Combat Jack Talks Insiders & Outsiders at BK TED Talks
TED, which stands for-Technology, Entertainment, Design- is an organization founded in 1984 who held it’s first conference in 1990 devoted to the concept of highlighting and brining to peoples attention “ideas worth spreading”. TED talks can range from an ex hedge fund manager discussing how he founded a world power in education called the Khan Academy, as an unintended result of Skype sessions with his nieces; to comedian/musician Reggie Watts putting on an eclectic performance of music and beat boxing,
Over the past 5 or so years TED talks have really hit a stride, becoming something not only for those who spend their time looking for enlightenment and knowledge but also to those who maybe aren’t as proactive about their learning and might need to be helped out a little bit by means of high production value and star power. Interestingly enough I personally first heard about TED talks through rapper J. Cole in this 2011 HardknockTV Interview.
TEDx or Independently Organized TED Events are an extension of the idea by bringing people together locally to conduct a smaller and sometimes more specialized version of these TED talks. In this case the talks came to Gowanus Brooklyn where Combat Jack, who previously was a writer here at The Source Magazine & TheSource.com who’s posts you can still find HERE, took the stage to talk to the audience about “living inside and outside of the hip hop revolution”.
In the 14 minute speech Reggie weaves in specific stories like the time Jay Z’s sneakers made him run out to cop a pair, or when he first got made fun of for using the cutting edge slang of “chill out” in order to illustrate much broader concepts that reflect on how hip hop has both infiltrated and been almost pillaged by the mainstream masses & pop culture itself. More specifically he talks about how he personally looks at things and how speaking with a friend (who he doesn’t name, but is obviously Ebro Darden of Hot 97) helps him also reflect on some of his ways of thinking and how his own perception may be setting himself up.
Fans of Combat Jack’s writing & the Combat Jack Show will know these concepts to be very familiar and true to what Ossie often speaks about, but it’s always nice to hear someone who you develop a familiarity with in one way, forced to occupy a different space and talk about what is important to them.
Watch the whole Tedx Talk Here
