Disability hip hop jam returns to Central Park as 4 Wheel City pushes accessibility and funding

Organizers of 4 Wheel City described their third annual disability hip hop jam as a platform to center artists with disabilities and to call attention to accessibility needs in music venues.

Founders Namel Tapwaters Norris and Ricardo Rickfire Velasquez told BronxNet their event, scheduled for July 12 at the Central Park bandshell, will feature a curated, roughly 90-minute lineup including local and visiting performers and DJs. "We're trying to get more of the hip hop community to recognize it too," one founder said, describing plans to grow the jam into a summer mainstay.

Both founders recounted personal injuries that led to disability and explained how music and community helped them found 4 Wheel City. Organizers said the jam also partners with Disability Unite Festival in Central Park and with the Recording Academy's New York chapter advocacy committee and with Rent, an organization for recording artists and professionals with disabilities.

Speakers urged venue operators and sponsors to address basic accessibility needs, citing elevators, restrooms and entryways as persistent barriers. "We need accessible elevators. We need accessible bathrooms. We need entry into stores," a founder said, and they asked for industry-style backing similar to mainstream labels to expand platforms for disabled artists.

Organizers encouraged elected officials and potential sponsors to support funding and infrastructure improvements and directed viewers to a contact website mentioned on-air for more information and flyers about the July 12 Central Park performance.