Galleries and bar open at 6:00 p.m.

For the third program of the More Than Rhythm series, we welcome S.C. Lowcountry native and consciousness-raising hip-hop artist Benny Starr. After a sit-down with host Dr. Birgitta Johnson, the recent U.S. Water Alliance Artist-in-Residence performs with a full band on Boyd Plaza to help celebrate Black Music Month.

Contemporary topics, lyrical imagery, and live instrumentation have long been hallmarks of popular music, and that is especially true for hip-hop. Hip-hop has become the number-one genre of music in the U.S., with a global influence that connects communities around the world beyond boundaries of race, class, and even language. Like the blues, jazz, soul, and disco that form its roots, hip-hop continues the tradition of music reflecting the joys and pains of the world around us over raw beats and rhythms.