Nas, LL COOL J, Grandmaster Flash And More Break Ground At Universal Hip Hop Museum

The Universal Hip Hop Museum in the Bronx is expected to open some time in 2023.

Nas, LL COOL J, Grandmaster Flash, and a handful of other notable hip-hop figures took to the Bronx Thursday to help break ground on the Universal Hip Hop Museum.

In a report from ABC7NY, the event was a part of the first phase of breaking ground at Bronx Point, where the museum will reside at. The first phase "will deliver 542 units of permanently affordable housing to the Lower Concourse neighborhood, along with approximately 2.8 acres of public open space," according to ABCNY7, with the Bronx Point project encompassing the museum, an early childhood space, and an outdoor science programming.

"Hip hop is one of those things that really gave my life meaning," LL Cool J said. "It made me feel like I really could do something with my life."

Nas and Grandmaster Flash also spoke during the event.

"It taught me more than schools taught me, believe it or not," Nas said. "I'm proud to be here in the mecca of hip hop, the Bronx."

"I came up with a technique by placing my fingertips on the records," Flash said. "Here we are, almost 47 years later...Ladies and gentlemen, I tell you, this is a really special."

Fat Joe, Lil Kim, Naughty by Nature, Slick Rick, Michael Bivins, and EMPD were all in attendance as well. The Universal Hip Hop Museum in the Bronx is expected to open some time in 2023. The museum's website states that its mission is to celebrate and preserve "the history of local and global Hip Hop music and culture to inspire, empower, and promote understanding."