Apr 15, 2011 2 min read

Author Michael Eric Dyson, beat box originator Doug E. Fresh and socially and politically charged artists Dead Prez will headline the 6th annual hip-hop conference Tuesday through Friday at California University of Pennsylvania.

This year’s conference explores the narratives, violence and social responsibility embedded in hip-hop culture.

?The keynote panel, appearing at 3?p.m. April 22 in the Performance Center, includes Dyson and Fresh. Dyson is an American Book Award winner, TV commentator and Georgetown University professor who has been called “the ideal public intellectual of our time” and “a street fighter in a suit and tie.” In addition to books on Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King, this dynamic speaker is the author of “Holler If You Hear Me: Searching for Tupac Shakur” and “Know What I Mean? Reflections on Hip-hop.”

Fresh is the originator of the “human beat box” — vocally simulating the sound of drums and other musical instruments. A hip-hop performer, actor and host of “It’s Showtime” at the famed Apollo Theater in New York, he also is an activist who has fought against racism, drugs, illiteracy, police brutality and homelessness in communities around the world.

Hip-hop artists Dead Prez will be featured at a “Tribute to the 5 Elements of Hip-hop” from 4-7?p.m. April 21 at Jozarts Studio on Second Street, just blocks from the Cal U campus. University art students and DJ Source & the Sonik Professor also will perform. Additional conference sessions explore the language of hip-hop, West African connections to hip-hop culture, and the film “Good Hair,” which will be shown at 11?a.m. Tuesday in Duda Hall. For a complete conference schedule and more information, visit www.calu.edu. All events are free and open to the public. Visitor parking is available in the Vulcan Garage, off Third Street.