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New Exhibit Honors Kool DJ Red Alert And His Influence On Hip Hop
Feb 8, 2022
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – This Black History Month, we’re highlighting hip hop music and a man recognized as one of its founding fathers.
A new exhibit honoring a well-known radio DJ is being unveiled Wednesday at the Port Authority Bus Terminal, where CBS2’s Jenna DeAngelis got an exclusive first look.
Through covered up glass doors, enter the world of Fred Crute, better known by a different name: Kool DJ Red Alert.
The man himself walked DeAngelis through the new exhibit called “The Red Alert Experience.”
“This is my slogan that people still tease me to this day. You know, the ‘yeahhh,'” he said.
It celebrates the 45-year career of the legendary New York disc jockey and hip hop icon.
“How often you find something that you love to do and you can make something out of it,” he said.
As a teen growing up in Harlem, he got his nickname on the basketball court. His interest in music, inspired by Kool Herc and others, led to spinning at park jams, eventually getting his start on 98.7 Kiss FM in the early ’80s.
“Me and my man, the late great super rockin’ Mister Magic, he was on the competitor station, the station I’m on right now, WBLS,” he said.
“There was no radio in America that really cared about what was happening with hip hop culture. So you have one of two humble giants who were on the radio,” said exhibit co-curator Sean Williams. “This was the birth of hip hop radio. This was the importance of people staying at home on Friday nights and Saturday nights, recording these broadcasts on cassette.”
“I always called the cassette tape the Internet of our time,” Red Alert said.
The two explain that people spread tapes of the recorded radio show around the country, making it widely known.
“It also led to the desire for a lot of people, when you think about it, to want to come to New York. This is the birthplace of hip hop,” Williams said.
Which is why the location of this exhibit – the Port Authority Bus Terminal – holds great importance.
“Its been the gateway to bringing artists to New York to experience the hip hop and R&B revolution over the years,” said Port Authority Midtown Bus Terminal General Manager Cate Britell.
Now, tens of thousands passing through will be able to celebrate a man whose left his mark on hip hop music and culture.
“I’m very proud of my journey,” Red Alert said.
The exhibit will officially be unveiled Wednesday morning and stay open until March 31st.
The co-curators hope this will inspire Oct. 19th to become “Red Alert Day” in New York City to honor the first day Kool DJ Red Alert was on FM radio, and the impact he has made since.
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