip-hop? During this discussion, Allen will explore online video’s significant impact on hip-hop culture, ten years after the debut of YouTube in 2005. Accompanied by a wide selection of video clips, both new and archival, he proves that the medium is, indeed, changing the message.
Hip-Hop Visions: Black Social & Political
Videos
Harry Allen: Shooting the Enemy - The Founding of Public Enemy
Books
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