Hip-Hop Heads Flood The Streets at The 15th Annual Bushwick Collective Block Party

Highlights included the headliner N.O.R.E., Black Moon's Buckshot and DJ Evil Dee, and tons of new murals on Troutman

Thousands of people took to the streets near the Jefferson L on Saturday for the 15th annual Bushwick Collective Block Party, a free hip-hop and street art festival organized, as always, by Joe Ficalora, who grew up in the neighborhood and, over the past two decades, has helped transform this industrial patch of Brooklyn into a world-renowned outdoor gallery.

Hip-Hop Heads Flood The Streets at The 15th Annual Bushwick Collective Block Party

(Photo by Scott Lynch)

Performers at the day-long rager included the headliner N.O.R.E. (aka Noreaga), who stepped in at the last minute after Bones Thugs-N-Harmony cancelled due to a double-cooking problem, and Brooklyn native Buckshot and DJ Evil Dee of Black Moon, who threw down an impressively long and rowdy set. Honey Bxby, Nems, Chandler, Royal Flush, Lil Dee, Statik Selektah, and Tony Touch also hit the stage over the course of the six-hour concert.

Buckshot performing at the 15th annual Bushwick Collective block party

Buckshot (Photo by Scott Lynch)

DStroy once again kept everyone entertained as the festival’s host and hype man, Ficalora made several emotional appearances before the crowd, several moms were brought on stage, weed and nutcrackers were consumed with abandon, and nearly everyone, it seemed, was rocking some strain of Knicks gear.

DStroy and Joe Ficalora at the 15th annual Bushwick Collective block party

DStroy and Joe Ficalora (Photo by Scott Lynch)

(Photo by Scott Lynch)

“I love this event because I’m from Bushwick,” a reveler named Expo-1 told Brooklyn Magazine, “and it’s always amazing to see all these hip hop legends perform here. Plus, I always see lots of friends from the neighborhood too. It’s all about community.