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Interviewee: Frederick Collins

Interviewers: Dr. Mark Naison, Director of The Bronx African American History Project (Fordham University) and Dr. Steven Payne, Research Librarian and Archivist for The Bronx County Historical Society (Now Director of The BCHS).

February 22, 2021

This interview was recorded on February 22, 2021 for the Bronx African American History Project. The first of a two-part series of interviews with Dr. Fred Collins. This oral history presents the beginnings of hip hop in a way that centers a community that was crucial in the creation of the culture, as opposed to the typical narratives which center the music industry. Fred moved to 1520 Sedgwick Ave in June of 1970 when he was just 12-years-old. Fred Collins grew up at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue, even before a fire in the nearby Concourse apartments brought Kool Herc and many others to the building. In addition to his familial history, and trajectory from the Bronx to California and back, Atlanta, and now Washington, this interview recounts Collins’ time from a young teen to a young adult in the 1520 Sedgwick community.

Disciplines

African American Studies | Public History

Abstract

Dr. Collins tells the story of 1520 Sedgwick as a place of loss and morality, where tragic events happened “few and far between,” but the community always looked out for each other and was primarily peaceful and safe. It was this environment, of eager youth and supportive adults, that helped the culture that hip hop would blossom from. The sounds that would subsequently be created were a product of this safe space. Also prevalent in the interview is the accurate account of this development from Collins’ perspective, as one of the first three children to live in the building. He remembers that many communities, African Americans, Puerto Ricans, and other communities alike, had a presence in this peace. This diverse community, a sense of family, and a constantly reinforced hope were the ground that hip hop took off from. Creativity, like the use of flood lights to power Kool Herc’s speakers, and the ideas that created a clubhouse from old cement in the lot behind the building, flourished. It was this combination of creativity, affordable housing, hope, family, and accountability that created hip hop, and, for Fred Collins, the idea that “anything is possible.” (Summary by: Emma Garr, Intern for the Bronx African American History Project - Fordham University).

LINK TO VIDEO INTERVIEW: TBA

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