Hip Hop Church

I thought this was interesting. It made me smile anyway.

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Linking the altar and the street
Church service aims to use hip-hop culture to spread the gospel
TONYA JAMESON
Pop Culture Writer

Rapper Kurtis Blow will be in Charlotte late Sunday afternoon, but he won't rhyme about "The Breaks" or "Basketball."

The pioneering '80s rapper will preach during the HiphopEmass at Trinity Episcopal School. He will be part of a church service that uses hip-hop culture to spread the gospel.

This will be the first time the New York-based and nationally recognized service visits Charlotte. The Rev. Timothy Holder of Trinity Episcopal Church of Morrisania in the Bronx created the concept in 2004. Holder's congregation calls him Poppa T.

Inspired by rapper Tupac Shakur, Poppa T's goal is to provide a voice and a place of worship for the thug.

"The street and altar become so separated in modern-day America," said Poppa T. "If you don't have both, you don't have either."

At the Mass, you'll hear churchgoers shouting "word" along with "amen." There are hip-hop versions of Psalms, Blow directs the music, and rappers complement the gospel.

The concept intrigued the Rev. David Hodges of Holy Comforter Episcopal Church, whose Charlotte church organized the event. He read about it in articles, and at a recent meeting a priest mentioned that the service would be in Durham this week. Hodges decided to bring it to Charlotte and invite at least a dozen churches to participate.

"It's unique," Hodges said. "The idea is to get it out into the streets and use language that people can identify with."

HiphopEmass started as a series of seven street Masses for a children's summer program in the south Bronx. Poppa T, 51, isn't a longtime hip-hop head. Initially, he thought hip-hop was caustic.

In 2003, he watched the documentary, "Tupac: Resurrection," and began to appreciate the slain rapper's poetry.

"He's a champion of our children and young people," said Poppa T.

A year after seeing the movie, Poppa T found himself a hostage in his apartment building while a shooter fired off rounds nearby. During the standoff, he questioned the effectiveness of the church in reaching people who were hurting. His desire to reach those people led him to the HiphopEmass.

"Hip-hop is holding the church accountable," he said. "And the church can hold hip-hop accountable."

After the summer program's success, Poppa T expanded to a first Friday Mass. He also began getting invitations to hold the Mass in churches, prisons, parlors and youth conventions in Texas, New Jersey, Massachusetts and elsewhere. His goal is to have a weekly Friday Mass and a traditional service on Sunday. He's created a hip-hop prayer book for other congregations.

Want to Go?

The HiphopEmass, open to the public, is from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Sunday at Trinity Episcopal School, 750 E. Ninth St. near uptown Charlotte. Weather permitting, it'll be outside.

Charlotte Observer 2006