There’s a bit of controversy about the name, you see. The torch has been passed so many times by now to different stewards that no-one is entirely sure what PRD originally stood for. The P is for Public, that much is universally agreed upon. And R is either for Rhyme or Rap, which are practically synonymous in this context, so that’s a matter of aesthetic preference really.
But the D is where some contention is raised – does it stand for Display or Distribution? The answer to this burning question may indeed be lost forever to local rap (or rhyme) historians. The one man who may know the answer is Glenn “Process†Harrington, erstwhile Halifax rapper, late of the rap groups Dert Roads and Alpha Flight and a founding member of the Backburner crew. He was a legendary figure, spoken of in hushed and reverent tones to me by Wordburglar when we would talk rap at the comic shop. He was the guy who would show up at your house at lunch to freestyle before you went back to school. He was the guy who would call you on the phone to freestyle whether you were on the other line or not. He was the guy who would freestyle for the volunteer firemen at his local Tim Horton’s. He was the guy who ran into Classified on Spring Garden Road and challenged him to a freestyle battle on the spot.
Let me define my terms, here. People use freestyling in a few different ways, and I’m going to clear that up for you right now. A freestyle rap is one that you make up on the spot, as it comes out of your mouth. A few “pre-meditated†lines are cheating but inevitable, but a whole verse you wrote some other time is just a whole verse you wrote. When you show up to the freestyle cipher and kick “writtensâ€, you’re breaking the rules. Some people refer to any performance of rap outside of its context as a completely original song a freestyle, but they are wimps and cheaters and that is disparagingly known as “New York freestyling†because it was popularized on NY mixtapes and radio shows in the 90s.
It’s obviously kinder to the rapper and the audience to have something prepared, because almost everything a person thinks up off the top of his or her head is going to be ill-considered if not outright stupid. But that somehow makes it a nobler enterprise to fly without a safety net, it becomes a quixotic mission to pull worthwhile ideas out of the ether and present them unpolished. My friend Cyril “Ill Seer†Guerette earned a Ph.D in Theology writing a thesis which posited freestyling as a direct line to the divine. At its worst, it can be intolerable to endure. But it can also be a lot of fun.
So Glenn was a nut for freestyling, and as times changed and values shifted in the Halifax hip-hop scene, the venues for this activity became fewer and fewer. Eventually, it wasn’t even really happening at house parties anymore. So what was the solution? Create a venue.
Glenn and his little black CD player full of beats and batteries established PRD on the front steps of the Spring Garden Memorial Library, Fridays from 6pm until whenever. Invitations were extended by word of mouth and people would just show up, stand in a circle and bust out rhymes off the dome. Over the last four or five years, attendance has waxed and waned. Beatboxes both electronic and human have come and gone. Stewardship has traced a hazy succession since Glenn moved to Ottawa to study horticulture and get hitched (I’ll say this about girlfriends – they looooove Ottawa) and has rested with Darren “Ghettosocks†Pyper and somewhere between Justin “Jus†Kinch and Joey “Ambition†Ward in latter years. Two devoted and stalwart young participants have met untimely ends since the tradition’s inception – Kyle “Aziz†McMullin and Jason “Litterbug†Walsh – and the ciphers are never better attended or more impassioned than when their remembrances are invoked.
I’m going to level with you – I think freestyling is kind of dumb. It’s never been my forte because I’m too afraid I’ll say something stupid. I prefer to compose my thoughts carefully and really give people something to chew on. But hip-hop, more than any other musical genre in my opinion, can’t exist without a community to share it. Halifax’s hip-hop community has been orphaned over and over again by closing venues and diminishing public activities, and this freestyle cipher is an ideal foster home. It’s free to attend, free of intoxicants, open to all ages, centrally located, outdoors and well-lit. People who want to rap or be around people who rap are welcome to come stand in the cipher and participate however much they wish. I can’t promise it will be free of judgement, but it’s hip-hop. You’re supposed to prove how dope you are to people who think they’re doper than you.
Even if you don’t like to be put on the spot, it’s a great place to hand out fliers for your upcoming gig. To exchange phone numbers, e-mail addresses, beat tapes and ideas. To lay a foundation and build. To sell your crappy new mixtape with ripped-off beats or your amazing new album no-one would know about otherwise. It’s a gathering of individuals with at least one thing in common. Maybe more.
Fridays, 6pm, on the steps of the Spring Garden Memorial Library. Look out for my big silver boom box and a small crowd of rappers. Don’t be scared, you’re probably better than half of them. Let’s find out!
