Harlem Hip Hop Tours
By Dialogue Magazine
For our Business Spotlight this month we caught up with Adrienne Smith, founder of Harlem Hip Hop Tours.
Dialogue Magazine: How did you come up with the idea for a Hip Hop tour in Harlem?
Adrienne Smith:
I was brainstorming with a friend of mine over the holidays, and we were both kinda looking to get into the corporate world and just start something on our own that would be fun. Both of us love to travel, and I have experience running tours from when I worked in Japan. So it kind of came together: we were living in Harlem, we both love Hip Hop, we both love Harlem culture and showing people around when they came to visit us in New York City. So, we kinda put all of them together and came up with a tour company that focused on some of NYC’s best products: Harlem’s African American culture and Hip Hop. So that was the start of Harlem Hip Hop Tours.
DM: What can passengers expect to experience when they take the tour?
We do a variety of different activities. On the educational side with our school groups, we focus on anywhere from 3rd grade all the way through college. They can get what we call “Edutainment”: It’s education through entertainment so they can learn some of the behind-the-scene careers such as producing music and Hip Hop music studios. We actually take them to live music studios where they can learn about production. We also have exclusive partnerships with Hot 97, the radio station here in New York City, where students and youth groups can learn about the history of Hot 97 or the fields of study they want to pursue in college in order to get a job. We’re offering internship opportunities as well. We have a set up with Source Magazine where the students can learn about journalism. We’re really trying to educate young people through Hip Hop culture and encourage them to strive to be more and do more… to go and get that college degree and education to raise themselves up and appreciate what Hip Hop culture was originally designed for: To bring people together and express the positive attributes of a community. Whereas, now, there are so many negative stereotypes surrounding Hip Hop.
Now in terms of our 21 and older crowd, we do offer more purely entertainment tours such as trips where we’ll take our tour bus up to Foxworth or Mohegan Sun casinos in Connecticut and take guests up there to do some gambling, etc., and then to see a concert. For instance, when Jay-Z was performing up in Connecticut (or Beyonce or T-Pain), we would do those types of just pure entertainment trips for our guests.
DM: What are your thoughts on the state of Hip Hop music today as opposed to back in the day?
I think everyone is waking up to what the culture has become. Sometimes when a lot of money can be generated in any given area, it can take away from the purity. With sports, you have these athletes making millions of dollars and sometimes that money can taint the purity of the sport itself. Nowadays, slowly but surely, everyone is waking up to going back to that purer form of Hip Hop.
As long as we keep moving forward and realizing the power that Hip Hop has throughout the world…I used to live in Japan and I saw the effects of Hip Hop music and the videos, the whole style of dress, the language…I saw the impact from the farthest corner of the planet where the people didn’t speak English, but they knew every single word to any Biggie Smalls song. So I think we definitely know the tremendous power, economically and socially, that Hip Hop wields. It’s a matter of everyone recognizing that and pulling together to say we’ve got all of this strength and this energy and this influence — let’s make sure we keep it directed in a positive direction.
DM: What are your future plans for the tour?
We are going to just continue to grow. We continue to reach out and create new tour products. We will continue to reach out and partner with other established Hip Hop brands and venues, and just really make NYC the tourism destination for Hip Hop. I mean, if you envision Graceland is the draw for Elvis out in Memphis, we want Harlem Hip Hop Tours to be the complete, utter destination for experiencing Hip Hop on a variety of different levels.
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I’ve personally had the opportunity to experience H3 tours and LOVED IT! It had to be the most action-packed tour I’ve ever taken in NYC! That says a lot! It’s a tour not to be missed!
I have worked with Ms. Smith on several occasions and have found her ideas and professionalism to be extraordinary. I am especially impressed with the outreach to kids and the edutainment aspect of her company. But all of it seems fun and interesting! This is well-deserved press for this commendable company. I hope it continues to flourish.
Great Article! I think Harlem Hip-Hop is not only a great service, but a wonderful idea for helping building business for the neighborhood and further revitalizing it.
