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Graffiti-covered subway train crossing a steel bridge over the Harlem River into the Bronx, New York, 1974Photo: Hope Alexander, 1974 · Wikimedia Commons · public domain
Portrait of Open Mike (Michael Becker): black and white, wearing a cap, looking to the side

Open Mike presents

Back to the Culture.Hip-hop history from inside the culture, free for everyone

From the roots through the Bronx and the world to Germany and Stuttgart. Told by Open Mike, a writer since the early 90s. Documented, open, and with a stance.

Protecting the Culture

Open MikeWriter since the early 90s, rapper, Stuttgart

Start here

Two ways into the work

Act 1 · Who destroyed hip-hop?What Hip-Hop Is Forcoming soon
Act 2 · Where we come fromWhat Is Culture?coming soon
Three doors

Where you start

The StoryWhat happened: every chapter from the roots to today.Photo: Erik Calonius, 1973 · EPA Documerica · U.S. National Archives (public domain)The PathHow you grow: seven stages from survival to passing it on.Photo: Axel Tschentscher, 2021 · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0Open MikeWho tells it: my story, my music, my workshops.Piece: Open Mike
The work in three acts

A little more every day

Act 1Who destroyed hip-hop?0 of 15 pages releasedUp next: What Hip-Hop Is For coming soon
Act 2Where we come from0 of 82 pages releasedUp next: What Is Culture? coming soon
Act 3Back to the Culture0 of 12 pages releasedUp next: Basics, Skills, Patience coming soon
The current drop

New in the work

The first pages are coming soon.

Protecting the Culture

So it stays

Protecting the CultureWhat breaks hip-hop and how we protect it: real cases, warning signs and how to do better.Photo: ThamaraGroenleer, 2026 · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0