BRONX SCENE
HOT 97 Summer Jam Sunday, June 2nd
In ten days, some of the biggest
names in Hip Hop will converge upon
the tri-state to perform at the hottest
concert of the year: HOT 97 Summer
Jam. Produced by HOT 97 WQHTFM,
#1 for Hip Hop, this year’s Summer
Jam performers include Grammy
Award-winning artist and Bronx native,
Cardi B, rapper, songwriter, and
activist, Meek Mill, two-time platinum
selling Hip Hop group, Migos, singerproducer,
Tory Lanez, XXL Magazine
Freshmen alum, A Boogie, and more.
Taking place on Sunday, June 2, at
MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford,
New Jersey, Summer Jam is the event
of the year where historic moments
are made and Hip Hop music & culture
are celebrated.
Additional performers include
Rich the Kid, Funk Flex & the Heavy
Hitters, Davido, Casanova, Melii, City
Girls, Megan Thee Stallion, and Kash
Doll, as well as numerous surprise
guests, a staple element of Summer
Jam.
Tickets are on sale now at hot97.
com/summerjam and all Ticketmaster
platforms.
Driving to MetLife Stadium is easily
accessible from all major routes in
northern New Jersey, including the
New Jersey Turnpike/I-95, the George
Washington Bridge, the Garden State
Parkway, and I-80. Parking lots open at
2:00 p.m. The only way in is with your
Summer Jam ticket. For more information,
directions, and parking fees visit
metlifestadium.com.
The Meadowlands Rail Service delivers
guests directly to the front door
of MetLife Stadium. Trains leave from
Secaucus Junction and the Hoboken
Terminal, both located on the NJ Transit
Line.
For more details on the NJ Transit
Line click here. For additional information
on Park and Ride, MetroNorth,
and Bus Service, visit metlifestadium.
com.
As the offi cial rideshare partner of
MetLife Stadium, there is a designated
Uber Zone located in Lot E off of West
Peripheral Road, right outside of the
Verizon Gate. When you request a ride
from MetLife Stadium, your pickup location
will default to a pin in the offi -
cial Uber Zone.
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, M 50 AY 31-JUNE 6, 2019 BTR
Cardi B will be performing at the HOT 77 Summer Jam on Sunday, June 2.
Photo courtesy of WQHT-FM HOT 97
More information available on
metlifestadium.com.
Trippie Redd kicks off the Festival
Stage at 4 p.m. alongside City Girls,
Blueface, Melii, Nicole Bus, and G4
Boyz. The Festival Stage is the premier
platform emerging artists perform on
during the Festival Village experience
before the Stadium show.
For more information on Summer
Jam, including a fi nal chance to
win tickets to the concert at upcoming
HOT 97 events across the tri-state,
visit hot97.com/summerjam.
Williams sculpture in West Farms
Tom Casey and I were having a discussion
about the lollipop sculpture at
West Farms when we decided to drive
over there and take a closer look at it.
What I was most curious about was who
painted it red and why. The art work
was originally tri-colored in yellow, orange
and sky blue on top with the lower
portion of COR-TEN steel giving it a
permanent rust color but without the
erosion that rust usually creates.
COR-TEN steel, sometimes spelled
without the hyphen, is a steel alloy that
allows the manufactured product to be
exposed to the weather without rusting.
The artist had a defi nite purpose
in mind when he chose both the coloring
and COR-TEN steel and it seemed
almost disrespectful to alter the artwork
but, then again, perhaps there
was a reason. Graffi ti may have been a
problem since it’s in a very exposed location
on the west side of West Farms
Road just south of the southeast corner
of East Tremont Avenue.
Although there is no signage on the
sculpture, Morgan Powell, who has researched
the unusual art work avers
that it was created by Todd Williams.
Powell says that it’s an expression of the
Black Art Movement and was crafted
in 1973 and was cast at Milgo Industrial,
Inc. located on Lombardy Street
in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Williams is
noted for his extravagant artistic endeavors
and on August 21, 2009 he installed
his 300 pound bronze and stainless
steel urban tree, called “Synthesis,”
in a planter near the B Street Cruise
Ship Terminal in San Diego, California.
It is twelve feet tall and nine feet
wide. The large size of his work certainly
helps attract attention to his
sculptures.
The lollipop sculpture is located in
front of the Lorraine Hansberry Academy
which is also known as P.S./I.S.
214. The school is located at 1970 West
Farms Road.
Lorraine Hansberry (1930-1965) was
a playwright and author who was best
known for her play titled “A Raisin in
the Sun,” which opened on Broadway
in 1959.
The play dealt with the problems,
some serious and some comedic, that
faced black families in America during
that era. It was inspired by the legal
battle her family faced when they
REPRINTED FROM 9-9-2010
(Right) I took this photograph of Tom Casey standing in front of the Todd Williams sculpture
“Lollipop” to give the viewer an idea of its size. It’s located in front of the Lorraine Hansberry
Academy at 1970 Est Farms Road just off Tremont Avenue.
moved into a segregated area in South
Chicago when she was growing up. The
family won their legal battle and their
home, oddly enough, was later designated
a landmark.
It is located at 6140 S. Rhodes Avenue
in Chicago.
Here in the Bronx, the famous Todd
Williams lollipop sculpture graces
the sidewalk in front of the school that
bears her name. Take a closer look the
next time you pass that way.
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/summerjam