Step into
Freestyle Lab: NYC
Hip-hop is a culture, a movement, and a platform. A means for seeing, celebrating, confronting, and conversing about the world. Hip-hop is a way of life.
Freestyle Lab by WorldStrides is a weekend of workshops and rehearsals with featured artists in the hip-hop industry.
You will then perform on two of the most famous stages in the world—The Apollo Theatre and Carnegie Hall!
This experience goes beyond the beat to immerse you in this American art form with a story as powerful as its sound. Celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop in its birthplace, New York City, with hands-on, icon-led instruction that culminates in a legendary performance onstage at Carnegie Hall exploring the evolution of hip-hop.
October 14-17, 2023
Don't stall-save those moves for the dance floor.
Featured Artists
The Q Brothers
The Q Brothers
Award-winning, internationally acclaimed theater artists the Q Brothers Collective will join Freestyle Lab to showcase their skills, and write the participants' final performance piece that tells the story of hip-hop.
The Q Brothers are known for their ability to fuse hip-hop and theater, adapting classic stories to entertaining, fast-paced comedic performances that have energized audiences for over two decades. They conceived the term add-RAP-tation in 1999 with their Off-Broadway hit The Bomb-itty of Errors. MTV called the Q Brothers “nothing short of brilliant,” and Time Out London said, "The rhymes—and the energy—just don’t stop."
DJ Reborn
DJ Reborn
DJ Reborn is a trailblazing international DJ, sound collage artist, and arts educator. Born in Chicago and based in New York, this sought-after phenom has opened shows for artists like The Roots, Erykah Badu, John Legend, and Jack White. Reborn’s uncanny ability to impact crowds, from festivals to galas to weddings, sets her apart in her field. Her love for music is palpable.
Reborn has rocked the decks on BET, the NAACP Image Awards, and prestigious stages including Carnegie Hall, Sydney Opera House, Glastonbury, Camp Flog Gnaw, the Kennedy Center, and Apollo Theater. She is the resident DJ for the iconic Ms. Lauryn Hill’s world tour. And most recently, she dazzled at the historic 2022 Oscars Governors Ball alongside DJ D-Nice.
An active arts educator and mentor, Reborn partners with Urban Word NYC, Sadie Nash Leadership Project, Lower Eastside Girls Club, and more. She is also the founder of DJs for Justice, a coalition of DJs using their platforms in service of racial, social, and economic justice. She is currently developing an international performance piece centered around archiving the stories of women in the DJ world.
DJ Webstar
DJ Webstar
Grammy-nominated, platinum-selling artist and philanthropist DJ Webstar’s foot-stomping beats sell New York to the world. Anointed the “Mayor of Harlem” by his peers, this NYC icon championed the music that put Doug E. Fresh, Big L, Kurtis Blow, Mase, and Immortal Technique at the center of Manhattan’s beating heart. Webstar built on that knowledge by bringing A$AP Rocky, A$AP Ferg, Teyana Taylor, Bianca “Young B” Dupree, Lil Mama, Chris Brown, and many others into his sphere.
Chicken Noodle Soup, the lead single from Webstar’s 2006 debut album Caught in the Web, broke into the Billboard Top 50 and won the 2007 Soul Train Best Dance Song. He hasn’t stopped making music since. Dropping singles like Dancin On Me and Tipsy (ft. Jadakiss), his work caught the attention of industry heavyweight P. Diddy, who procured the collaboration of Webstar and Dirty Money on his Last Train To Paris album.
Dedicating his life to honoring the neighborhood he grew up in, Webstar gives back to the community wherever he can—whether it be his annual Thanksgiving coat, toy, and food drives for the homeless or mentoring youth in the music industry.
Andaluz
The Artist
Andaluz The Artist
Efren Andaluz III, better known as Andaluz The Artist, combines his knowledge of realism, pop art, portraiture, graffiti, and graphic arts to create powerful pieces with unmatched range. Utilizing mediums like oil paint, acrylic, spray paint, and airbrush, his art tells a story through colorful, collage-like imagery.
Growing up in the melting pot of Richmond Hill Queens, Efren grew fond of hip-hop culture, especially the graffiti-tagged walls in his neighborhood. Graffiti would have a major influence on his art style. When he was a senior in high school, his parents bought him an airbrush kit, tools that changed his life. Efren taught himself how to use the airbrush and began taking orders from his classmates for custom shirts, sneakers, and more.