Growing in the south Bronx, Hip Hop has always played a huge role in my neighborhood’s culture and identity, and I definitely thinkt hat NYC should be the ONLY true tourism destination for HIP HOP. NYC has produced more succesful hip hop artists than any other region of the country and is the HOMETOWN of the entire genre… Big UP Hip Hop Tours and Adrienne!!! Keep up the good work, and if you ever decide to do a reggae tour, I’m on the BUS!!!!!
Yep! I have to say, “LOOOOOVE IT.” the Harlem Hip-Hop Tour was so fun. It’s an experience like no other. Amazing!!! My friends and I have always wanted to tour Harlem and take in this unique culture. However, we didn’t know where to begin and a bit concerned about safety in Harlem. Luckily a friend who had gone on the Harlem Hip-Hop Tour told us about it and we decided to give it a go when we were in New York last spring. It was out of this world. Affordable too. All our concerned were taken care of by H3 Tours. We learned so much and shared a fantastic fun time together with our friends and made a few new friends as well. Thanks H3 Tours!!! You’re “Off of the chain!” (: We’ll be sure to book another tour again next time we’re in New York.
I am very happy to see Harlem Hip Hop Tours getting some very deserved attention! I’ve personally taken the tour and LOVED it! Being a huge fan of hip hop music, this tour was entertaining but also gave me the opportunity to learn more about the culture and “grass roots” of hip hop. It was both educational AND entertaining and I would highly recommend it to anyone in the NYC area who’s looking for a truly unique, memorable & downright fun experience!! Go H3Tours!!!
This is amazing! The fact that the tours are not only showing people the best parts of Harlem and NYC but also giving young people the opportunity to see how they can work inside the world of hip hop is just awesome! Its companies like these that give myself and many more alike the reinforcement that you can strive for the stars and be happy in the process of greater achievement. Thank you Harlem Hip Hop Tours! I look forward to booking a tour.
Wow this company sounds awesome! I can’t wait to take a tour! Great article!
True history of hip hop is captured on this tour by true hip hop fans,this gives the next wave of young hip hop fans a chance to learn about the music and the culture the right way..
I live in DC, and only wish HHT had an office in our city–it’s just what we need to generate positivity and pride in the hip hop culture in our nation’s capital!
I recently observed the HHT tour bus at a ski resort in upstate NY. It seems everyone was having a well organized fun day. Also, what a great way to give back to the community with youth education opportunities. Beautiful to see the positive energy flowing from Harlem.
Thanks for this article — I can’t wait to check out Harlem Hip Hop Tours on my next visit to NYC! This sounds like a lot of fun.
I have known Adrienne Smith for more than a decade, and can whole-heartedly say that she is one of the most honest and hard working people I’ve ever known. She has a level of personal drive that will put most people to shame. When she commits to a project you can count on it being a guaranteed success if it is at all within her power to make it so. When she says that she first learned to guide people on tours while living in Japan, what she does not mention is that many of these people were very high-ranking dignitaries of the Japanese national government. She most definitely knows how to put together a genuine learning experience while making these experiences extremely enjoyable.
When she approached me to discuss her idea for this company a few years back I knew then that she had found a very real focus for her seemingly boundless energies. I’ve always wished that I could have been more a part of this enterprise because I knew how much of a success that her love of the culture and history would allow her to make of these tours. As a hip-hop DJ myself, I have had occasion share that love with her on numerous occasions. They were always experiences to remember. And when she expanded the tours to include the edutainment tours it warmed my heart to know that she was reaching out to the younger generations to show them what it really means to create and foster a hip-hop community. I can’t wait to arrange for a tour for my own elementary school students.
Everyone with a love for or interest in the culture should have the pleasure of experiencing one of the HHT tours. Each and every one is an experience to carry with you for a lifetime. Much love Adrienne! Keep up the amazing work!
I’ve loved this idea since I heard about it, and only wish it got started when I was still in the city.
Adrienne, keep doing what you love, and I’ll definately check it out next chance I get!
I took the tour and thought that it was great. The tour guide/MC was informative and entertaining. Great experience!