Efren eventually started his own company, On Da Loose Designs, located in East Northport, New York. There, he helps startups with branding, logos, social media, and other creative ideas. In 2014, he established himself as Andaluz The Artist, the first artist to paint while rapping. He built his following performing live on YouTube, even attracting the attention of national media outlets like BET, MTV, CBS, and NBC. For a multifaceted artist that can paint live at events, garner media attention, rap, and speak to current events, Andaluz is your guy.
Deshawn
Da Prince
Deshawn Da Prince
Deshawn Hawthorne, known as Deshawn Da Prince, is a hip-hop freestyle dancer specializing in waving, gliding, popping, and tutting. Deshawn has danced with big-name artists Chris Brown, Lil Nas, Christina Aguilera, Jidenna, Keke Palmer, and Lil Mama. As he began focusing more on choreography, he participated in shows like Carnival NY and World of Dance.
At age five, Deshawn got his first taste of dance at DeVore Dance Center in Queens, New York, training in jazz, ballet, and African styles. After several years, he began dancing hip-hop with a group from the same center, Da F.I.R.M. He later joined the crew G.I.B (Go In Brother) and became the group’s choreographer.
Deshawn currently travels and teaches worldwide while running his New York hip-hop company, Royal Thieves, a high-energy dance crew that won third place in the U.S division at the World of Dance finals in California.
broadwaydancecenter.com/faculty/deshawn-da-prince
@deshawn_da_prince
DJ Obi
DJ Obi
DJ Obi, born Obinna Levi Ajunoama, spent his childhood in Nigeria. His father, Dr. Levi Ajuonuma, was a popular figure in Nigerian media and raised his children in the studio, where Obi would first become energized by music.
A move to the United States to study at Boston University began Obi’s next chapter. By the time he graduated, he was infatuated with the art of DJing. He began traveling and playing in clubs like London’s famous West End and 1Oak in New York City. He also had opportunities to work with industry legends like T-Pain, Lupe Fiasco, 2Baba, Tiwa Savage, Lynxxx, Banky W., Naeto C, and Davido.
Obi cemented a reputation as one of Nigeria’s most exciting DJs, winning the 2011 Nigerian Entertainment Award for “World’s Best DJ.” Having played in Ghana, Lebanon, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Canada, South Africa, Spain, and Italy, his peers nicknamed him “Global DJ Obi.” He even holds the Guinness World Record for the longest DJ set in history, playing for 240 hours straight and shattering the previous record by nearly two days.
Your Mix, Your Way
At Freestyle Lab, you're the DJ. Choose the track that speaks to you-music, dance, or art & culture-and in no time, you'll be in NYC learning, sightseeing, and collaborating with others who share similar interests.
What's your passion?
Music, Beats, Production, Scratch, Vocals, MCing, Freestyle
Breakdancing, Locking & Popping, Stepping
The Pillars of Hip-Hop, Fashion Styles, The Sneaker, Street Art, Tagging, Digital Art & Production
What to Expect
Instruction from industry legends and the brightest up-and-coming talent
A once-in-a-lifetime performance onstage at world-renowned Carnegie Hall alongside your fellow artists
Exclusive sightseeing tours around New York City
Accommodations at The New Yorker, a historic Midtown Art Deco hotel
Panel Discussion about hip-hop careers with professionals across the industry
Hands-on-training in your area of interest
An exclusive tour of the Universal Hip Hop Museum, the first of its kind
Your Own Amateur Night at The Apollo
Learn by Doing
Don't just learn about hip-hop. Become a part of its history. Freestyle Lab was born from a thirst for culturally relevant, hands-on training. Here, you'll break through boundaries, stereotypes, and developing and leaving your legacy along the way.
Dynamic workshops and engaging panels led by some of the industry's most well-respected names will immerse you in an unforgettable three days of hip-hop masterclasses. Check out a few of the incredible sessions available to join.
Curious about what the days will look like? Check out the preliminary itinerary.
Rehearse at the Apollo Theater
Since opening its doors in 1914 and introducing the first Amateur Night contests in 1934, the Apollo has played a major role in the emergence of jazz, swing, bebop, R&B, gospel, blues, and soul-all quintessentially American music genres. A catalyst for new artists and audiences, the Apollo is a partner in the projection of the African American narrative and its role in the development of American and global culture.
If you are interested in participating in one of the Apollo's signature Amateur Nights, you are in luck! We are producing our own Amateur Night! Participants will have the opportunity to perform live on the Apollo Stage. The historic talent competition has launched the careers of countless legendary artists, like Ella Fitzgerald, Luther Vandross, Lauryn Hill, H.E.R., Machine Gun Kelly, Jazmine Sullivan, and more.